TEAM USA is careful not to take anything for granted as it ends its 2023 Fiba World Cup group stage play against Jordan on Wednesday night at the Mall of Asia.
The Americans are already through to the second round after winning their first two games in Group C, but are eager to sustain their gains and guard against complacency after seeing France get shockingly eliminated early in the tournament.
After finishing third in the 2019 edition and runner-up in the Tokyo Olympics, the French fell to Latvia and Canada in Group H in Jakarta.
Team USA coach Steve Kerr has kept tabs over in Manila.
“All of our guys saw the result with France,” Kerr said after their 109-81 win over Greece on Monday. “It’s a good reminder to all of us that you just can’t ease into any game in this tournament.”
“The level of competition is so much better now worldwide than it was eight years ago. Lot of really good talent, coaching. Teams are tough. Teams are good. We’re going to have to play well over forty minutes to win,” he added.
READ: Team USA rips Greece by 28 to clinch Round 2 berth
Despite blowing out their opponents by an average of 27.5 points in their first two games, the American can still work on how they start games after they fell into an early 10-point hole against New Zealand and let the Greeks score their game’s first four points.
After taking on Jordan, the Americans will then face the top two teams in Group D in Lithuania and Montenegro – in some order – before gearing up for the knockout phase starting with the quarterfinal.
“We’re really excited to win the first two and to guarantee ourselves a move to the second round, but we just keep going, one game at a time. And hopefully six more,” Kerr said.
Before getting ahead of themselves, Team USA focuses on Jordan in their matchup that tips off at 4:40 p.m.
Jordan, ranked No. 33 in the world, tries to grab its first win in the tournament after losing their first two matches, the latest a 95-87 overtime defeat at the hands of New Zealand.
“Even though we lost, there’s a lot of things to take from our game. We need to stay positive and build on it,” Jordan star guard Freddy Ibrahim said.
“Team USA is definitely going to be a tough matchup, probably the toughest in the whole World Cup, but it’s an experience of a lifetime, so we’re just going to go and play our game, and do our best.
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