South Sudan coach, basketball federation president accuse refs of bias after Olympic loss to Serbia

Serbia's Nikola Jokic, center, shoots as South Sudan's Wenyen Gabriel, left, defends during a men's basketball game at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, Aug. 3, 2024, in Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France.

Serbia's Nikola Jokic, center, shoots as South Sudan's Wenyen Gabriel, left, defends during a men's basketball game at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, Aug. 3, 2024, in Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)


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VILLENEUVE-D'ASCQ, France — South Sudan's coach and basketball federation president said referees were biased against their team after a 96-85 loss to Serbia that ended an exciting run for the lone African team in the men's basketball tournament at the Paris Olympics. Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 28 points to help Serbia move into next week's quarterfinals. South Sudan coach Royal Ivey pointed to a wide foul discrepancy as evidence of bias by game officials, and federation president Luol Deng and Deng said African referees should be part of major international tournaments. Ivey pointed out that Serbia shot 31 free throws and South Sudan attempted six.

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Kyle Hightower

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