For the first time in a while, there were some questions about Team USA in World Cup play.
The Americans were coming off a loss to Lithuania, looking dazed and confused after — and definitely beatable.
But all of that changed quickly, with a dominating 100-63 win over Italy on Tuesday in the Philippines. The Americans now move on to the semifinals, where they will face either Germany or Latvia.
Nets forward Mikal Bridges led the way with 24 points, with Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton adding 18.
“Just obviously pissed off from losing and don’t want to have that feeling again,” Haliburton said, via Brian Windhorst of ESPN. “They’re not going to fear us. We got to just play our style of basketball.”
Bridges also collected seven rebounds and a pair of steals.
“Honestly I was really locked in on rebounding and that’s kind of been my struggle,” Bridges said. “We’re all confident no matter how many points we score. … Everybody is their main guys on their [NBA] team. We’re just ready for the moment.”
After trailing 8-7, the Americans went on a major run to turn the game into a whole bunch of garbage time. They led by 46-22 and 83-44 at different points.
“It’s been a journey for this group, and there’s five more days — that’s how we look at it,” coach Steve Kerr said. “We’re the horse turning back to the barn. The horse starts picking up the pace when it senses it’s near the barn, and that’s what’s happening right now. Our guys are sensing this is the end of the journey.”
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