USA Cruises Past Italy, Advances to Semifinals

The U.S. men’s national team put any concerns that built after their loss to Lithuania to bed after convincingly beating Italy 100-63 in theFIBA World CupSemifinals in Manila, Philippines.

The Americans raced out to a double-digit lead in the first quarter, and never gave it up from there. The lead doubled in the second quarter and the U.S. was up 46-24 going into the locker rooms.

Brooklyn Netsguard Mikal Bridges led all scorers with 24 points, while Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton added 18 andLos Angeles Lakersfan favorite Austin Reaves came off the bench with 12.

For Italy,Utah Jazzforward Simone Fontecchio scored 18, leading his team.

Joining the Americans in the semifinals is Serbia, who easily dismantled Lithuania 87-68 in their quarterfinal.

With the Americans’ spot in the semifinals clinched, they must now await the winner of Germany vs. Latvia, which takes place tomorrow at 1:45 a.m. PT on ESPN+.