Aug 25, 2008 7 min read

BEIJING (AP) – Arm-in-arm, they climbed onto the middle of the medals platform, the spot that for so long was U.S. private property.

Some players flashed their Olympic medals to the crowd. One pretended to take a bite, just to make sure it was real. Yep, it was gold – the color the Americans always used to win but hadn’t since 2000.

Culminating a three-year mission to end years of embarrassment, the U.S. team survived a huge challenge from Spain, winning 118-107 in the gold-medal game Sunday.

Order was restored in international basketball.

“Much respect to Spain, but the U.S. is back on top again,” LeBron James said at a press conference attended by the entire team.

But not by that much anymore.

After overwhelming everyone for seven games, the Americans led by only four points with under 21/2 minutes to play. Then they proved they could handle a close game that it seemed would never come in Beijing.

Their prize: the first U.S. gold medal since the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Argentina won the bronze with an 87-75 victory against Lithuania.

Dwyane Wade scored 27 points for the Americans, who found a much gamer Spanish team than the one they humiliated by 37 points earlier in the tournament. Kobe Bryant added 20 points.

In a game so devoid of defense that it felt more like an NBA All-Star game than one with a title at stake, the Americans had too much offense down the stretch. Bryant converted a clutch four-point play with 3:10 remaining, holding his finger to his lips to quiet the rowdy Spanish crowd behind the basket.

Wade added another 3-pointer that made it 111-104 with just over 2 minutes left, and only then could the Americans relax a little.

They began to celebrate during a break after some technical fouls on Spain with 26 seconds left, then partied at midcourt when it was over with “Born in the USA” blaring over the arena’s speakers.

“We played with great character in one of the great games in international basketball history, I think,” U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski said.

Nobody else had been close to the Americans in Beijing. This team’s only Olympic competition had been history, in a Dream matchup with guys named Jordan, Magic, Bird and the rest of the U.S. team that dominated the Barcelona Games in 1992.

Forget comparisons to those guys. The Americans were lucky to be better than Spain on Sunday.

Rudy Fernandez scored 22 points and Pau Gasol had 21 for the Spanish, the reigning world champions who were hoping to win their first Olympic gold.

U.S. players appreciated the challenge, hugging the Spanish players afterward. Bryant had an especially long embrace for Gasol, patting his Los Angeles Lakers teammate on the back.

“They did what they were supposed to do,” Gasol said. “We fought hard all the way.”

Seeming to appreciate the moment, after congratulating Spain, the team joined in a circle, jumping up and down at center court and waving triumphantly to the crowd as Krzyzewski applauded on the sidelines.

“I know that we had a tough road ahead of us. We knew that these guys weren’t going to roll over and give up that easily,” U.S. forward Chris Bosh said. “So we had to be men, and that’s what it takes to win.”

The Americans had won their first seven games by 30.3 points, including a 119-82 rout of Spain. But they never had control of this game, giving up open looks from the perimeter and plenty of points in the paint against the defending world champions, who were playing without injured point guard Jose Calderon.

Bryant, who waited so long to finally wear the red, white and blue, hit two 3-pointers in a big fourth quarter to add the gold medal to his collection of basketball hardware. The three-time NBA champion and league MVP pounded his hands toward the floor in celebration at the end.

James scored 14 points, while Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul had 13 apiece for the Americans, who had won bronze medals in their last two international events, the 2004 Olympics and ’06 world championships.

By reclaiming gold in men’s basketball, pulling off an emotional victory in men’s volleyball and claiming silver in team handball, the United States wrapped up the Beijing Olympics on Sunday with 110 medals – its most in a non-boycotted Olympics since the 1904 St. Louis Games, which hardly count because of how little the rest of the world was represented.

Sure, there were some high-profile flubs at the track.

And the 36 gold medals was the same Americans won four years ago in Athens; it also was well below the 51 golds won by China.

But those are small details to the U.S. Olympic Committee.

“We could not be more proud of our athletes for everything they accomplished here in Beijing, both on and off the field of play,” USOC chairman Peter Ueberroth said. “Our first priority going into these games was to compete clean, and we are extremely proud that our athletes are sharing our commitment to this principle. They represented our country with pride and honor, and with one of the best U.S. Olympic performances in history.”

USOC chief executive Jim Scherr added that the team “inspired millions of young people to pursue their dreams.” That’s hard to quantify, but there’s little doubt Americans were watching.

According to Nielsen Media Research, the first 15 days of NBC’s broadcasts reached 208.7 million viewers, putting it on the verge of passing the viewership of the 1996 Atlanta Games as the most-viewed event in U.S. television history.

Starting with those ’96 games, the U.S. has been atop the medals table at four straight Olympics. The USOC noted the accomplishment, considering more than 40 world records and 120 Olympics records were set – and, no, Phelps and Usain Bolt didn’t set all of them, it just seemed like it.

The only downer: Although competition has ended, there are still other “games” being played that could affect the medal totals.

The high-profile one is the age controversy in women’s gymnastics, with several of China’s athletes thought to be too young. The latest news is China’s deputy sports minister attributed the confusion surrounding one of its gold medalist gymnasts to a paperwork mistake during a team transfer. The girl, He Kexin, was listed as being 13 in a Nov. 3, 2007 report by China’s official news agency. Gymnasts had to turn 16 in 2008 to have been eligible for these Olympics.

“I can right here accurately say that the ages of the members of our gymnastics delegation entirely conform to the requirements for participation in the Beijing Olympic Games,” Cui Dalin said at a news conference Sunday.

If accusations are verified, China could lose two gold and two bronzes. Americans would have two silvers upgraded to gold.

At another news conference Sunday, officials from Netherland Antilles said they are protesting a ruling that stripped one of their sprinters of a silver medal in the 200-meter dash. If the Court of Arbitration for Sport rules in their favor, the U.S. would lose a medal. A ruling is expected by Sept. 30.

“This process doesn’t bother me,” said sprinter Churandy Martina, who was chosen to carry his nation’s flag in the closing ceremony. “If I got it, I got it. But it’s supposed to be fair play. … They’re supposed to go by the rules.”

Copyright Associated Press 2008