Team USA's quest for a fourth straight gold medal continues Tuesday morning as it takes on Spain in the quarterfinals of the men's basketball tournament at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The Americans finished second in Group A with a 2-1 record, losing their opener against France before posting back-to-back dominant wins. Spain also went 2-1 to place second in Group C.
Tip-off is set for 12:40 a.m. ET. Caesars Sportsbook has Team USA listed as a 12-point favorite. The U.S. also is listed at -800 on the money line (risk $800 to win $100), while the Over-Under is set at 179. Before making any 2020 Olympics bets, be sure to see what SportsLine's Olympics expert, Mike Tierney, has to say.
A national sportswriter whose work appears in The New York Times and Los Angeles Times, Tierney has covered nine Olympic Games in person. For Rio in 2016, Tierney profited big-time. He told readers to bet Over on Team USA's gold medal count (41.5) and Over on Team USA's overall medal count (102.5). The result was 46 golds, 121 medals and two easy cashes.
And for the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, Tierney hit two of his three predictions: Germany (+200) to win the most gold medals and the United States winning Under 10.5 gold medals (+110).
Now, with the 2020 Tokyo Olympics underway, Tierney has analyzed every angle of Tuesday's USA vs. Spain men's basketball quarterfinal matchup to help bettors find the best betting options. Tierney is leaning on the Under for the point total.
He's also identified an X-factor that has him jumping all over one side of the spread. You ABSOLUTELY need to see what he has to say before locking in your picks.
Who wins Tuesday's USA vs. Spain quarterfinal matchup? And what X-factor makes one side of the spread a MUST-BACK? Join SportsLine right now to find out which team in the USA vs. Spain game you should back against the spread, all from the expert who has crushed his Olympic picks!
Tierney's pick:
Spain +12
The tournament's top two seeds meet in the... quarterfinals? Indeed, it could be an early out for Team USA, which must navigate a scary foe featuring Ricky Rubio, Rudy Fernandez and the brothers Gasol (Pau and Marc) — all who have NBA experience. Another standout, Victor Claver, is a former first-round draft pick. In its last outing, Spain did fall to Luka Doncic and Slovenia, who are terrorizing the field, and should be refocused for an opponent it often gives fits. In the last three Olympic clashes, the U.S. has won by 11, seven and six points. The shrinking-margin trend could continue. The Spanish wield the size to cope with Team USA's bigs. The U.S. has gathered itself after a wretched defeat to France in the opener by pounding two vastly inferior teams. The spread reflects a bit of irrational exuberance over those results.
