USA 97-78 Australia: 5 Takeaways as Kevin Durant and Devin Booker lead Americans to the gold medal game of Olympics 2021

United States v Australia Men's Basketball - Olympics: Day 13

#3 Team USA better ball movement in the second half

Team USA appeared to be walking on mud in the first half as they just watched Kevin Durant go to work on offense.

But in the second half, the Americans passed the ball quickly to find the open man and it led to a lot of easy baskets, both from 3-point range and inside the paint. Australia couldn’t keep up defensively as they scrambled to try and contain whoever was left open.

ZACH LAVINE CAN FLY 👀 pic.twitter.com/Q6vm7p9i96

— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) August 5, 2021

Team USA only had 19 assists compared to Australia's 22, but much of the difference between the teams was made up for by the Americans in the third and fourth quarters.

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#4 Team USA started scoring with their shots in the second half

Khris Middleton #8 goes up for a shot against Chris Goulding #4.

Though the Americans were stagnant offensively in the first half, it wasn’t as if they couldn’t get a clear look at the basket. More accurately, Team USA had the opportunities, but their shooting was just flat and it put them in a huge hole against Australia. It’s a good thing that it wasn’t a deficit that they couldn’t overcome.

In the second half, Team USA rediscovered its stroke. As their shots started to fall, their defense also improved. The US scored 32 points in the third quarter compared to only 10 points for Australia. Overall, the Americans shot 51.4 percent from the field while the Australians made just 41.0 percent of their field goal attempts.

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#5 Team USA smothered Australia on the boards

Bam Adebayo #13 drives to the basket against Nic Kay #15.

Using their quickness and height advantage over Australia, who were missing center Aron Baynes, Team USA grabbed 44 rebounds as opposed to just 29 for their opponents. It was a total team effort for the USA, who dominated the glass on the back of stellar efforts from Durant (nine rebounds), Holiday (eight) and Bam Adebayo (eight).

Team USA now +19 with Bam Adebayo on the court tonight.

— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) August 5, 2021

They also kept the Australians from getting positioned underneath the basket, limiting them to just nine offensive rebounds.

Moreover, Team USA put their 14 offensive rebounds to work, getting 17 second chance points aside from scoring 38 in the painted area.

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