fun foreshadowing for #teamusa pic.twitter.com/idQGMiHqLE
— Spencer Lund (@SpencerTyrel) August 21, 2016
It was a tough battle early in the gold medal game against Serbia on Sunday, but Kevin Durant eventually got hot and helped Team USA create some much-needed separation. During one sequence, Durant drained back-to-back threes, then followed that up with a steal followed by a fast-break dunk. He led the way with 24 points on 5-of-8 shooting from downtown as the U.S. raced to a 52-29 lead at the half. He also had this beautiful blow-by for a monster two-handed jam.
He followed that up with yet another three-pointer that was the result of some gorgeous ball-movement on the part of the Americans, something that hasn’t necessarily been a hallmark of their play in Rio so far but is a welcome occurrence as they try to take home their third consecutive Olympic gold.
But Durant wasn’t the only one stepping up for Team USA. DeMarcus Cousins added 11 points and 12 rebounds, five of those offensive, and got to the free-throw nine times, converting seven of those. While Durant was launching bombs from the outside, Cousins punished the Serbians in the paint with his physical post play. USA holds a commanding lead and has an opportunity to blow things wide-open in the third quarter.
