USA vs Montenegro Prediction & Betting Tips - Basketball World Cup

Prediction published on 31/08/2023, 16:18  by Joseph King | Modified on 31/08/2023 at 16:18 in Basketball World Cup Predictions

The second phase of the FIBA World Cup group stage sees the United States taking on Montenegro in the new Group J. The USA sits atop the group with six points and a +103 points differential while Montenegro is third on five points. The group closes out in the next fixture as the USA takes on Lithuania and Montenegro squares off against Greece. Steve Kerr’s United States team has been progressively improving as the tournament wears on. It makes sense, as the NBA-populated roster adjusts to the FIBA ruleset. Their last time taking to the court saw the team record their biggest win of the competition and put up their personal high points total. Anthony Edwards led the way with 22 points in only 18 minutes of action as the USA won 110-62 against Jordan. The result means that the tournament favorites have now won their last eight consecutive matches as they build up steam for the knockout rounds.

It’s largely been a positive tournament for 18th-ranked Montenegro who defeated Egypt and Mexico in the group stage. They would, however, lose 91-71 to eighth-ranked Lithuania in their third and final group match. They’ll now face their toughest test of the tournament against the favorites to win the gold medal. The Black Mountain’s shooting cooled off significantly in their most recent game against Lithuania. Their opponents consistently double-teamed Montenegro star player Nikola Vucevic, daring the supporting cast to beat them from deep. Montenegro was unable to respond as they shot an anemic 16% from three (5 for 31), and just 33% from the field overall. It goes without saying, they’ll have to be drastically improved if they even want a chance of keeping this game close.