South Sudan’s basketball team won their first ever Olympic contest in the early hours of Sunday morning, defeating Puerto Rico 90-79 in the first round of Group Play.
The Bright Stars not only won their first game ever on the Paris Olympic Stage, but now are just one win away from securing a spot in the quarterfinal round.
Former Auburn Tiger[autotag]JT Thor[/autotag] did not end up starting the contest for his country, but he did play the third most minutes (23) out of all players on his squad. Thor was also on the floor when the momentum shifted in favor of South Sudan early in the second half. With the Bright Stars trailing by six coming out of the locker room, Thor provided more than half of his seven rebounds, a steal, and a block, to help his team enter the fourth quarter leading by two.
The 21-year-old finished the contest with six points, seven rebounds, and a steal, block, and assist. While Thor did his part, the real story came from South Sudan’s starting five, where four of five starters finished with at least 12 points. Carlik Jones, who secured a triple-double in the exhibition against Team USA a week ago, led the way with 19.
South Sudan now sit in second place in Group C with two games left to play. If the Bright Stars can find a way to get past one of Team USA or Serbia they are all but certain to secure a spot in the medal round. They will have the first chance to do that on July 31 in a rematch against Team USA at 2 PM CST.
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