INDIANAPOLIS -- Red in the face, white as a ghost and feeling blue, Team USA suffered one final slap in the face Saturday as a parting gift from the international basketball community -- a sixth place finish.

The United States had yet another fourth-quarter breakdown, as Spain came back from a 10 point fourth quarter deficit to defeat America 81-75.

Team USA hit just three of 16 field-goal attempts in the fourth, including 0-for-6 from beyond the 3-point line. Overall, the United States was outscored 25-10 and outrebounded 22-11 in the final period.

Did the U.S. quit on coach George Karl in the fourth? "I think quit is hard word," Karl said. "I think they got frustrated, felt pressure and didn't make plays they would normally make with their NBA teams."

Still, Karl acknowledged that the fire, for the most part, had gone out. "The consolation games have a lot of sadness and a lot of fatigue to them," he said.

Spain's Pau Gasol agreed: "(The Americans) were playing flat the whole game. I've played against all of these players. I think they play harder in the NBA than they did here. These were not the players I know. In the NBA players do anything to win, tonight they didn't seem to care."

After the game, Team Spain celebrated like they had beaten Angola, not the United States. Been there, done that.

"I would have like to beat then in the finals, then we would have celebrated," Gasol said. "But we were playing for fifth place and that is no reason to celebrate."

While Karl still maintains he'll remember this experience fondly -- thankfully, he spared us from another "celebration for basketball" speech Saturday night -- Michael Finley said the whole experience has left a bitter taste in his mouth.

"Losing still stinks," Finley said. "Whether it's national or international, it doesn't matter. I always said that if we were to lose, it would be because we beat ourselves. We did that again tonight."

Oh, the pain
Wounded egos are bad enough. But the broken bodies littering Indianapolis were also an issue Saturday. The pain the U.S. team was feeling wasn't just psychological. The team lost several of its key players to injuries in the last few games.

Forget about the sixth-place finish for a second -- major injuries to star players is the NBA's worst nightmare. Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and several prominent players, including Jason Kidd and Ray Allen, were hesitant about the World Championships for this very reason.

They may have been on to something.

Several big-name NBA players leave the event limping. Jermaine O'Neal (sprained left ankle) and Shawn Marion (pulled right groin muscle) missed games with injuries.

Elton Brand hyperextended his right knee and played only limited minutes the last week of the tournament.

The United States wasn't the only team that was hard on NBA players. Russia's Andrei Kirilenko sprained his left ankle and missed most of the tournament. Argentina's Emmanuel Ginobili had to leave Saturday's game against Germany with an injured foot, and Yugoslavia's Peja Stojakovic's ankle has been swelling after every game. Pau Gasol has undertaken several MRI exams on his thigh.

What in the name of Penny Hardaway is going on? Nine grueling games in ten days will do that to even the healthiest NBA player.

"These guys are stronger and tougher than you think they are," Karl said. "A lot of them are playing hurt. It's been a grueling schedule."

Still, Team USA has trudged on. Brand actually asked Karl not to say anything about his injury. As speculation ran rampant over the last few games as to why he was playing only limited minutes, Brand said he just wanted everything kept on the down low.

"I didn't want to make a big deal out of it," Brand said. "And I wanted him to be able to use me if they needed me without everyone worrying."

Brand did get into the game Saturday, scoring nine points in 15 minutes. While Brand said his knee should be fine by the start of training camp in October, it will take longer for his soul to heal from the United States' crushing losses.

"Frustrating isn't the right word," Brand said. "I'm not sure there are words. It was a helpless feeling, sitting on the bench watching my teammates battle. I think I could've helped, my body just wouldn't let me."

And finally ...
The first two teams that whacked Team USA will go head-to-head Sunday in what should be scintillating gold-medal game.

Argentina has been playing the best basketball in the world over the last year or so and is currently on a 27-game winning streak. To win number 28, Argentina may have to do it without its best player, Emmanuel Ginobili.

Ginobili injured his foot during the second quarter of Argentina's victory over Germany. Without him in the game, Argentina struggled and had to come from behind in the fourth quarter to take the victory over Germany, 86-80.

How will Argentina fare without its top scorer?

"If he can't play, the team will absorb that loss and become stronger, more powerful," Argentina head coach Ruben Magnano predicted. "Everybody in the basketball world knows what this injury means to Emmanuel Ginobili and our team. Our mentality is to face the war with the soldiers we have. We have to forget about it."

Both teams feel that they must win the gold medal to validate their win over the Unated States.

"Absolutely. It's a must. Absolutely," Magnano said. "The win against the U.S., the euphoria, lasted for us for only 15 minutes ... Time will show what a great win it was."

"Our goal was not to just beat the United States but to win the tournament," Yugoslavia center Vlade Divac said. "That was just one win, it won't mean much if we lose the next game."

Notes
For the tournament, Team USA finished last in free throw percentage, shooting just 62 percent from the line. ... The sixth-place finish is the worst ever by USA Basketball in the World Basketball Championship competition.

Chad Ford writes the daily NBA Insider column for ESPN Insider. To get a free 30-day trial, click here.