PARIS (France) - So many United States stars played well through the first four games of the Olympics. Steph Curry was not one of them though. Then he showed up when USA needed him most.
Curry drained 9 three-pointers on 14 attempts in scoring a team-high 36 points in USA's 95-91 comeback victory to beat Serbia and reach their fifth straight Gold Medal Game.
Most of USA fans - and Curry himself - must have thought finally.
The 36-year-old Curry, who is making his Olympics debut in France, came into the Semi-Finals averaging 7.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists. But most importantly for his game, Curry had connected on just 5-of-20 for 25.0 percent.
The four-time NBA champion started on fire with a jumper just 14 seconds into the game. He followed that with 4 three-pointers in a span of 107 seconds. He added another triple and scored 17 points in the first quarter.
I knew I had it in there, it was just a matter of when. - Steph
"We talked about it all summer that we were going to be challenged at some point. Serbia is tough. They are a great team and playing them three times it’s always tough to beat a team three times. So to come back the way we did was amazing", he said after the game.
"I knew I had it in there, it was just a matter of when. You work the same, no matter if you get two shots, three shots or something like tonight. I just praise god that I was just able to enjoy a moment. We have no quit and we know how much it means to win a gold medal with this group."
Curry did not stop hitting shots, finishing with 9 three-pointers - the sixth Olympics game with 9+ triples and one three-pointer shy of the all-time record. He also added 8 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal.
Most three-pointers in a single game all-time at the Olympics
The three-pointer was introduced as a statistic for the Olympics in 1988.
"I haven't shot the ball well the whole tournament, but it doesn't waver your confidence to meet the moment. And I had some great looks to start the game. I knocked them down, kept the rhythm flowing," he said.
Curry also made big plays down the stretch, hitting a triple with 144 seconds left to give USA the lead for good 87-86. He added a layup and then two free throws with 8 seconds to play to secure the win.
"Knocking down a big shot like that … you live for those moment," he said.
Curry was impressed with the team's fight in getting the comeback, saying: "To come back like we did, I have seen a lot of Team USA basketball and that was special."
FIBA