INQUIRER Sports

BEIJING--(UPDATE 2) Kobe Bryant provided a crucial late spark and the United States won the Olympic men's basketball gold medal for the 13th time, defeating world champion Spain 118-107 in the championship game Sunday.

Dwyane Wade scored 27 points to lead the Americans while Bryant added 20, LeBron James contributed 14 and Carmelo Anthony scored 13 for the US squad of National Basketball Association stars.

Wade, James and Anthony were all reserve members of the US team that settled for bronze at the 2004 Olympics, sparking the golden quest of this US "Redeem Team" to reclaim global supremacy for basketball's birthplace.

It was a game the NBA superstar multi-millionaires had waited for years to play and they were not about to lose, although the Spaniards gave them their toughest Olympics fight, staying within two points with eight minutes to play.

Rudy Fernandez sank a three-pointer with 8:13 remaining to pull the Spanish within 91-89, the closest they had been since the first eight minutes and that any team in the Olympics had been to the Americans so late in a game.

Bryant entered after a US timeout to regroup and sparked a 12-3 run for the flashy NBA lineup, scoring five points and making two assists. Pau Gasol answered with four points to pull Spain within 104-99.

But Bryant replied with a pivotal four-point play--sinking a three-pointer, being fouled and adding a free throw--then put a finger to his mouth as if to silence Spanish supporters once and for all.

Spain closed within 108-104 but Wade hit a three-pointer and added lay-in off a pass from Bryant with 71 seconds remaining to seal Spain's fate.

In the final seconds, US bench players began hugging each other. Once the horn sounded and the golden moment arrived, players gathered at mid-court for a group hug and dance, chanted a cheer and raised their arms together in victory.

Fernandez scored 22 to lead Spain while Gasol, Bryant's NBA teammate with the Los Angeles Lakers, added 21 points.

Americans had lost only twice in Olympic history until 2004, when they dropped round robin games to Puerto Rico and Lithuania and fell to eventual champion Argentina in the Athens semi-finals, settling for bronze medals.

A shock loss to Greece in the 2006 world championship semi-finals left the Americans with bronze again, but the US team has not lost since, avenging the losses to Greece and Argentina with Olympic triumphs.

The US team improved to 10-0 against Spain in the Olympics, including a victory in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics gold medal game. The US team routed Spain 119-82 last week in preliminary round play but this was far different.

Spain began the second half with a 10-6 run, Felipe Reyes starting with a pair of jumpers and Juan Carlos Navarro finishing with two lay-ins to trim the US lead to 75-71, ensuring the US NBA stars their toughest fight of the Games.

Anthony capped a 10-4 US run with a three-pointer but Navarro answered with a finger roll lay-in at the buzzer to pull Spain within 91-82 entering the fourth quarter.

A key 11-2 US run opened a 46-33 lead for the Americans. A three-pointer by Wade to close the first quarter, another by Bryant to open the second followed by a Bryant slam dunk and an Anthony three put the Spaniards in a hole.

But Fernandez sparked a Spanish comeback, scoring 10 points in a 17-9 run to pull the world champions within 67-61 before Chris Paul added two free throws to boost the US lead to eight points at half-time.

A 15-8 Spanish run gave the world champions their biggest lead at 22-17 only 5:42 into the game. Navarro scored six points in the spurt to spark Spain.

The Americans answered with a 14-3 run for a 31-25 edge, Wade and Chris Bosh each scoring four points in a streak highlighted by a steal and fast break reverse slam dunk by Wade, who scored 21 points in the first half.

Chinese fans cheered the US stars as if they were the home side, although England football hero David Beckham drew equal applause when shown on the arena's giant video screen.

Argentina defeated Lithuania 87-75 in the bronze-medal game.