The game between Team USA and Spain in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics was not decided on a thrilling last-second basket, but what Kevin Durant did near the end of the contest ruined the day for one group of people and made it a good one for another.
See, the closing line for the game was at 13.5 in most sportsbooks, and Spain appeared to be on its way to covering that spread with over a couple of dozens of ticks left in regulation. When Ricky Rubio made a layup with 51 seconds left remaining on the game clock, he cut Team USA's lead down to 12, and at that point, it was pretty clear that the Americans have the game in the bag and there was no need to prolong the game by making unnecessary fouls. If you had Spain at +13.5, you were praying that Team USA wouldn't score the rest of the way.
Wrong.
The Durant dunk with 12 seconds left was more meaningful than it looked 😅
USA (-13.5) 💰 pic.twitter.com/BhhI9avBZO
— SGG Promos (@SGGpromotions) August 3, 2021
After a missed 3-point shot by Alex Abrines, Devin Booker got the defensive rebound and fired a pass downcourt to a streaking Durant, who was not one to pass up on a free slam dunk. And jam the ball he did with 14 seconds left — 14 seconds that Spain did not bother to do anything with except wait for it to expire. Team USA ended up with a 95-81 win, the cover, and a ticket to the semifinals, where it would meet the winner between Argentina and Australia.
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