As the first opposition for the reigning Olympic and World basketball champions, the US, the French team may have been hoping for an upset. Led by Tony Parker and Boris Diaw, both familiar names in the NBA, they put on a worthy performance but ended up outclassed by the superior physicality and teamwork of the Dream Team descendants, losing 98-71. The match was a physical confrontation with several players close to getting fouled out.

Tyson Chandler and Kevin Durant scored first to give the US a lead they would never lose. France played a tight game in the first quarter, never allowing the US to pull away by more than five points. A combination of a steady Ronny Turiaf inside the paint and a beautiful 3-point fast break by Yannick Bokolo just before the whistle  allowed France to frustrate the American game as Carmelo Anthony and Deron Williams missed good chances to end the quarter at 22-21.

The second quarter, however, saw the real NBA stars bring their A-game. Lebron James and Kobe Bryant got on the scoreboard while Anthony and Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook toughened up, notching several fouls. Chris Paul then drained a three-pointer to give the US an 11-0 run, leaving France reeling. Florent Pietrus tried to bring his team back by being consistent from the free throw line but the gap kept widening until King James slammed home a massive dunk to give the US a 50-36 lead.

The French did not lose heart and sought to play their way back into contention in the third but they never reduced their deficit to below 15 points as the collective play and tight defense of the US dominated. The Timberwolves' Kevin Love came off the bench to hammer the final nail into the French coffin, picking up 14 points in as many minutes. This was an example of the depth of talent on the US bench as James Harden and Andre Iguodala were able to pick up the slack toward the end, granting a rest to the stars.

A last second two-pointer by Boris Diaw allowed France to save the honor but the final score line left no doubt as to the ease with which the US had seen off one of their toughest opponents on the way to the gold.