In the previous three international competitions, the world witnessed anyone other than the United States men’s basketball team on top of the global stage.
The US has now earned that title back.
Team USA had to play four competitive quarters of basketball before beating Spain, 118-107. Spain was without its leader, Jose Calderon, but stayed within striking distance for much of the game.
Dwyane Wade (27 points) was the high-scorer, but Kobe Bryant emerged as the team-leader and scored 20 points. Thirteen of those points came in the fourth quarter, after Spain closed the gap to two.
The US struggled throughout all 40 minutes of the game. It started with Spain taking a five-point lead with 4:18 left in the first quarter.
Team USA responded with a 9-0 run, taking a 26-22 lead. The referees called fouls on instances that were incidental contact earlier in the Olympic showdown, putting players from both teams in foul trouble.
Bryant and LeBron James were forced to sit out much of the first half after picking up two fouls each in the first quarter. Foul troubles also affected Spain early on.
Ricky Rubio had little time to rest after the 17-year-old injured his wrist on a play late in the first quarter with backup point guard Raul Lopez picking up three fouls in under two minutes.
Both teams came out with hot shooting in the first half. The US made seven of its first 10 shots from beyond the arc, but Spain stayed in the game by playing tight man-to-man defense.
Carmelo Anthony opened up the lead to 13 on a three-point shot with 8:02 left in the half. Rudy Fernandez responded with a three-point shot of his own to bring the lead back down to 10.
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