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Gabriel has revealed what representing South Sudan means for both himself and his teammates after they nearly upset a star-studded Team USA in a close 101-100 loss ahead of the Olympics.
South Sudan forward Wenyen Gabriel was beaming with pride and emotion after his team came tantalizingly close to a historic upset against a United States squad filled with NBA superstars narrowly losing 101-100 in an Olympics warm-up game in London.
LeBron James, the 39-year-old NBA all-time scoring leader, saved Team USA with a game-high 25 points, including the decisive driving layup with just eight seconds left at the O2 Arena.
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South Sudan had taken a late lead following an impressive 8-0 scoring run and seemed poised to secure one of the greatest shocks in international basketball before James clinched the win for his team.
"I'm just happy we was able to represent our country. A lot of people around the world didn't know what South Sudan was. And today we was able to represent our country with pride and put up a good fight and show them the potential of our country. So I think it was a proud moment for a lot of people," said Gabriel, reflecting on the monumental effort by his team.
South Sudan, leading 58-44 at halftime, almost pulled off an upset that would have reverberated through the basketball world.
"Obviously we wanted to win. We played really well today. I'm really proud of my teammates, the type of heart that we showed and dedication, trying to put respect on our name and to get our country respected. To know that we don't have any indoor basketball," he added.
The stark contrast between the two teams’ resources and backgrounds was a central theme in Gabriel’s reflections.
"We don't have anything like that. We're a bunch of refugees that came together for a few weeks out of the year that over here trying our best playing against some of the best players ever. And this is much bigger than basketball for us. So to show that people that we compete and understand that hoops in Africa are something of the future that it's only a matter of time before the next generation gets built up," he noted.
In the second half, Anthony Davis, a former NCAA champion, NBA champion, and Olympic Gold Medal winner, led a spirited comeback for Team USA.
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His dominating presence on both ends of the court was instrumental in overturning South Sudan’s lead, culminating in a 16-0 run that ended the third quarter.
However, the drama did not end there as JT Thor of the Charlotte Hornets hit a clutch 3-pointer, giving South Sudan an improbable one-point lead with just 20 seconds left in the game.
The basketball world held its breath anticipating an unprecedented upset but after LeBron James's driving layup restored the USA's lead South Sudan had one last chance.
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Gabriel in a dramatic final play rebounded a missed shot and attempted a game-winning put-back.
Anthony Edwards of Team USA fouled Gabriel, but the referees let the contact go, and the clock expired, leaving Gabriel and his team just short of victory.
Gabriel emphasized the broader significance of the game for South Sudan.
"There's a billion people in the country that's no different than any one of us. You've been able to represent us and get to this level based off of this opportunities, you know, being able to have different facilities, you know, me growing up in the States, a lot of us growing up in Australia, some people growing up in Canada, and just having those different opportunities is what made us be able to compete at this level," he stated.
"But there's a visit some tall kid back in the village. I remember I went back home to South Sudan, visit them, and they didn't have any opportunity seven feet tall, and they're herding cow. Some people around the world don't have the opportunity to play basketball for a living, you know, to go shoot hoops. Some people have to go go go fish for food," Gabriel recounted.
In the end, Gabriel’s pride in his team’s effort and his hope for the future of South Sudanese basketball were evident.
"We can keep building our country so one day that we can be really proud of saying that we're from South Sudan."
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