US men's basketball beats Spain 82-76, will play for gold

Published August 19, 2016

Spain's Sergio Rodriguez, left, drives up court past United States' Kyrie Irving, right, during a semifinal round basketball game at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, Aug. 19, 2016. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

The U.S. men's basketball team has advanced to its third straight Olympic gold-medal game, beating Spain 82-76 on Friday.

Klay Thompson scored 22 points for the Americans, who will play Australia or Serbia on Sunday for their third consecutive Olympic title.

The U.S. was just good enough again against Spain, winning a much different game than the all-offense matchups that decided the last two gold-medal games. This one featured several technical four and neither team got into an offensive flow. It was the lowest-scoring game for the Americans in the Olympics since the 2004 semifinals, when they managed 81 in a loss to Argentina.

Kevin Durant added 14 points and Kyrie Irving had 13 for the U.S.

Pau Gasol scored 23 points for Spain, which made it tough on the Americans for the third straight Olympics, but again had to settle for coming close against the world's No. 1 team.

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