Olympics Day 1: Canada survives Greece’s late rally

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The 2024 Olympic Games are officially underway. Group A (Australia, Spain, Greece, Canada)  and Group B (Germany, Brazil, France, Japan) — tipped off the action on Saturday, July 27.
Recap the action from the first day of Group Play below:
Group A: Canada 86, Greece 79
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VILLENEUVE-D’ASCQ, France (AP) — Canada was tested, then held on to get its first Olympic win in 24 years.
RJ Barrett scored 23 points, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 21 and Canada survived a big effort from Giannis Antetokounmpo to beat Greece 86-79 in the Paris Olympics opener for both teams in Group A play on Saturday night.
Antetokounmpo led all scorers with 34 points for Greece. Dillon Brooks scored 14 for Canada.
Canada led by as many as 16 and never trailed, though Greece made matters very interesting in the final moments. Vasilis Toilopoulos scored with 1:15 remaining to get Greece within four and a Canada turnover on the next possession led to a dunk by Antetokounmpo to cut the lead to 80-78.
But Gilgeous-Alexander got a high-arching shot over Antetokounmpo’s outstretched arm to kiss off the glass for a score with 42.8 seconds left, restoring the four-point edge, and Canada would escape.
There were 52 fouls called in the game resulting in 64 free throws — 32 for each team.
It was Canada’s first Olympic men’s basketball win since 2000 at Sydney. The Canadians hadn’t made an Olympic tournament since — but earned this spot after a run to the bronze medal at the World Cup last summer in the Philippines.
Group B: France 78, Brazil 66 
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VILLENEUVE-D’ASCQ, France (AP) — Victor Wembanyama walked out to a star’s welcome for his Olympic debut. He made sure to give France’s fans plenty to cheer about.
Wembanyama marked his start of the Paris Games with all the dunks, defense and other eye-popping plays that have made the 20-year-old appointment viewing during his young basketball career.
More importantly for France, it added up to a victory for the host nation.
Wembanyama had 19 points, nine rebounds, four steals and three blocks to help France overcome an early deficit and hold off Brazil 78-66 to open the group stage at Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille.
Nicolas Batum added 19 points for France, which was showered with chants of “Le Bleus!” to join Germany as winners in Group B on the opening day of the tournament in Lille.

France next plays Japan, which lost Saturday to Germany, on Tuesday. Brazil has Germany next.
Leo Meindl and Cristiano Felicio both led Brazil with 14 points.
France withstood a fast start by Brazil and used a late first-half run led by Wembanyama, then outscored the Brazilians 18-9 in the third quarter to increase what had been a three-point halftime lead to 57-45 entering the fourth.
While the crowd was buzzing at the outset for the host team, Brazil tamped down some of that energy early, scoring first and building a 12-point lead in the second quarter.
The initial highlights nearly all belonged to the Brazilians. They included a first-quarter fast break that ended with a lob from Leo Meindl to Joao Cardoso, who delivered a two-handed, poster-perfect dunk over Rudy Gobert.
France’s final bucket was a 3-pointer by Evan Fournier that sent France to halftime with a 39-36 lead.
Group B: Germany 97, Japan 77
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VILLENEUVE-D’ASCQ, France (AP) — Franz Wagner had 22 points and six rebounds, and Germany pulled away from Japan in the second half to secure a win in Group B play.
Daniel Theis added 18 points and seven rebounds. Moritz Wagner added 15 points for the defending World Cup champions, who never trailed. Germany has Brazil next in group play on Tuesday. Japan takes on Olympics host France.
Germany had five players in double-figures.
“I think we kind of got a target on our back after last year’s success (in the World Cup),” Theis said. “Everybody wants to beat the world champion.”
Rui Hachimura finished with 20 points for Japan, which has only 13 wins in its seven Olympic appearances.
“We know we’re organized, so we have to get together,” Hachimura said. “We’ve got to know what we’re doing.”
Germany entered the Olympics ranked third in FIBA’s world rankings behind the the U.S. and Spain.
It played like it against the Japanese, never trailing and taking a 16-point lead in the second quarter. The Germans scored 46 points in the paint and also got a big contribution from their bench, which contributed 38 points.
Group A: Australia 92, Spain 80
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VILLENEUVE-D’ASCQ, France (AP) — Jock Landale had 20 points and nine rebounds, and Australia beat Spain 92-80 Saturday to open the group stage of the Olympic basketball tournament in Lille.
Patty Mills added 19 points and Josh Giddey contributed 17 to lift Australia to the victory in Group A, which also includes Greece and Canada. Australia next meets Canada on Tuesday while Spain will face Greece.
Australia led by as many as 14 points before Spain surged and used a 9-0 run to take its first lead of the game, 56-54, in the third quarter. The Aussies responded with a 15-4 spurt to close the period and never trailed again.
Santi Aldama finished with 17 points for Spain. Sergio Llull added 17 for the Spaniards, who connected on 12 3–pointers but shot 39% overall from the field for the game at Pierre Mauroy Stadium.
Australia established its presence in the paint early, scoring 42 in the paint for the game and holding a 46-34 rebounding edge.
The Aussies led 49-42 at halftime.
Australia sprinted out to a 31-17 lead, with Jock Landale scoring eight early points.
Spain then used a 10-0 run that started late in the first quarter and continued into the second to get back in the game.
Spain opened the second half on a 14-6 run to take the lead, but Patty Mills and Jock Landale each hit crucial shots to regain control for the Aussies. After taking back the momentum, Australia went back on top 69-60 at the end of the third quarter. Aldama (27 points) stayed hot in the second half for Spain, his outside shooting keeping the Spaniards within striking distance throughout the fourth quarter.
Ultimately, Australia’s efficient scoring (51% FG, 50% 3-point FG) prevented Spain from closing the gap. Giddey (17 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assist) and Landale (20 points, 9 rebounds) were the top performers as Spain secured its first victory in group play.