Despite an early lead for the United States, Argentina made a game of this contest for a short time, but ultimately fell to LeBron James and company by a score of 109-83.
Lead by a few nifty three-point shots, the Americans had an early 18-6 lead against their semifinals opponent in the first quarter, but all signs of a blowout disappeared until the second half.
The Argentinians immediately awoke after the 18th point was scored against them and began to put their best effort together to pull out the upset victory.
It took Argentina just three minutes to cut Team USA's lead to five points and ended the first quarter down by the same margin, with the scoreboard showing 24-19 in favor of the Americans by the end of it.
The U.S. began to find its rhythm in the second quarter, pulling its lead to as high as 10 points before Argentina once again rallied back.
Capped off by a last-second three-pointer from Manu Ginobili, Argentina cut the United States' lead to seven at halftime with the score 47-40 in favor of the latter.
Team USA began to pull away midway through the third quarter in large part due to Kevin Durant, who made some key three-pointers. He came up huge for Team USA in the second half and Durant's teammates didn't let that effort go to waste.
Carmelo Anthony posted double-digit points in the fourth quarter when the game was all but over, converting four three-point shots before the game finally came to a close.
Twitter Reaction
Chuck star and Nerd Machine creator Zachary Levi is currently in London and wanted to let his followers know who he's rooting for as he watches this semifinal game, tweeting:
Bleacher Report's official twitter account reacted to the NBC broadcaster's comment about Argentina's chances during Team USA's first quarter run, tweeting:
Grades for Key Players
Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE
Manu Ginobili, Argentina: B
Argentina might not have won this contest, but the team would not have had the scoreboard as close as it was during the first half if not for the San Antonio Spur.
The NBA veteran posted 18 points in the contest and produced for his team despite having Russell Westbrook and Kobe Bryant guarding him at times.
Ginobili was on the floor almost the entire time his team was in contention and the only reason his team was remotely close in this semifinal game was due to stellar play on his part.
Lars Baron/Getty Images
Kevin Durant, United States: B+
Durant might not have had a huge first half, but his 12 points in the third quarter helped the Americans pull their lead to almost 20 points after Argentina cutting the deficit to just seven before the half.
The Oklahoma City star and fellow Team USA member LeBron James combined for 19 points in the quarter that effectively won this game for the Americans.
While James had himself a fine game in his own right, Durant did his best Mariano Rivera impression and closed the door on Argentina's gold medal game hopes.
more read here http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1293205-usa-vs-argentina-grades-twitter-reaction-and-analysis-for-olympics-semifinals
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