Durant leads fightback against Boomers as US reach final
Kevin Durant scored 23 points and Devin Booker added 20 to power three-time defending champions the United States past Australia 97-78 yesterday and into an Olympic men's basketball final against France.
The Americans were 24-18 behind after the first quarter and 45-42 adrift at half-time, but they stormed back during a dominant third period to stay on track for a fourth consecutive gold medal.
It was revenge for Gregg Popovich's men, who had crashed to Patty Mills' Boomers in their past two meetings, including a demoralising 91-83 defeat in Las Vegas last month.
They also lost 98-94 in the lead-up to the 2019 World Cup in Melbourne.
But when it comes to the Olympics, the US are dominant and stretched their lead over Australia to 9-0.
Said Durant: "We knew Australia would come out fast and hit us with a nice punch... We've been down 15 in games before and came back."
Meanwhile, in the other semi-final, France pipped Slovenia 90-89. - AFP
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now