The United States national team has shown plenty of skill in the Copa America Centenario, but the team's mental toughness may have put it over the top and into the quarterfinals.
It was especially evident Saturday in a 1-0 win over Paraguay before a boisterous crowd of 51,041 at Lincoln Financial Field, but it first began after the opening 2-0 loss to Colombia.
At the time, there was real concern about whether the Americans could advance out of Group A. Just two games later, they ended up winning it.
Sure, it helped that a Costa Rica team that the United States routed in its second game, 4-0, somehow managed to beat Colombia, 3-2, later Saturday evening in Houston.