Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant did not have a strong first half against Australia, and Team USA seemed to struggle to break away from the Australians as a result. Bryant had trouble with turnovers and getting any of his shots to drop, and the Australians managed to keep the game in single digits for most of the contest.
That all changed in the second half. Bryant exploded for 20 points, hitting all six of his shots from three point range to get him up to that total. That included a devastating barrage of three straight threes to put the game out of reach with the 4th quarter winding down. Kevin Love had 10 points and 11 rebounds (8 offensive), Chris Paul added seven points and five steals to go with three assists, and Russell Westbrook added six points.
The USA will now advance to the semifinals and rematch with Argentina, who edged out Brazil in their quarterfinal matchup.
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