RIO DE JANEIRO _ Could it be? Could it be that Venezuela, hanging tough and on even footing with the U.S. men's basketball team after one quarter Monday, was building up to deliver a shocking upset in the Rio Olympic basketball tournament _ and on the 24th anniversary of the original U.S. Dream Team's gold-medal triumph at Barcelona, no less?
No, it couldn't.
Coach Mike Krzyzewski's team labored early but pulled away in the second quarter and rolled to a 113-69 victory at Carioca Arena 1, improving its record here to 2-0. A 30-8 surge in the second quarter made the difference for Team USA, which had been even with Venezuela at 18-18 after the first quarter. The U.S. will put its 19-game Olympic winning streak on the line against Australia on Wednesday.
Paul George of the Indiana Pacers had 20 points, Jimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls had 17, Kevin Durant of the Golden State Warriors had 16 and Carmelo Anthony of the New York Knicks had 14 points and moved up to third on the U.S. men's Olympic all-time scoring list when he reached 258 career points, vaulting past Michael Jordan. Anthony has hit double figures in scoring in 11 of the 25 Olympic contests he has played over four tournaments. Jordan played in two Olympic basketball tournaments.
Clippers center DeAndre Jordan was credited with nine rebounds to go with 14 points. He also had a few rim-rattling dunks and an air-balled free throw.
The U.S. team's slow start wasn't entirely a surprise. Venezuela was the only opponent that didn't give up 100 points to Team USA during exhibition play, and Team USA's 35-point margin of victory in the pre-Rio tour was its smallest in its five exhibition games.
Venezuela guard John Cox, who played at the University of San Francisco, had 19 points. Center Gregory Echenique, who played at Rutgers and Creighton, had 18 points for Venezuela (0-2).
