RIO DE JANEIRO -- Two sluggish performances for the U.S. mens Olympic basketball team have not hurt its chances to win a gold medal in the eyes of Las Vegas oddsmakers.Despite a harrowing 94-91 escape Friday night against Serbia, which followed a 98-88 struggle two nights earlier against Australia, Team USA remains a 1-to-20 overwhelming favorite to win gold at the Rio Olympics, according to the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook.Team USA scrapped plans to practice Saturday in advance of Sunday afternoons Group A finale against France, preferring instead of focus on film work and a walkthrough on the cruise ship that USA Basketball is using as a home base here in Brazil.The quarterfinals begin Wednesday, with Team USA on course to play the fourth-place finisher in Group B -- Spain as of Saturday morning -- as long they beat France, which features NBA players?Tony Parker, Nicolas Batum, Rudy Gobert and Boris Diaw.The Americans appeared to be assembling the ideal response to the Australia game when they bolted to a 23-5 lead against Serbia, but they found themselves hanging on frantically at the finish. Bogdan Bogdanovic missed an open 3-pointer from the wing that could have forced overtime after the United States plans to foul before his shot went awry.Its a shorter game, a 40-minute game, and you can never let your guard down, Team USA assistant coach Tom Thibodeau said in a SportsCenter interview after the game. We felt that thats what we did.When things arent going well, we still have to play within a team concept and play together both offensively and defensively. The way this [international] game is played. ... You have to be tied together and you have to be able to sustain your concentration and effort through an entire possession. We didnt finish our defense as well as we could have.Thibodeau added: And then offensively, when things werent going our way, I thought we probably tried to go a little too much one-on-one, more a result of guys trying to get us going. We still have to stay within a team concept when things arent going well. You get into trouble together. You also get out of trouble together. ... We know things can change quickly. They can go from good to bad very quickly, but they can also go from bad to great very quickly.Said Team USA guard?DeMar DeRozan: We just got to step up our communication on the defensive?end. We all made that clear after the game. Thats something we got to be better at and will be better at.DeRozan echoed a concern raised after the game by teammates Draymond Green and Paul George, saying that offensive issues hurt Team USA as much as its defensive struggles to cope with a Serbian offense that, in the words of Carmelo Anthony, ran fluently.When were sharing the ball, were getting out in transition and everybodys getting a chance to touch the ball, DeRozan told SportsCenter, thats when we become really dangerous.Said Team USA big man DeAndre Jordan: Put together 40 minutes of defense and well be fine. We got some of the best scorers in the world. Offense isnt the problem. We got to worry about playing defense for a whole game. Authentic Jordans Shoes Wholesale .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Cheap Air Jordan 6 Nz Sale . Walcott is available for Saturdays home match against Southampton as Arsenal looks to extend its two-point lead at the top of the Premier League. The Gunners are currently the second highest scorers in the league but Wenger insists Walcott will add something extra to his team. http://www.cheapairjordan6nz.com/ . McCarthy, a player who played some games in the second tier for Wigan at the start of this season, would go on to shine inside Evertons midfield, outplaying the man he was brought in to replace, on one of the grandest stages in English football. On Saturday, it was fitting that Manchester Uniteds most recent dagger into the chest was delivered by Frenchman Yohan Cabaye, a wonderfully gifted central midfielder who put on an outstanding effort for Newcastle at Old Trafford. Cheap Air Jordan 6 Nz . Philadelphia is 2-0 against the Senators this season and scored five goals in each victory. The Flyers recorded a 5-0 win in Ottawa on Nov. 12 and then earned a 5-2 home decision on Nov. 19. The Flyers have claimed three straight and four of the last five encounters with the Sens overall and Philly has won two in a row and three of its past four tests in Canadas capital city. Cheap Air Jordan 6 Nz Online . Toronto has dropped games to Indiana and Miami since a five-game winning streak and closed out a three-game road trip at 1-2. Esteban Ocon says he and Force India expect to achieve big things together when he joins the team in 2017.Ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix, Mercedes junior Ocon was confirmed alongside Sergio Perez for next season after impressing at Manor, where he has been since replacing Rio Haryanto at the Belgian Grand Prix in August. It is the next step in a remarkable rise for the French driver after starting 2016 racing in DTM and signed to Renault as reserve driver.Ocon, who has previously tested with Force India, is determined to live up to the teams expectations of him.?When asked what had been the main factor for Force India, he said: I think they believe in me. They think we can achieve great things together and they want a strong driver to replace Nico [Hulkenberg], which is a hard task but I will do my best to replace him in the best way possible.Ocon dismissed the notion he lacks the experience to be successful at a team renowned for out-performing its limited budget year after year.I will do everything I can to just make the best result possible. Everything they ask me, I will do it and even more. I will be tthere in the factory a lot doing simulator a lot.dddddddddddd We already spoke about that and we agreed that without hard work, it wont work. So hard work is needed.For experience, Ive been driving Formula One cars since 2014 and Ive been around the paddock since then. So I feel like Im prepared enough to have this chance.After his move to Force India was confirmed, Renault, who had been linked with the Frenchman for several months, announced it had signed Jolyon Palmer.When asked if Renault had been waiting for his decision, he replied: There was an option of Renault, there was an option of Force India, it was waiting for what everyone wanted. It came like this, I dont know why it came like this, but it did.Though his multi-year contract is between Mercedes and Force India, Ocon insists it was the latter who had the final say to sign him.Force India gave me the opportunity. Mercedes managed my career, but its Force India that wanted me. Mercedes doesnt have power over Force India. ' ' '