US reaches World Cup knockout round and wins its group with 2nd straight victory, 2-0 over Australia

SEATTLE (AP) — The United States has advanced to the knockout round at the World Cup without injured forward Christian Pulisic. The Americans beat Australia 2-0 on Friday at Lumen Field in Seattle. A deep U.S. roster overcame Pulisic’s absence to clinch a knockout berth after two matches for the first time. The Americans later won Group D when Paraguay beat Turkey. Pulisic was sidelined because of a calf injury. The U.S. took a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute on an own-goal. Alex Freeman gave the Americans a 2-0 lead in the 43rd minute when he headed in a deflected shot for his first career World Cup goal.