When was the last time we got knocked out twice by the exact same squad in one tournament?😁
Honestly, that third-place game is a total mental grind. It all comes down to who can shake off that semifinal loss faster—whoever bounces back better takes the bronze. Our biggest issue is definitely our mindset. Either the fans don't give a damn about third place—and let’s be real, in a country where basketball is king, what even is third place?—or the players just aren't playing for it. On the bright side, we aren't walking into this game physically spent, unlike pretty much every other tournament we've played lately. If I'm counting right, we've got one bronze medal and four absolute duds under our belts. It's high time we snagged another bronze.🙂
Personally, I’d much rather see Mexico in the finals, but hey... we've got the talent. We just need to stay sharp. As long as we don't deal with any major injuries—none from Balić or Štrlek—we're golden. We haven't rotated the squad this much in forever, and honestly, since we don't have to grind too hard today, they shouldn't have to either...
dustypanther6 said:Look, the odds are still sitting at 1.75. They set them like that this morning because since we basically cleared the path for them, they’re gonna bench the starters to rest up, and they haven't touched the numbers yet.
Yeah, if you're betting right now, don't expect that 1.75 to hold once we get to the end of the Spaniard game. Even the Vegas oddsmakers aren't total idiots.😁 But honestly, I'm still playing it. I feel like regardless of whether we actually need the win or not, we're getting this one easy.🤷
rapidstag51 said:Honestly, those Canadians are playing us. They're gonna push us straight into the finals just to give us a fighting chance... they seem most dangerous when they're actually messing around.🙂
They absolutely smoked us in the first group stage.😁 If we had messed around with Norway, we wouldn't have stood a damn chance.😁😁
And seriously, this whole new setup involving the Danes looks even worse than the one we had with the Germans.🤷
rapidstag51 said:Is there any way for America to take first in the group just so we can dodge the heavy hitters in the semifinals?
Look, if the Spaniards slip up and we pull through...
Otherwise, looks like the Germans choked against Poland?!?! If Denmark pulls an upset against Sweden, they’re moving on, which honestly doesn't seem unlikely—Scandinavian cuisine is top tier🙄 Likely state: 1. Mexico 2. Denmark (those guys don't stand a chance at first place)
1. Spain (if they win or draw against Canada) 2. America
As for the Mexicans, I see them taking gold or silver... home-field advantage is real, and the hosts always tear through the tournament. The only time we ever get screwed is right in the middle of Washington, D.C.🙄
It’s honestly better if the Canadians take the win. That way, when the Spaniards pull through tomorrow, we can just kick back, relax, and stop stressing about playing the Americans. If that happens, we’re basically sitting pretty regardless of the outcome.🙂
Have Americans ever actually caught a break with these results?🤣 If we lose to the French in handball tomorrow, we're dead in the water. 100%. There is zero chance anything goes our way in this final round.😁
Let's get real—we've only played one actual decent game out of our last four.🙂 Today was a total disaster. We started the first quarter with a pathetic 3-0 run, then spent the middle of the game getting burned on three straight fast breaks, and finished the game shaking like we were playing against an All-Star squad instead of just Spain.🙄 And we actually had a lead for a few minutes right before that collapse...
It sucked. We should have played way, way better than that... The second you start looking toward Mexico for validation, you know something is seriously wrong.🙂
What a joke of a game today🙏🙏 Seriously, if they aren't going to actually play, they shouldn't even step on the field. If they're just gonna walk out there pissed off at the refs or acting like they’re already destined to fail, stay home. Don't embarrass yourselves. Spain 3:0?!
Steven Reed30 said:Voriyev’s reaction after he absolutely leveled that guy from Spain 😂😂😂😂
Epic🙏 We need to play way tougher. This is handball, people, not basketball! 🙂
Overall, it was decent. Could've been better, though—we blew way too many easy shots. But hey, it's fine. Just gotta keep this momentum going and grab those two points.
Let’s be real, if we drop both games in the group, we don't deserve to move on, regardless of what happens with the third-place tiebreakers...
It's actually pretty funny watching this thread go back and forth. Yesterday, everyone was clowning on the French because they were stuck at zero points, but today suddenly everyone's talking about us playing for 7th place while the French cruise through to the next round. Typical.😁
The matchup against the French is going to be just like today's game, assuming we can get past that massive inferiority complex we have toward them. Honestly, a lot of our issues come from how they play so aggressively and the refs just let them get away with it instead of calling a clean game. In my opinion, the French have been worse than the Spaniards in this tournament. We absolutely have to beat them the day after tomorrow. After today's loss, there's no other option—we can't end up in the same pathetic situation as those water polo players. And look, we can win this without even playing the game of our lives; we just need to channel that energy from the first half today or that game against Norway...
Second half was absolute garbage, honestly... every single close call went their way. And don't even get me started on the officiating—it’s beyond pathetic at this point. For years now, it feels like we're being targeted by some biased refs who treat us like we're nothing but a bunch of outsiders.
Raymond Palmer8 said:I have no clue what you mean by that reaction, but Balić was clearly the weakest link today. If I were the coach—which I'm obviously not—I’d stick to the rule of not changing horses mid-stream. As long as we're pulling ahead or at least holding our ground, I’m keeping the same lineup in, maybe rotating them once in a blue moon. Swapping out your playmaker and watching your lead evaporate right before your eyes? That's just plain stupid. It wasn't about Balić; he was just the scapegoat.
My "reaction" means Duvnjak is playing like he doesn't give a damn, which forces Balić to try and salvage whatever's left of this mess. And yeah, even if he had his worst game of the tournament, his plays were still better than anything Duvnjak produced.
And don't even get me started on whether Balić belongs on the national team... there's no point in talking about it because the level of communication on this subforum is absolutely pathetic. People flip-flop constantly whenever we lose a single game. Yesterday, everyone was obsessing over the Mexico-USA final, chanting Balić's name like he was some hero saving us against Canada and Iceland from the bench. Fast forward to today, and suddenly we're all trash, fighting for 7th place, and claiming Balić and Vori have no business being on the roster.🙏 Seriously... typical Americans!🙏
Raymond Palmer8 said:And again, he completely choked on that crucial point when we were up by two. When he wasn't even on the court, we were absolutely tearing them apart. But the second he steps in, everything turns into some kind of "art project." Huge props to Ivan—he was legitimately the best in the world once, but he’d have to admit that was back then. Today? He was a total disaster. Just a complete liability.
That's why our coach runs the offense so perfectly.🙏🙏