ALLAN THE MAN

Three-time NBA scoring champion Kevin Durant and former NBA rebounding champion Kevin Love will play for the United States in next year’s Basketball World Cup, US coach Mike Krzyzewski announced.

Oklahoma City Thunder star Durant and Minnesota Timberwolves big man Love were teammates on the 2012 London Olympic gold medal team as well as the 2010 world championship squad that will defend its crown next year in Spain.

LONDON OLYMPICS 2012 – The United States Dream Team of NBA stars captured their second successive Olympic men’s basketball gold medal and the 14th overall for America by beating Spain 107-100 in Sunday’s final.

Running unbeaten through the tournament as they did in 2008 when they also beat Spain in the final, the US multi-millionaire lineup of NBA elite claimed their fifth crown in the past six Olympics.

“I’m on cloud nine. It’s such a huge honour,” US star Kobe Bryant said after his final Olympic bow.

“It’s hard work and perseverance. I feel very fortunate to go to the Olympics twice and give it a go. I feel very lucky. It was nice.”

The Americans improved to 62-1 since revamping the national team program after settling for Olympic bronze in 2004.

“It’s a relief because if we don’t come back winners it’s a disaster,” US assistant coach Mike D’Antoni said.

But reigning European champion Spain, routed by the US NBA stars in a pre-Olympic exhibition game last month in Barcelona, stayed with the defending champions to the very end, keeping within reach until the final minutes.

LONDON OLYMPICS 2012: Men's Basketball Gold Medal Match 'USA vs Spain'.

The Americans now take on their toughest competition of the Games with a gold-medal final game against Spain (5-2). Both Pau and Marc Gasol have been making opponents suffer inside, while Jose Calderon continues to orchestrate the efficient offense.

After losing its first two games, Spain has won five consecutive games and come into this contest fresh off of a come-from-behind victory over Russia. Pau Gasol led the way in the victory with 16 points and 12 rebounds in what was Spain's most resilient victory of the Games.

Meanwhile, the United States are playing like a team that won't even be contested in the final. They outright embarrassed Argentina 109-83 after beating them by six points prior to the start of the Games.

Kevin Durant leads the way for Team USA with 18 points per game, and has been the outright star for this team throughout the Games. His play has propelled his teammates and the shooting has been jaw-dropping from the Thunder talent.

After both Spain and the United States have made their promising runs, it will all come down to this one surefire thriller in London.

WATCH LIVE STREAMING OF 'USA vs SPAIN' MATCH BELOW:

*the match will start 3:00 PM London / 10:00 PM Manila (August 12, 2012)

LONDON OLYMPICS 2012 – Kevin Durant scored 19 points and LeBron James added 18 to lead the United States team of NBA stars over Argentina 109-83 on Friday and into the Olympic men’s basketball gold medal final against Spain.

The Americans booked a rematch of the 2008 Olympic final and reached the gold medal game for the 15th time in 17 attempts, having missed out in 1988 and 2004 and skipped the 1980 Moscow Olympics in a boycott.

The US men, who also had 18 points from Carmelo Anthony, seek their 14th gold medal against a Spanish side filled with NBA standouts, one that battled the US to the end before falling 118-107 in the 2008 Beijing final.

Spain defeated Russia 67-59 in Friday’s other semi-final. Argentina will play Russia on Sunday for the bronze medal.

Argentina ousted the US squad in a 2004 Athens Olympics semi-final on the way to capturing gold but the Americans returned the favour in Beijing.

The US team improved to 61-1 since settling from bronze at the 2004 Olympics and revamping the national team program with Mike Krzyzewski as coach.

The US NBA multi-millionaires had defeated Argentina 126-97 in a preliminary group match four days earlier, a physical contest in which Carmelo Anthony was hit in the groin while shooting by Argentina’s Facundo Campazzo.

LONDON OLYMPICS 2012 - Team USA (6-0) has breezed through the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. However, they'll have a real challenge going up against an Argentina team (4-2) that gave them trouble in an exhibition game back in July in the semifinals of the tournament.

The Americans seemed to figure the Argentinians out in the group stage, as the stars and stripes ripped off a huge second half and beat their opponent 126-97.

Should Argentina somehow figure out a way to rekindle the passion and skill they displayed in the exhibition game, this game could be a lot closer than their second meeting of the year.

Let’s take a look at when and where to watch this game, who you should keep an eye on and make a prediction on the outcome.

WATCH 'USA vs ARGENTINA' LIVE STREAMING BELOW:

*game will start 9:00 PM (London) 4:00 PM (USA)

LONDON OLYMPICS 2012 (Men's Basketball) – Kobe Bryant scored 20 points to lead the United States over a stubborn Australia squad 119-86 on Wednesday and advance the Americans into a Friday semi-final against Argentina.

Bryant sank three 3-pointers in a row within 31 seconds in the fourth quarter to seal the Boomers’ fate, improving the NBA Dream Team to 14-0 over Australia in global tournaments.

LeBron James added 11 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists while Deron Williams had 18 points and Carmelo Anthony scored 17.

Reigning European champion Spain, which lost to the US NBA squad in the 2008 Beijing final, will face Russia in the other semi-final.

Argentina defeated a set of US NBA stars in the 2004 Olympic semi-finals, ending Dream Team gold domination that began in 1992, but a revamped US squad avenged that loss with a triumph in the 2008 Beijing Olympic semi-finals.

LONDON OLYMPICS 2012 – Kevin Durant scored 28 points and the US NBA Dream Team defeated Argentina 126-97 on Monday to remain undefeated and book an Olympic quarter-final date Wednesday against Australia.

The result completed the entire medal playoff pairings, which will see the Americans face Argentina or Spain in the semi-finals if they defeat the Aussie Boomers, who knocked Russia from the ranks of the unbeaten earlier on Monday.

In the other half of the playoff bracket, reigning European champion Spain will face France in one quarter-final while Russia will meet Lithuania in the other. Semi-finals are on Friday with gold and bronze medal games on Sunday.

The Americans led by only 60-59 at half-time but seized command from the start of the third quarter, which began with LeBron James scoring the first seven US points to ignite a 19-7 run by the US NBA stars.

LONDON – LeBron James silenced stubborn Lithuania to lift the unbeaten US NBA Dream Team into the Olympic medal playoffs on Saturday while Russia edged Spain to secure a top seeding in next week’s quarter-finals.

James, seeking his second gold medal in his third Olympic appearance, scored nine of his 20 points in a 12-2 US run in the final minutes as the Americans beat Lithuania 99-94, improving to 58-1 since taking Olympic bronze in 2004.

“I feel like it was my time to step up offensively,” James said. “I’ve been doing everything else, which I’m OK with. I’m here to do the little things. I can also score. I’m happy I was able to make a few buckets down the stretch.”

Just as “King James” took command for the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals and won his first league crown, he stepped up to the Olympic spotlight and hoisted a multi-millionaire lineup into the quarter-finals as they try to defend gold.

LONDON OLYMPICS 2012 – The United States team of NBA stars shattered a host of records, including most points in a single Olympic men’s basketball game, by defeating Nigeria 156-73 on Thursday in a preliminary round game.

Carmelo Anthony scored a game-high 37 points on 10-of-12 shooting from 3-point range, all of those figures setting US Olympic team records.

The old Olympic record for points by a team in one game was set by Brazil in 1988 at Seoul in a 138-85 preliminary round triumph over Egypt. Brazilians also had the prior mark from a 137-64 victory over India in 1980 at Moscow.

The Americans also eclipsed their own Olympic team record for points in a game, set in a 133-70 victory over China in 1996 at Atlanta.