While talented individually, this group practiced together for the first time less than a month ago, and they’re playing teams with considerable worldwide experience with core players.
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But never has the best basketball team in the world looked so vulnerable.
While the USA dominated for three quarters, it struggled to close in the final period. They all want to touch the man dubbed “Mao Santo” in Portuguese, The Holy Hand.
The Olympics Basketball Channel will broadcast this matchup live. These games are on his court. “It’s game sevens from now on”, – Durant on USA’s string of close calls.
“They play aggressive”, said USA forward DeMar DeRozan. “I don’t know if we can play ferocious, but I think we can play better on the defensive end, and that’s what we’re going to attempt to do”. They had done the unimaginable. “We’ve got to think about how we can be better”. If the US wants to continue its Olympic basketball dominance and add to its impressive gold medal count in the event, it’ll need to clean up its act. He could have said it on Sunday, too, when the US again almost coughed up a lead, giving a France a chance at a late comeback before sealing a 100-97 win.
“Yeah, of course I do”, he said, his voice rising with pride.
“Today they did not play very well and still won so they are still the favourites”, said 7-foot, 1-inch (2.16) French centre Rudy Gobert, also known as the “Stifle Tower”.
The backcourt pairing is being boosted by Andrew Bogut, who has played like a jilted lover frantically getting in shape to show their ex what they’re missing.
The Americans exacted revenge on Schmidt in Spain, pounding Brazil 127-83 and winning by an average of 43.8 points per game on their way to a gold medal.
Now entering the quarterfinals, Team USA will first go against Argentina, with familiar faces for the All-Star stacked USA as National Basketball Association veterans Manu Ginobili of the San Antonio Spurs and Toronto Raptors’ Luis Scola are set to lead the South American club. He was drafted by the New Jersey Nets in 1984, but played in Italy, where he routinely scored 50 in a game. There can’t be anything better in the game of basketball then when you get an assist.
The U.S. was able to stay undefeated during pool play, clinching first place. “The NBA wasn’t really considering global players the way they are now”. Durant and Carmelo Anthony are the only two Americans with Olympic experience, and there are six players on the roster who have never played in a major global FIBA competition. If they figure out a way to get a few more stops, everything above this paragraph will look foolish.
It did not on Sunday, as the US surrendered most of a 16-point third quarter lead but held on for a 100-97 win against a French team that did not play Tony Parker due to a toe injury (and they wanted to rest him before the quarterfinals).
Schmidt chuckled when reminded of the disparity before turning serious. “I don’t care if I shoot 10 percent the rest of the tournament, if we win the gold medal that’s all that really matters”.
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Kevin Durant scored 17 points after he took just four shots in the previous game, the Americans’ 94-91 victory over Serbia on Friday. “Delly’s still young, we’ve still got a pretty young group – apart from David”, the forward said, referring to 36-year-old center David Andersen. It was just Anthony’s third made shot of the game, but it came at an opportune time.
