The USA capped off its dominant run in the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup with one final victory in Riga, Latvia, to bring home the gold medal. An 11-0 run in the fourth quarter propelled the team to its eighth U19 World Cup title.
Purdue basketball's Jaden Ivey scored a team-high 16 points to lead the USA to an 83-81 win over France on Sunday. The team was undefeated in seven games and previously beat Turkey, Mali, Australia, Korea, Senegal and Canada.
Ivey's 16 points tied a team-lead with Louisiana Tech forward Kenneth Lofton Jr. The Boilermaker guard shot 6-of-10 from the field and made 4-of-6 from the free-throw line. He also recorded four rebounds, one block and a team-high three steals.
Purdue teammate Caleb Furst saw just under 10 minutes of action on the court, and he managed to register four points and four rebounds.
France was led by Victor Wembanyama, who scored 22 points on 6-of-14 shooting. He made all nine of his shots from the foul line and also snatched a team-high eight rebounds. The 7-foot-2 forward led his team with eight blocks against the USA.
In a back-and-forth matchup, the USA held the lead for just under two minutes longer than France throughout the game. There were four total lead changes, but the USA took advantage of 44 points in the paint and 19 fast-break points.
The USA also outrebounded France 43-29, and 16 offensive rebounds contributed to seven second-chance points. Each team's largest lead was just eight points, and the USA did enough to come away with the two-point victory.
