USA Defeats Serbia to Capture FIBA World Cup Gold

MADRID, SPAIN -- Team USA, led by head coach Mike Krzyzewski and guard Kyrie Irving, capped off a dominating run at the 2014 FIBA World Cup with a 129-92 win over Serbia in the gold medal game at Palacio de los Deportes de la Comunidad. Irving netted a game-high 26 points and was named tournament MVP, while Krzyzewski has now guided the USA Men's Senior National Team to 63 consecutive wins.

“I think the results were dominant, but we had spurts of dominance in a lot of games,” said USA coach Mike Krzyzewski (Duke University). “And, we had tough games, and then all of a sudden we'd have a spurt and it looked like we dominated. Tonight, we had like a 35-minute spurt. Tonight we played great. Tonight was a heck of a performance in those last 35 minutes.”

Having won gold at the 2010 FIBA World Championship, the USA becomes just the third country ever to win back-to-back FIBA titles.

After building a 26-point lead at halftime, the USA kept its foot on the pedal in the second half and cruised to victory. For a team that led the World Cup in scoring with an average of 101.5 points per game, the USA had 105 points by the end of the third quarter.

Irving scored his 26 points on 10-of-13 shooting, including 6-of-6 from three-point rage, and added four assists and a block in the win. Eight players scored in double figures and the team made 15-of-30 three-point attempts. Former Blue Devil Mason Plumlee scored one point and grabbed four rebounds in nine minutes of action for Team USA.

“It's the greatest feeling in the world right now,” Irving said. “Dealing with a group of guys that are my brothers. This means so much more to our country – three days after 9/11. A lot of pride, a lot of things we did to prepare for this trip. A lot of mental things and a lot of physical things that brought us closer together. I'm glad that the journey ends with a gold medal.”

Team USA got off to slow start in the game with Serbia leading 15-7 in the first quarter before Irving ignited a 14-0 run late in the opening stanza that established the USA's foundation. Irving finished the quarter with three three-point field goals and 15 points.

Irving and James Harden combined to score 35 points between them in the first half. Harden finished with 23 points. The USA made 11 of 16 three-point shots, staking the team to a 67-41 halftime lead.

The USA's big men got into foul trouble in the first half, as Anthony Davis and Kenneth Faried both had three fouls while DeMarcus Cousins had two. When the second half began, Serbia tried to bait the USA into more fouls with some chippy play, but Mike Krzyzewski's squad maintained its compusure and continued to pad its big lead.

Kenneth Faried (Denver Nuggets), who added 12 points and seven rebounds in the USA's championship win, joined Irving on the five-member FIBA World Cup All-Tournament Team, along with France's Nicolas Batum, Spain's Pau Gasol and Serbia's Milos Teodosic.

“We improved every game,” said Krzyzewski. “All the guys. We got to know each other. I can't single out one guy because Kyrie is deserving of MVP, but I think you could look at our games and we had a different star each game. Klay Thompson was so critical for this team. DeMarcus tonight, James Harden, Anthony Davis, especially at the start of our run. Kenneth (Faried) gave us a lot of energy. It was not like there was one star. They were a championship team, and it was kind of cool. In 2010 Durant just kind of took us. He had an amazing performance. Team-wise this is a heck of a team. This was a really good team.”

This was the USA's eighth appearance in the FIBA World Cup/World Championship gold medal game, and their fifth triumph. The USA has now won gold in 1954, 1986, 1994 and 2010, while winning silver in 1950, 1959 and 1982.

Prior to the USA's back-to-back wins, only Brazil (1959 and 1963) and Yugoslavia (1998 and 2002) had earned back-to-back FIBA world titles since the event was initiated in 1950.

The USA National Team also extended its current winning streak to 63 games (45 FIBA and FIBA Americas games, 18 exhibition games) a streak that has been achieved under the leadership of USA managing director Jerry Colangelo and Krzyzewski. The streak started on Sept. 2, 2006, with a 96-81 win over Argentina in the 2006 World Championship bronze medal game and includes perfect performances in the 2007 FIBA Americas Championship, 2008 and 2012 Olympics, and 2010 World Championship.

Complete box scores, statistics, quotes and photo galleries are available at www.usab.com.

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USA Defeats Serbia to Capture FIBA World Cup Gold

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Mason Plumlee

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USA Defeats Serbia to Capture FIBA World Cup Gold

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