Jayson Tatum’s Olympic gold medal hopes momentarily hung in the balance Thursday afternoon in Tokyo, as Team USA struggled out of the gates in its semifinal matchup with Australia, trailing by as many as 15 points during the first half. However, it didn’t take long for those hopes to be renewed.
After falling behind 41-26 midway through the second quarter, USA flipped a switch and went on its biggest tear of the tournament – a 28-4 run, which then turned into a 48-14 run, which eventually turned into a 97-78 win and a berth in the finals.
Tatum had one of the most well-rounded efforts of the game, as he came off the bench and tallied nine points, three rebounds, three assists, one steal, and a game-high two blocks. All of his points were produced from beyond the arc where he shot 3-of-6, tying for the game lead in 3-point makes.
Long-range shooting was an early issue for Team USA, as it missed its first 10 shots from deep. However, that trend changed once the Americans saw their first triple fall near the end of the second frame.
Devin Booker broke the cold-shooting spell by knocking down a wide-open triple with 3:23 left in the half, and then Tatum canned another less than two minutes later. Those two makes ended up setting the tone for the remainder of the game, as Team USA went on to knock down 9-of-18 from deep following its 0-for-10 start.
The Americans were able to cut their deficit down to four points by the end of the first half thanks to a 16-4 run, for which Tatum was entirely present. They then opened up the third quarter with a 12-0 burst, extending their run to 28-4.
Kevin Durant was the most consistent source of offense for Team USA, per usual, as he finished with a game-high 23 points on 10-of-19 shooting from the field. The two-time Olympic gold medalist also grabbed a game-leading nine rebounds to go along with two assists, two steals, and one block.
Australia had previously given USA trouble during exhibition play in Las Vegas last month, capturing a 91-83 upset victory over the three-time defending gold medalists. But that was long before the Americans had brewed up enough chemistry to overcome adversity together, as they did Thursday afternoon.
At the very least, USA will be coming home next week with a silver medal. However, Tatum and his fellow countrymen didn’t travel all the way to Tokyo to come in second place. They came for gold, and now they are just one win away from capturing it.
Their golden opportunity lies less than two days away, as USA will hit the court one final time at 11:30 a.m. Saturday (10:30 p.m. EST, Friday) to take on the winner of the upcoming France-Slovenia semifinal matchup.
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