Had it gone in, it would have been a six-point game at the half. A half in which the Americans had only two assists on 21 buckets and missed 10 of their 20 free throws and 10 of their 13 3-pointers while displaying virtually none of the ferocity that had carried them into the medal round on a wave of positive vibes.

But the shot missed, and Chris Bosh corralled the rebound and made a quick outlet pass to Williams, who already had turned upcourt.

"I looked up and saw I had time to get off a shot," Williams said. "When I caught it, it was about three seconds. I thought I could make it to the basket, a big man came up and I thought I could go by him and get to the basket, but he kept backing up, and I rose up for the 3."

What was striking about the 3 was the way Williams kept his cool and was able to get his feet set right at the base of the 3-point arc. The form was perfect, and the shot was, too.

"Usually a jump shot is better [than a runner]. That's the way you practice it," Williams said.

The sequence amounted to somewhat of a six-point swing in the final six seconds, and the Americans had a 55-43 lead going into the locker room.