Team USA edges out Spain to advance to the semi-finals.
The United States Men’s National Team was able to come out with a huge victory tonight against Spain, beating the 2nd ranked team in the world 95–81, after a huge second-half surge. Team USA will play the winner between Tuesday’s matchup of Australia versus Argentina to play in the semi-finals to have the opportunity to advance to the finals and compete for gold.
After going into the second half of tonight’s game tied at 43–43, the Men’s National Team was able to capitalize with a dominant 4th quarter from players Kevin Durant, Jrue Holiday, and Jayson Tatum to put Spain away in Tokyo. Spain had a huge night from NBA point guard Ricky Rubio, who had a hot night in Spain’s defeat, making Team USA’s night tough on defense, scoring a game-high 38 points on 13 of 20 (65%) shooting from the floor.
The all-time leading Olympic scorer Kevin Durant led all players on the National Team with 29 points in tonight’s victory. Durant's stellar night came from a hot shooting performance in tonight’s win, going 4 for 7 (57%) from three and 10 for 17 (58.8%) overall from the field, including 4 assists and 3 steals from Team USA. The 10-time all-star was a huge centerpiece in Team USA’s second-half surge, with Durant scoring 17 of his 29 points in the second half of tonight’s victory.
Boston Celtics young star Jayson Tatum was the second-leading scorer in tonight's game for Team USA, scoring 13 points off the bench for the Men’s National Team. Tatum went 4 for 7 from the field and 3 for 5 from deep, showcasing just how vital Tatum is off the bench for the United States.
The Men’s national team had five players finish in double figures in tonight’s 95 point performance, shooting over 40% as a team from the field goal and from behind the arc. Team USA went 13 for 32 (40.6%) from three and 36 and 75 (48%) from the floor overall, compared to Spain, who shot 30.4% from three (7–23).
With Team USA’s victory over Spain tonight, they could see some familiar faces in the next game's matchup in the semi-finals. The Men’s National Team is set to face either of the teams in Tuesday's Australia versus Argentina matchup, with both teams having familiar NBA players to help compete against the U.S for gold. The semi-finals are going to be a fun and interesting matchup to watch as Team USA looks to put the gold around their neck for the 4th time in a row.
