Team USA Tops Spain To Secure Spot In Men's Basketball Gold Medal Game

Team USA advanced to the gold medal game in men’s basketball on Friday despite a determined effort from a game Spain squad. The Americans survived with a 82-76 victory, putting them within a win of a title at the 2016 Olympics.

The U.S. got 22 points from Klay Thompson, while DeAndre Jordan dominated the boards, securing 16 rebounds as the Americans owned Spain on the glass. Jordan’s 16 boards were an American Olympic record. The U.S. won the rebounding battle 53-41.

Thompson has been in a funk throughout the Olympic tournament, but broke out a bit on Friday. He hit 8-of-16 shots from the field and 4-of-8 from beyond the arc. Kevin Durant added 14 points and Kyrie Irving chipped in with 13.

Spain was led by Pau Gasol, who finished with 23 points and eight rebounds.

The Americans finally stepped up their defense on Friday. They held Spain to just 38.9 percent shooting from the field and 30.8 percent from 3-point range. The U.S. didn’t manage much better from the floor, hitting just 41.8 percent of its shots and 9-of-25 from distance.

The U.S. will face the winner of the Australia-Serbia game in the gold medal match on Sunday. Spain will face the loser in the bronze medal game. Both Australia and Serbia gave the U.S. problems in pool play, so a gold is nowhere near guaranteed.