After beating Puerto Rico, 114-69, in exhibition play earlier this month, Team USA came out sluggish in the first half, but went on to win, 111-100. Carmelo Anthony had a team-high 21 points, while Kirk Hinrich and LeBron James each chipped in 15. Chris Paul did a nice job of distributing the ball, tallying nine assists to go with his 11 points.
For those rooting for Team USA to go on and win the title, the score of this game has to be worrisome. They can’t afford to come out sluggish against the better teams in the world.
And what’s the deal with Carlos Arroyo? He doesn’t do much in the NBA, but he’s able to score 23 points on 50% shooting against the league’s best, while also racking up five assists.
Team USA faces China (with Yao Ming) Sunday morning at 6:30 PM on ESPN2. See the entire schedule here.
