TRAINING camp and exhibition games are underway in Las Vegas for the USA men’s basketball team as it prepares for the Tokyo Olympics later this month.

Team USA fell 91-83 to Australia for its second straight exhibition loss.

After a narrow loss to Nigeria on Saturday, Team USA rolled out a new starting lineup against Australia with Jerami Grant and Draymond Green getting nods in the frontcourt. Australia jumped out to an early lead thanks to 15 points combined from Joe Ingles and Patty Mills, but Damian Lillard got Dame Time started a bit early with 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting in the first quarter.

Team USA came out with renewed vigor on the defensive end in the second, limiting the Aussies to just 13 points in the frame. Crisp ball movement and several tough drives from Bradley Beal highlighted the offense.

Team USA entered the half with a nine-point advantage.

Both teams came out of the break with intensity on both ends leading to a hotly contested third quarter. Team USA ceded the lead midway into the third thanks to a strong push and clutch shooting from the Australian side.

Kevin Durant was able to discover his 3-point stroke as the final quarter got underway, and Lillard led the way with 22 points, but Patty Mills scored 10 of his 22 points in the 4th quarter to give Australia the win over Team USA.

“I thought we got better tonight,” said U.S. coach Gregg Popovich. “After a short time together, there’s a lot of things that have to be covered, but the first half and the second half were two different beasts.

“In the first half, we defended the way we wanted to defend. ... We rebounded better. We moved the ball better at the offensive end and had more pace. In the second half, we tired out.” (SD-Agencies)