In a basketball game that included legends of the sport like LeBron James and Stephen Curry, it was former Virginia men’s basketball star Marial Shayok who stole the show and nearly led South Sudan to one of the greatest upsets in international basketball history. Shayok scored 24 points and South Sudan had the seemingly unbeatable United States Olympic Men’s Basketball Team on the ropes until a second-half surge led by James, who scored the game-winning layup, allowed the Americans to escape with a 101-100 win in a USA Basketball Showcase game on Saturday in London.
Shayok, who played at Virginia for three seasons from 2014-2017 before transferring to Iowa State for his final season of college basketball, finished with 24 points on 9/16 shooting, went 6/12 from three-point range, and recorded three rebounds, two assists, and two steals. In the 28 minutes Shayok was on the floor, South Sudan outscored Team USA by three points.
South Sudan led by as many as 16 points in the first half, but stormed back in the second half to seize the lead. With the Americans up by four with less than a minute left in regulation, Shayok collected an offensive rebound and knocked down a mid-range jumper to cut the deficit to two. After Anthony Davis missed a dunk, JT Thor knocked down a pull-up corner three to put South Sudan back in front by a point.
Then came a vintage LeBron James moment, as the 39-year-old drove to the rack and scored a layup to give the Americans the lead. South Sudan was unable to convert on the ensuing possession and Team USA survived.
Though his team ultimately came up short, it was certainly a memorable performance for South Sudan and Shayok, a Sudanese-Canadian who was born in Ottawa, Ontario. Shayok and South Sudan will get another crack at Team USA when the two Group C teams meet at the Paris Olympics on July 31st.
