FIBA World Cup Semifinals Preview: Team USA vs. Lithuania

For the past few weeks every game that Team USA has played during the FIBA World Cup has had a simple question attached to the end of it– did anything happen during the game that made us think the US could defeat Spain in the finals? On Wednesday though all of those thoughts and questions and analysis was rendered a waste of time when Boris Diaw led France to a massive upset of Spain in the quarterfinals and opened things up for Anthony Davis and Team USA to take home the first World Cup of Basketball title.

To take home that crown the Americans need to first win two more games though and the first of the two comes this afternoon when the team takes on Lithuania in the semifinals. While this Lithuanian team is much differential than the ones in the past that have been an international power and a thorn in Team USA’s side the young group should still make things a bit tough on the USA for at least a bit. Here are some things to watch, and how to watch, for this afternoon’s contest.

When: 2 pm CT.

Where: Palau San Jordi, Barcelona. On ESPN and the WatchESPN app.

1. Can the USA defend Donatas Motiejunas?

While the Lithuanian teams of the past have been led by solid guard play from players like Sarunas Jasikevicius this iteration of the Lithuanian National Team is led by two young NBA bigs in Montiejunas and Jonas Valanciunas. While Motiejunas is still struggling to find an NBA role he has clearly found one with his international squad as a stretch-four that has the ability to put the ball on the floor a bit. Kenneth Faried has always struggled defending bigs who can shoot the three so how Team USA will play Montiejunas if he starts to get hot will be key on how long Lithuania stays in the game.

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2. How Well Will Anthony Davis Defend Valanciunas?

Davis is without a doubt a better player than Valanciunas but he is also a smaller player and that will come into play in this game. Lithuania runs their offense through their bigs and may try to post Jonas up against Davis to get the Brow into foul trouble. If that happens things could be a mess for the US defense as Valanciunas can also shoot from the mid-range and DeMarcus Cousins won’t have the mobility to stay with him. Davis will have to stay disciplined and on his feet when the Lithuanians post him up so that he doesn’t pick up silly fouls. If he does that it is hard to see the Americans having much of an issue?

3. Can the Americans Keep Controlling the Offensive Glass?

There are going to be plenty of easy, open shots for Team USA in this one but their most consistent offense so far in the tournament has been Davis and Faried on the offensive glass. Against a bigger team than they have mostly seen so far those looks can be harder to get. If Davis and Faried can’t get those easy put back points the Americans could fall victim to a bad shooting night and be in trouble late which is exactly what happened to Spain. If they can use their athleticism to get to those shots though, this one could be over at halftime.

4. Can Team USA Stay Focused?

With everyone talking about the eventual Team USA/Spain championship that seemed destined to happen it is only right to assume that the Americans were too. With that game now off the table and four teams remaining that don’t look deep enough to really beat them can Team USA stay focused enough early to put away games when they should? The next two games should be ones that Team USA wins easily but coming out flat at this point is a dangerous game. All it takes is a cold shooting day to turn what should be a blowout into a game and without the energy that Team USA has when things are going right there is a real (but minuscule) chance things could go horribly wrong still.

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