Carmelo Anthony’s big night in Rio was nearly a nightmare for the United States as Team USA was down at halftime against Australia for the first time since 2004.
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Tina Charles, who finished with 15 points, got going in the second quarter to help the USA extend the advantage to 22 at the half.
It was noted that Team USA was too complacent early in the game before finally nabbing the victory.
The USA overcame that halftime deficit (54-49) and the one in the fourth quarter (72-70) and remained unbeaten after three games with a 98-88 victory.
Veteran Carmelo Anthony scored 31 points for the game.
“We knew going into [the game against the US] that we had to be physical with them defensively and get them out of their comfort zone”, Mills said. But, it took until the fourth quarter for United States of America to finally have a clear lead and pull away from the Australian “Boomers’ and finally finished the epic match with a victory”.
Australia scored just 34 points in the second half, and the U.S. shot 56.3% and made 5-for-9 three-pointers in the fourth quarter.
The Boomers did not trail by more than eight points until the final seconds and actually led the 17-time gold medallists for large periods of the game on Wednesday night (early Thursday AEST). The Australians, with big bodies inside, quality point guards to counter the American pressure and a wealth of National Basketball Association championship experience, stood toe to toe with the team that had blown them out of the past two Olympics in the quarterfinals.
“If he doesn’t make the shots he make we lose tonight”, forward Paul George said. “You beat one of the best teams in the tournament”. They quickly blew away Venezuela after it was 18-18 Monday, but the only second-quarter surge in this one was made by the Australians. Something to remember at the Olympics is that most worldwide players on their home teams are having the chance to be the number one or two scoring options for their teams. “We beat a very good team and we earned that win and we will need to continue to earn our wins”.
While his impact has been established off the court, it’s becoming clearer by the game that Anthony is playing just as vital of a role on it. And when USA veteran Carmelo Anthony nailed the first two three-pointers of the game, the signs were ominous. It wasn’t long in the third quarter until he was pegged with a fourth foul, but he did manage to play the final five minutes. In 2012, Lithuania had an 84-82 lead before losing 99-94. He shot 11-of-21 from the field and 9-of-15 from beyond the arc, while his teammates combined to shoot 23-of-66 and 8-of-24.
“Carmelo was magnificent”, said USA coach Mike Krzyzewski.
Colangelo was watching courtside as the team he built on the theory that chemistry is just as important as talent struggled to contain Australia defensively and was taken out of its offensive flow by the aggressive play of the Australians. Maybe it will be Spain, Argentina, Brazil or Lithuania in the knockout round.
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It allowed the United States to regain momentum midway through the quarter and forge back away to a 78-74 lead with seven minutes to play.
