USA Open World Cup with 99-72 Win Over New Zealand

26 August 2023

USA 99, NZL 72

The United States opened the 2023 FIBA Men's World Cup with a 99-72 win versus New Zealand on Saturday night at Mall of Asia Arena in Manila, Philippines.

The USA is in Group C, and will face Greece on Monday (8:40 a.m. ET) and Jordan on Wednesday (4:40 a.m. ET). Both games can be seen on ESPN2 or ESPN+.

The U.S. is seeking its sixth FIBA Men’s World Cup gold medal.

View the USA-New Zealand box score here.

TEAM NOTES

Versus New Zealand: With tonight’s 99-72 win, the USA improves to 6-0 all-time against the Tall Blacks, including 3-0 at the World Cup. USA are now 58-2 in the preliminary round of the World Cup. Thirteen of the last 15 games in the preliminary round have ended with margins of more than 20 points.

Starting Out: Head coach Steve Kerr called on the same starting lineup as he has the previous five games: Jalen Brunson, Anthony Edwards, Mikal Bridges, Brandon Ingram and Jaren Jackson, Jr.

FIBA Debuts: All 12 USA players made their senior debuts on the FIBA competition stage. Brunson, Tyrese Haliburton and Jackson Jr. have all won gold medals at FIBA championship events. Brunson won gold at the 2014 U18 FIBA Americas Championship and 2015 FIBA U19 Men’s World Cup, while Haliburton and Jackson Jr. won gold at the 2019 FIBA U19 Men’s World Cup and 2017 FIBA U17 Men’s World Cup, respectively.

Start to Finish: After winning all four quarters in Saturday’s game, the USA is now 20-4 in quarters over its last six games. The U.S. won Saturday’s third and fourth quarters by nine points apiece, and are now sporting an impressive +65 margin in the fourth quarter over the last six games.

Finishing Strong: After a slow start in the first half from the field, the U.S. responded in the second half, shooting 21-for-29 (72.4%) from the field, including 5-for-8 (62.5%) from 3-point range.

Defensive Dominance: The U.S. forced New Zealand into 19 turnovers, and held the Kiwis to 36 percent shooting (27/74) from the field.

Superior Depth: The U.S. outscored New Zealand 54-23. In addition to leading scorer Banchero (21), Reaves (12) and Haliburton (10) scored in double-figures from the bench.

PLAYER NOTES

Leading the Way: Paolo Banchero is the fourth player to lead the U.S. in scoring over the last six games. Banchero, who scored 16 of his 21 points in the second half, was 8-for-10 (80%) from the field, including 2-for-2 (100%) from 3-point range. He was named the TCL Player of the Game.

Double Figure Figures: Six Americans finished with double digits in the scoring column: (Banchero-21, Edwards-14, Jackson Jr.-12, Austin Reaves-12, Brunson- 12, Haliburton-10). Eleven of the 12 USA players notched points.

Caring is Sharing: Reaves had a team-high six assists in USA’s win over New Zealand. The U.S. notched 23 total assists from eight different players.