SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic -- In the first round, the Americans played Puerto Rico tight down to the final buzzer. In the medals round, the game got away early.

	Daniel Santiago and Puerto Rico were too much for the young American squad.

Puerto Rico went on a 14-0 run in the first half en route to defeating the U.S. men 76-70 in the bronze medal match at the Pan American Games on Wednesday night. The loss means the United States did not win a basketball medal at the games for the first time in 32 years.

"It's very disappointing having to go home without a medal,'' said Connecticut's Ben Gordon, who led the U.S. team with 12 points.

Brazil ignored the deafening din from an overflow crowd at Palacio de los Deportes, using a 23-2 run to beat the Dominican Republic 89-62 to win the gold medal.

Things fell apart in the second quarter when the Americans went scoreless for 4 minutes, 27 seconds, and Puerto Rico opened a 23-point lead.

"They came ready to play and we didn't,'' Emeka Okafor of UConn said.

The U.S. team mounted a furious rally in the second half, but it wasn't enough. Trailing by 20, Team USA closed the third quarter with a 17-6 run and pulled within four with 3:49 left.

But the Americans went dry after that, and Puerto Rico held on.

Carlos Arroyo had 23 points and Sharif Fajardo added 22 for the winners. The Americans had 23 turnovers, several of which the Puerto Ricans converted into easy fast-break points on their big run.

The Puerto Ricans beat the Americans on Monday in preliminary-round play, 86-85, when Andre Barrett's shot at the horn rimmed out.

Barrett, who had a team-high 16 points in the first meeting, had to leave early in the second half Wednesday after he banged his head on the floor while drawing a charging foul.

Without their only true point guard, the Americans rallied by crashing the glass for rebounds and pushing the ball after Puerto Rican turnovers.

All of the Americans' first-round games were decided by two points or less as several players got their first international exposure.

"I think that they realize that you don't get many nights off,'' U.S. coach Tom Izzo said. "I think they learned how passionate other countries are about basketball.''

The only other time the United States failed to win a medal in men's basketball was 1971, when it didn't advance out of group play despite having a 2-1 record.

The U.S. men last won gold in 1983 Michael Jordan and Chris Mullin were on the roster.

At halftime, the crowd in the arena began to swell with fans awaiting the championship game. By the end of the U.S.-Puerto Rico match, every seat and aisle was filled with fans. Some sat in the front row of the upper deck, with legs dangling under the railing.

Brazil's fast start only silenced the raucous crowd temporarily. The fans roared back to life when a 3-pointer made it 23-5, and their cheers carried the team as the Dominicans closed the gap to 13 at halftime.

A dunk by Dominican Jeffrey Greer brought an eruption of noise late in the third quarter, but the home side never got within striking distance of the quick Brazilians. Brazil pushed the ball at almost every opportunity, moving at a rhythm faster than that of the few yellow-clad samba drummers in the stands.

After the bronze-medal game, a small crowd of fans and some members of the media crowded around the press entrance on the ground floor of the arena. When soldiers opened the gate to let in a few media members, the throng pushed forward, and the soldiers had to use their nightsticks to keep the crowd back from the door.

The soldiers promptly closed the gate, closed a glass door behind it and tied it shut.

While Puerto Rico was making its run in the second quarter, a huge roar went up from the crowd when it was announced Dominican track star Felix Sanchez had won the 400-meter hurdles.

The U.S. women routed the Dominican Republic 109-54 to finish the preliminary round with a 4-1 record. They have won four straight games in the tournament since losing their opener to Cuba, and will play Brazil in the semifinals Friday. The Americans beat Brazil in the round-robin portion of the tournament.

The game got out of hand in the early going as the U.S. women led 34-13 after the first quarter.

Laurie Koehn of Kansas State scored 23 points for the Americans, while Vanderbilt's Jennifer Benningfield had 21. Every American player scored in the game and played at least 10 minutes.

"This was a good game to work on some things,'' coach Debbie Ryan of Virginia said. "It built confidence and kept our offense rolling. I was pleased overall with the game. There was no letdown.''

Juana Duran scored 22 points for the Dominican Republic.

Cuba finished first in the preliminary round and will face Canada in the other semifinal.