SAITAMA (Japan) -- Kevin Durant is becoming more and more popular as the best Olympic basketball player. The chase is crucial for Team USA.Durant, who has shown incredible shooting skills and has been an offensive forcehouse for the third consecutive Summer Olympics, has been a strong offensive powerhouse. Durant was unstoppable at London Olympics, but was incapacitated in Rio. He has also been the lifeblood for a weakened Team USA in Tokyo.Durant's scoring saved the Americans Tuesday, when they overcome a 10-point deficit and beat Spain 95-81 to advance to the semifinals in the Olympic men's basketball tournament. They will face either Australia or Argentina on Thursday."We just have to finish it. Durant stated, "Have to finish it." "We are supposed to be here. It's all about winning the gold for us.Durant scored 29 points, 13 of which were in the game-changing quarter. This helped his team overcome another slow start.This Team USA version has many weaknesses. It is prone to losing its size and relying on 3-point shots for their defense, making it susceptible to slumps during a 40-minute match. However, there are also strengths. These include the Americans' quickness and ability not to let opponents down when 3s begin to fall.Durant's skills are the best example of the strategy. He made three triples in quarter 3, while the Americans kept with their improved ball movement, which repeatedly was able deliver their star open looks.Gregg Popovich, U.S. coach, said that it was a "wonderful game" in the sense that he and his team feel euphoric about winning the game. However, he also acknowledged that there is still much work to do. "We played a fantastic basketball team."After dropping 30 points on them in London's gold-medal match in 2012, Durant had 14 points and eight boards in their semifinal matchup in 2016.Coach Sergio Scariolo of Spain stated, "Right now there is no time to be disappointed and no time to feel any other emotion." "We are competitors, and we lost in the quarterfinals. But we know that we played against an incredible team."Ricky Rubio must be tired of all things red, white, and blue. This was his fourth consecutive Olympics loss against Team USA since the 2008 Beijing gold-medal match.ResultsRubio displayed relentless aggression from the beginning, acting as if he knew that this was his last chance against America. Rubio attacked and sought out shots throughout the game, even against the strong defense of Jrue holiday, and he repeatedly got away to the end in the lane.He finished the game with 38 points after shooting 13 of 20.In the first half, the Americans were just 4-of-17 with 3-pointers while Spain was relentless inside. This is a standard for all of their opponents. Although it created a cushion for Spain it didn't feel like it would last.Marc Gasol said, "A team with such firepower, you can learn." He indicated that he was playing for Spain in the last match. "You learn."Team USA was led by a more aggressive defense and finished the first half with a 14-4 run. Durant opened the second half behind 15-4 to create separation.Durant stated, "It was an enormous boost." "We didn’t want to be in the half down by double digits. ... We knew that we weren't going to be able to take down this team.Jayson Tatum, who is becoming a formidable scorer from the bench, scored 13 points and made several important hoops in the fourth quarter to maintain the lead.Tatum stated, "We just had to respond." "It was not a time to be worried, but to increase our sense of urgency."This report was contributed by The Associated Press.
