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Olympic Basketball 2021: TV Schedule, Live Stream and Odds for Wednesday
July 28, 2021
France's next step in their quest for gold in the men's tournament, an encore for Luka Doncic and a key Group A matchup on the women's side highlight Wednesday's Olympic Basketball schedule.
Pool play will continue on Wednesday with the table starting to take shape and the stakes elevating. Some teams are off to a great start and are in the driver's seat of their groups, including the French men's team. Their upset of the United States means they likely just have to beat the Czech Republic to ensure a spot in the quarterfinals.
Doncic has his Slovenia team in a similar position. They line up against host nation Japan in another game with a wide spread.
The women's side figures to offer more competitive basketball on Wednesday. Canada is a big favorite over South Korea, but Spain and Serbia appear to be evenly matched on paper.
Here's a look at the schedule along with important broadcast information and the latest lines.
Olympic Basketball Schedule
Wednesday, July 28
Men's: Czech Republic vs. France (-9.5), 8 a.m. ET, NBC Sports App, NBCOlympics.com
Women's: Canada (-20) vs. South Korea, 9 p.m. ET, NBC Sports App, NBCOlympics.com
Thursday, July 29
Men's: Slovenia (-20.5) vs. Japan, 12:40 a.m. ET, NBC Sports App, NBCOlympics.com
Women's: Spain vs. Serbia (-1), 4:20 a.m. ET, NBC Sports App, NBCOlympics.com
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.
France finds itself on the brink of winning its group and still riding high on the momentum of beating the U.S. However, the veteran squad also knows the bigger prize is still up for grabs.
"I got to lead the team because I know these guys," leading scorer Evan Fournier said, per Brian Windhorst of ESPN. "It's a hell of a win. Our country is going to be extremely proud. But it's just one game, to be honest."
It did show the true potential of the French team, though. Fournier played an incredible game against the Americans, putting up 28 points while shooting 50 percent from the field. Rudy Gobert serves as the defensive anchor, giving them a strong inside-out duo.
The scary thing is that France didn't even shoot all that well. It connected on 29.6 percent of its triples as a team.
It will have an opportunity to get dialed in against a Czech Republic squad that beat Iran in a competitive game to open its schedule. It's led by Tomas Satoransky of the Chicago Bulls and Jan Vesely, who was the No. 6 overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft, but the two combined for just 17 points in the team's first game.
It will need a much better effort from Satoransky to find success against France. He shot just 2-of-14 from the field.
Luka Doncic put on a historic performance in his Olympic debut. The 48 points he recorded in a win over Argentina is tied for the second-most in a game by any men's player, let alone in a debut.
Now, the 22-year-old will get an opportunity to tee off against a Japanese team that figures to be outmatched after giving up 20 points to Ricky Rubio in just under 22 minutes.
On the women's side, Canada has the opportunity to get back on track against South Korea. It lost a tight game to Serbia to open its tournament bid and now needs a victory to set up a crucial game against Spain with a quarterfinal berth on the line.
Just how desperate Spain will be when that game comes around depends on its matchup with Serbia late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning depending on your time zone. The Serbs showcased a strong defense when it held Canada to 38 percent shooting in the opener.
The winner will all but guarantee a spot in the quarterfinals. The loser is going to have some work to do, especially if it's Spain with a game against Canada on tap.
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