Olympics men's basketball 2012: USA 107 - Spain 100 - as it happened (2024)

So, Team USA runs through the tournament undefeated and wins the gold medal. It's just how the script was written before the Olympics, but I think most of us were expecting it to be a somewhat easier run. The fact that Spain clearly could have won this game, and I wonder how much Marc Gasol's foul trouble affected them, or that a team like Lithuania could almost pull an upset on a team of NBA All-Stars proves that basketball is definitely a global game now.

This is partly because of America's own successes at the Olympics, particularly the 1992 Dream Team that did more to grow the game worldwide than anything else. Of course, the 2012 version of the Dream Team, for my money the second best group of basketball players ever assembled, had to fight harder: The other countries are catching up, and this is an awesome thing. I cannot wait for 2016.

From Jane Rollinson: "From the Americans in Italy, thank you for the live updates! Yeah! And I agree with your assessment of LeBron!"

No, thank you and everyone who has been reading along as we've been following the USA men's basketball team's quest for the gold medal. Our next game is... Oh wait, that's right. This was it. Well, we'll be following the NBA here at the Guardian when basketball season comes around. Ciao!

It's always great when the final game of a tournament is actually its best game, and I honestly didn't expect that with USA/Spain. For Spain, that is one of the most hard won silver medals in Olympics basketball history. The game was in doubt until the last two minutes.

Chris Paul gets one of two free throws as the "U-S-A!" chants start for the final time. Anthony Davis is in the game, which means it's over.

Chris Paul knows time is on their side, eats up 23 seconds before going in for the layup. And both teams are emptying the benches.

And then LeBron James airballs a three after I say that. Kobe recovers, but the US commit a 24 second violation.

Marc Gasol answers with a dunk of his own, but the momentum doesn't last as LeBron James makes a three pointer right over Marc's head in the very next possession. Best. Player. In. The. World.

Rudy Fernandez tips in his own shot, and the USA has to call a timeout. They really could have put Spain away but instead they're just down six.

Kobe tries a quick three and he misses. That's just keeping Spain in the game. Kobe banks a regular two-pointer however... but Navarro gets back in the scoring rhythm and answers right back.

Carmelo Anthony tries to hit a dagger three, but it bounces out and Pau Gasol gets the ball back. Gasol runs to the basket and draws a foul from Carmelo. This stops the clock and gets Spain a chance to cut the deficit. Pau gets one of two.

In retrospect, I didn't need the coffee. This game is keeping me awake enough.

The "USA" chants begin. Kobe Bryant goes for a three, he doesn't get it off, but he does get fouled by Fernandez. What a very bad foul for Spain. Kobe gets 2 of 3.

Kevin Durant... misses a three? Weirdness. Marc Gasol, coming back in the game, makes a basket. But then Kevin Durant remembers he's Kevin F'ing Durant and makes a three on the other end.

LeBron gets his fourth foul, and that's the one thing that the USA can not have happen. Kevin Love comes in to replace him.

David Lobina on the traveling question: "Perhaps Cranky Yank1 should reflect a little before he/she speaks his/her mind; after all, he/she seems entirely oblivious to the fact that FIBA rules apply at the Olympics, and these are slightly different from NBA rules. In the specific case that drew my attention, the relevant rule in the NBA states that you have to dribble before taking your second step, whilst according to FIBA rules you have to dribble before you take your FIRST step. It really is not complicated, and certainly not up for debate. It is crystal clear that sometimes US players take one, if not two, steps before they dribble the ball, and that IS a travel. Signed: An Italian in Britain."

Chris Paul lays another basket down, and LeBron James strips the ball from Felipe Reyes on Spain's very next possession.

And Spain takes a timeout. They can tell the USA are posed to go on one of their unstoppable runs.

Kobe assists LeBron James for a layup, and that's probably the last time that phrase will ever be written. Llull, whose name always looks like a type to me, responds with a layup of his own thought.

And then Chris Paul hits a three pointer and tries to give the USA some distance.

The email debate on flopping continues.

Chris Harper: "If you didn't think flopping was apparent in this game, then you must have missed Rudy Fernandez go for an Oscar against Iguodala towards the end of the half. Furthermore, international refs are far more fooled by it than NBA refs."

Jacobo Smith: "Re: "Flopping" email. Just be a gent and admit Spain are good at basketball. The oh so very British "Spain cheat" accusations will take you nowhere."

I feel like a parent trying to break up a fight. If this arguing doesn't stop, I'm going to turn this Liveblog right around and drive back home.

Hey, maybe playing this Ibaka guy is a good idea? He makes two free throws to bring it to a one-point game and THAT'S how it's going to be going into the fourth quarter.

Rodriguez goes to Gasol for a layup, Navarro steals the ball from the USA and gets it to Ibaka who makes a two pointer. The US are going to need someone to st-

Kevin Durant with another three point shot.

Kobe Bryant makes two free throws after drawing a foul from Pau Gasol. Ibaka and Rodriguez combine for four straight points, however. The USA are going to need someone to st-

Oh Kevin Durant hits a three pointer. That will count as "stepping up" I suppose.

Henry Carter: "Why are you praising USA and sounding amazed if Spain actually do anything good? This is their second consecutive Olympic final and they won the world championships in Japan so they do have some history!"

I really think this is underestimating just how good this USA team is, and what an accomplishment this is that Spain them this hard.

ibaka makes one free throw of two. Kevin Durant then makes a jumper. With those two points, Durant'is now the all-time US leader for points in an Olympics tournament.

Gasol answers with a three-point play (jumper and the foul, which he makes, because he's in game takeover mode.) Kobe responds with the ordinary three-point play.

There's some acting from Pau Gasol where he acts like Kevin Love fouled him when he really got all-ball. He makes one of two free throws. Next, LeBron James gets an alley-oop dunk though to get USA the lead again.

Another Pau Gasol layup? Another Pau Gasol layup.

Poor Serge Ibaka who has to try to block LeBron James getting to the basket.

Pau Gasol makes another layup and gets fouled on the play, he's in game take over mode. And he makes the "and one."

And, talk about game-takeover mode, he makes a one-handed slam to give Spain a third quarter lead!

Pau Gasol makes a jumper and then fouls Kevin Durant on what would have been an easy basket to make him earn it on the line: He makes both. I wrote that even before he made them, that's how confident I am in him.

A Calderon three doesn't go in for Spain, not the best start for Spain. On the other end, Chris Paul makes a three pointer which is exactly how the USA needs to start.

On last email from Chris Harper on flopping: "If you didn't think flopping was apparent in this game, then you must have missed Rudy Fernandez go for an Oscar against Iguodala towards the end of the half. Furthermore, international refs are far more fooled by it than NBA refs."

From Jane Rollinson: "Please keep the updates coming. We are sitting in Levanto Italy and cannot get the game on tv or live streaming (apparently not available in this region. Yikes!) thank you!"

Thanks for reading. Don't worry, I'm fairly certain if I stop here in the half, I would get into a bit of trouble. Plus, I wouldn't miss the second half of this game for anything.

Here is where I should also put in a reminder that we can use your thoughts, jokes, comments or predictions. You can email hunter.felt.freelance@guardiannews.com or tweet @HunterFelt.

Foul trouble aside, that was as exciting of a first half as you could ask for, but it was a bit exhausting. I think I need a little time out and maybe some dumb '90s dance-pop. Maybe we could have a potential Closing Ceremonies preview?

That'll work.

From Chris Harper: "How about some mention of the atrocious flopping that Spain has been doing the entire tournament? It's far worse than any other team."

It's true Spain has been doing some flopping throughout the Olympics, but it hasn't been apparent too much in this game. With the way this game is being called, on both sides I might add, it might be unnecessary.

Simon McMahon writes: "The basketball tournament has really caught my imagination, Hunter. I'd never really watched it much before these Olympics but am now hooked. The speed, skill, strength and athleticism on display really is remarkable. Where can I watch or read about the NBA and other leagues once the Games are over? Now there's a chance for you to complete a slam dunk if ever I saw one ..."

I'm glad you brought that up, if all goes to plan, I hopefully should be covering the NBA action for the second straight season once it resumes in the fall.

Carmelo Anthony picks up his third foul, so they're going to have to be careful with him here. Of course, fouls hurt Spain more because they have nowhere near the same depth.

Serge Ibaka is 5/6 from the line after making two, A Chris Paul three doesn't go anywhere and Pau Gasol recovers it. Iguodala strips it from Spain but gets called on an intentional foul on Rudy Fernandez with four seconds left. Spain gets free throws and the final possession. Just a brutal mistake at the exact wrong time for the USA.

And Deron Williams, one of the forgotten members of this USA team, hits a very very big three after a Navarro layup. Rudy Fernandez adds to the Spanish score. This... This is still a close game here, isn't it?

Now it's Spain getting fouls, as Navarro fouls Westbrook who makes one of two.

Anthony misses a three, but LeBron James pushes it in.

LeBron fouls Rudy Fernandez. Two free throws. LeBron James makes a jumper. That's not how it works when you foul, you have to have a three pointer there. He didn't get the Team USA memo...

And Navarro for ANOTHER three? Are you kidding?

The Spanish fans in the arena are starting to make noise, they're smelling that this is a winnable game.

Bad news for the casual viewer, good news for my ability to get out these updates quickly: It's going to be lots and lots of fouls here to end the half. Kevin Love makes two free throws that he picked up thanks to M. Gasol.

Definitely would rank up there. Bigger than Argentina in 2004?

Kevin Durant makes a free throw to add to the slim lead.

And Marc Gasol picks up a fourth foul. If M. Gasol fouls out, Spain's chances for an upset diminish significantly. Size is the ONE major advantage Spain has over the USA, remember.

Durant makes a jumper to get the USA a lead.

Marc Gasol picks up his third foul of the game, which is really really not good for Spain who is going to need him.

M. Gasol (or the Other Gasol as he's known in the States) makes a layup to make up for LeBron James's free throws. Coach K calls a surprisingly necessary timeout.

Kevin Love tips in a missed Kobe three pointer, and Durant makes two free throws to get some separation from Spain...

But this is not going to be easy for the US. Llull makes a three pointer to get the lead back.

17-7 run for Spain.

Marc Gasol and Sergio Rodriguez combine for five quick points and Spain has a two-point lead. Wow. This one might just be a game.

And then the refs call double technicals, which are just as dumb in international play as in the NBA, apparently.

Here's the main advantage that the USA has on Spain: The US has a LeBron James, and Spain doesn't have one of those. LeBron unleashes one of his trademark LeBron dunks that stops the world for a second.

Pau Gasol lays one up, and Chris Paul fouls to Sergio Rodriiguez who makes his two free throws. The USA just cannot afford to keep putting Spain on the free throw line if they don't want to have a close game here.

Durant, however, just flat out misses a third to start the second quarter and Rudy Fernandez flat out doesn't...

And Coach K goes to the bench to bring some of the starters back in the game.

Russell Westbrook runs right by his usual teammate Ibaka to score, but is answered by Gasol. Anthony feeds Durant a three-point shot to keep the USA ahead but Rudy Fernandez answers with a dunk.

Kevin Durant blocks Pau Gasol's attempt at getting the last shot of the first quarter, preventing the kind of shot that can give a team momentum.

Serge Ibaka makes two free throws, maybe he'll actually get some minutes against the American players that he's familiar with...

Deron Williams makes up for his foul with a three pointer (is this the earliest he's scored all tournament?). Kevin Love fouls Ibaka, who makes one of two, but he ALSO makes up for it by slamming home the first big dunk of the game. That's one way to make up for getting in foul trouble: Get one more point than the other guy makes.

Okay, the US are starting to get sloppy on fouls. Deron Williams fouls Navarro who makes both of his free throws. The USA needs to not be in foul trouble early, because that's how Spain could stay around.

THERE'S the Anthony three. Pau Gasol draws a foul on LeBron, however, and gets two free throws (which he makes).

Unfortunately for Spain, Marc Gasol picks up a foul. Kevin Durant gets two free throws which he makes. Carmelo Anthony only makes a two-point shot, which is almost disappointing at this point in the Olympics. I expect him to make all of his shots from downtown at this point.

Navarro responds with a bucket of his own, but Carmelo Anthony wants to get in on the three-shooting spree.

And, hey it's somebody besides Navarro making a shot for Spain, Marc Gasol adds a jumper of his own.

If this is Kobe Bryant's last Olympics he's going to make it memorable, he gets off two three pointers within a minute. That plus two Kevin Durant free throws change the USA deficit to a lead.

In my mind, the only person who can pull of polka dot outfits is Regina Spektor.

And then Navarro makes another three. Is Navarro Spanish for "Durant"?

Durant misses a jumper but gets his own rebound and knocks it in on the second time.

Juan Carlos Navarro makes another three. He's all of Spain right now.

Kevin Durant does what he has been doing all Olympics: He makes a three-pointer. Pau Gasol, however, responds with a jumper.

Then Juan Carlos Navarro makes a three pointer AND gets fouled by Kobe Bryant, he makes his free throw. That's what Spain's gonna have to do to get a shot at winning this one: Lots of made threes and free throw shooting.

And we're off! Tyson Chandler gets things going with the first bucket of the game for the USA.

We have our first prediction in an email from John: "102 - 97 Spain" Now that would be a gold medal game of the ages.

And Simon McMahon pops in: "Afternoon Hunter. For what it's worth I'm going for USA 105 - 82 Spain. I had decided on this as the final score before I saw your own prediction, which is remarkably similar. Great minds think alike, eh?"

Well, you've had some success before.

If this is Coach K's last game with the USA men's basketball team, I wonder who's going to replace him. I think it depends on whether the under 23 rule is put into place. If not, and it's another group of superstar players like the various Dream Teams and "Redeem Teams", I'm going to put in my hat for (and this will shock you) Doc Rivers, who knows how to get the best of his veterans. The dude even got Kevin Garnett to play center.

And we have our first email with the title "traveling" from the aptly named Cranky Yank1: "I see in your last dispatch some British reader whined about the U.S. players traveling. I doubt Brits even know what a travel is aside from flying to Malaga drunk. My suggestion to you and your British readers is, don't even venture an opinion about the rules of basketball. You just end up embarrassing yourselves and your country."

Well, clearly I'm not the only one in need of their first cup of coffee this morning.

As always, I begin these liveblogs with a question: What is everyone's prediction? Does anyone think that Spain could pull this off? I feel like I've asked that every game, but that's always the question with this US national team. Anyone with some guesses on the final score?

I'm going to go with 106-85 USA. For absolutely no reason other than it looks like it really could be the final score. You can send out your predictions by emailing them to hunter.felt.freelance@guardiannews.com or tweet @HunterFelt.

I guess there's going to be no better time to post this clip about the most well-known, and controversial, gold medal basketball game of all time: 1972 the US vs. the USSR.

The last time we're going to see this particular team together, or possibly even a team like this if the NBA imposes a 23-or-under rule limiting the number of experienced veterans who leave to play in the Olympics.

* Carmelo Anthony - F
* Kobe Bryant - G
* Tyson Chandler - C
* Anthony Davis - F
* Kevin Durant - G
* James Harden - G
* Andre Iguodala - G/F
* LeBron James - F
* Kevin Love - F
* Chris Paul - G
* Russell Westbrook - G
* Deron Williams - G

* Pau Gasol - F
* Rudy Fernandez - G
* Sergio Rodriguez - G
* Jose Calderon - G
* Felipe Reyes - C
* Victor Claver - F
* Fernando San Emeterio - F
* Sergio Llull - G
* Marc Gasol - C
* Serge Ibaka - C
* Victor Sada - G

As one of the major events of the Olympics, the men's basketball gold medal game fittingly occurs while things wind down on the final day of the London Olympics. So, anything goes here as we wrap up our coverage of the USA men's basketball team. We're taking any and all related comments, questions and predictions here. You can email hunter.felt.freelance@guardiannews.com or tweet @HunterFelt. I know that I'm as excited for this gold medal game as my girlfriend is excited about the Spice Girls reuniting for the Closing Ceremonies (this is saying a lot, trust me). Tip-off is 10am EST (3pm BST). I'll be back with lineups, and probably a cup of coffee, shortly. (I was honestly unaware that Sundays even had an 8am.)