It’s official: Tyrese Haliburton and Team USA have played their last FIBA World Cup game, and it was certainly a thriller. In the bronze medal game, Team USA went the distance with Canada before ultimately falling in overtime.
Team USA’s loss to Germany in the semifinals eliminated them from the gold medal game, thus leaving them in the fight for third place against Canada, who lost to Serbia in their semifinal game.
Haliburton’s performance against Germany was interesting, to say the least. While he had his usual assists and made the offense better when he was on the floor, his defense left a lot to be desired.
Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton gets mixed reviews in Team USA loss to Canada
That would ultimately be Team USA’s undoing as the game wound down, as Germany kept hitting tough shots, including one by Andreas Obst that left Haliburton on the ground.
Following the game, Team USA felt like they still had something to prove, especially Haliburton, who felt his work was not finished and was planning a redemption performance against Canada.
Hear Tyrese Haliburton's thoughts as he and the United States collapse at the Semifinal round of the 2023 FIBA World Cup against Germany.#FIBAWC pic.twitter.com/nCLkwherg4
— Andrei de Guzman (@TBasketAndrei) September 8, 2023
Canada, on the other hand, was on a roll heading into the semifinals against Serbia but lost 86-95 in said game. This set up a matchup against Team USA for the bronze medal on Sunday.
It’s pretty safe to say that the duo of Dillon Brooks and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gave Team USA more than they bargained for, despite Haliburton not taking Canada lightly going into the game.
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