OLYM - USA gold-medal winners again

LONDON (Olympics) - Kevin Durant should not have any trouble falling asleep in the coming days.
 
He can finally rest and relax.
 
Durant is now not only a world champion, but an Olympic champion.
 
Just 23, Durant owns a couple of medals that most players only dream about.
 
He could end up winning a lot more in international basketball, too.
 
After a long season in the NBA with the Oklahoma City Thunder that ended with a defeat to the Miami Heat in the Finals, and after his Olympic preparations with the USA, it all came down to a hard clash with Spain for Durant and the Americans.
 
They expected a tough game, and Spain gave them one for the second Olympics in a row.
 
Not in the side that beat Spain 118-107 at the Beijing Games, Durant was a vital man in the 2012 team, a player who hit three-pointers like no other.
 
He shot better than 52% from behind the arc in London.
 
He had five three-balls against Spain and a game-high 30 points.
 
As good and as confidence as Durant is, he admits there were a few nerves before Sunday's showdown.
 
"I couldn't sleep last night (Saturday) waiting for the game," Durant said.
 
"I'm glad we came out and got the W."
 
Spain didn't brush aside opponents on the way the Olympic Final.
 
They escaped with a one-point win over Great Britain in the Preliminary Round and then lost to Russia and Brazil.
 
The Spaniards survived showdowns with France in the Quarter-Finals and Russia in the last four.
 
As it was, they saved their best for the USA, with Juan Carlos Navarro scoring 19 first-half points and giving them a perfect platform to spring upset.
 
Navarro had been bothered by plantar fasciitis and a back problem since late in the Spanish domestic campaign with Barcelona, but he finally came good for his country in London.
 
"They are a tough team," Durant said.
 
"They made it tough for us all night.
 
"They are bigger than us. They have been playing together for a while. They execute.
 
"It seemed that every time we made a mistake they capitalized on it. It taught us a lot.
 
"As the game went on we were able to make some adjustments and we were able to get a good win."
 
One person that has been there for both gold-medal wins was coach Mike Krzyzewski for the USA.
 
"Coach K was great for us," Durant said.
 
"He really helped me out a lot.
 
"He gave me confidence every single day because it's tough to come here and try to play the way we played.
 
"Coach K let us know from the beginning to come here and play our games and that means a lot to us."
 
The United States came up short of the gold in 2004, falling to eventual champions Argentina in the Semi-Finals, but they have reasserted themselves the last two Summer Games.
 
LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony were in that 2004 side and have helped lead the USA back to the top.
 
"I was a part of it in '04 with me and Melo, and that was the lowest point for the USA team," James said.
 
"Then Coach K and Jerry (Colangelo) took over and then we lost the World Championship in 06.
 
"But we made that three-year commitment in 05 and we just tried to keep getting better each and every summer.
 
"We were able to win the FIBA Americas in Las Vegas (2007).
 
"We were able to win gold in 08 and that was a big step for us and four years later, being put in this position once again, we kind of all share the same traits.
 
"It's been a long road for USA Basketball and like I said, I am happy to be in a position where I can say I had something to do with us being back on top."
 
FIBA