The U.S. men’s basketball team advanced to the final round by defeating Argentina 109-83 on Friday. The Americans sank 18 three pointers to help their cause. “Anything less than this would have been unsatisfying for us,” Carmelo Anthony said. “We believe that we could get here, and we’re here now. We got one game left.” Kevin Durant scored 19 points, James and Anthony added 18 apiece, and will face Spain Sunday in a rematch of the Americans’ victory against them in Beijing. “I think it’s only right,” James said. “Everyone said that this is the game they wanted to see. We look forward to it. We’re happy as a team we’re able to be back in this position. We’ve got to defend, we’ve got to rebound, we’ve got to share the ball.”
The U.S. women easily won the 4×100-meter relay to earn the gold. Allyson Felix now has three gold medals on her resume. Felix give the United States a 20-meter lead after the second leg of the 4×400-meter relay and then teammate Sanya Richards-Ross brought home the victory Saturday night. The U.S. sprinters finished in 3:16.87 to earn the country its fifth straight Olympic title in this event. Russia finished second in 3:20.23, and Jamaica finished third in 3:20.95.
Usain Bolt anchored the Jamaicans to victory in 36.84 seconds Saturday night to finish the London Games with his second straight 3-for-3 Olympics. The U.S. finished in 37.04 seconds, the old world-record time by Bolt and the Jamaicans last year. Trinidad & Tobago got the bronze medal when Canada was disqualified after finishing third.
The U.S. was denied its first ever Olympic gold medal in women’s volleyball Saturday when Brazil upset them 3-1. Jaqueline Carvalho had 18 points to help Brazil overcome a bad first set and win 11-25, 25-17, 25-20, 25-17. The U.S. men lost in straight sets to Italy in the quarterfinals.
The United States has gained an impressive lead in the overall medal count, with 101 overall medals, compared to 86 for China. The Americans also still hold the lead in gold medals, with 43; China is still within range with 38 gold medals.
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