South Sudan showed a ton of fight in the tune-up game vs. USA, but ultimately fell short. Can they figure them out this time?

Catch the game on Wednesday, August 1st, at 3:00 AM, Manila time.

USA (1-0)

Starting five:

• Stephen Curry
• Anthony Edwards
• LeBron James
• Jayson Tatum
• Anthony Davis

Team USA flexed its muscles in its Paris debut on Monday with a 110-84 win against the Nikola Jokic-led Serbia. They were firing on all cylinders and hit a total of 18 three-pointers. Six scored in double digits, including Kevin Durant’s 23 on 8-of-9 shooting and LeBron James’s 21 with eight rebounds and nine assists. Stephen Curry, Anthony Edwards, Jrue Holiday, and Devin Booker were the other guys who reached the mark.

We’ll see how good it prepared them for this rematch, though. They were all over the place in the squeaky 101-100 win over South Sudan last July 20, quite far from the expected domination. Durant and James will be eyed to lead again, although with the amount of talent in the group, it will most likely change from game to game.

Jayson Tatum, who had a DNP-CD vs. Serbia, will finally take the floor according to head coach Steve Kerr. It’s pretty exciting as Tatum is sure to make his presence felt.

South Sudan (1-0)

Starting five:

• Carlik Jones
• Marial Shayok
• Nuni Omot
• JT Thor
• Wenyen Gabriel

South Sudan continued to make head turns as they boasted a 90-79 win over Puerto Rico to open up the Group stage. It featured a balanced attack with a lot of energy on both ends. Floor general Carlik Jones starred again, posting 19 points, seven boards, and six dimes.

Plenty of eyeballs will stay on Jones as he also dropped a triple-double of 15 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists on USA last July 20th. He moved with confidence too and earned himself some attention among NBA teams. Marial Shayok backed him up well with 24 points and two steals on 6-of-12 shooting from beyond the arc, so look out for him as well. 

Further, NBA players Wenyen Gabriel and JT Thor, plus Nuni Omot and Bul Kuol could be factors too. They have provided hustle and timely baskets in the friendly games and the opener opposite Puerto Rico.

PICKS:

Spread: South Sudan (+28)

Over/Under: Over (191)