Turning the game into a dunking exhibition with a brilliant first half, the US humiliated Argentina 106-73 on Sunday night in the gold medal game at the Tournament of the Americas.
Unbelievable alley-oop dunks were followed by even better ones in the strongest all-around performance by a US team since the Sydney Olympics.
A much more competitive game was expected after Argentina performed brilliantly in its semifinal win over Canada on Saturday night to qualify for the Olympics. Argentina, which defeated the US last summer at the World Championships, also competed well against the US team in the second round, losing by just eight.
But with nothing at stake aside from national pride, the Americans showed themselves ready to restore a sense of normalcy to a basketball universe that changed so drastically last summer when the US team lost three times at the World Championships.
Led by Tim Duncan, Tracy McGrady, Vince Carter and Jason Kidd, the Americans brought a much stronger team to this tournament -- a team that peaked in the finale.
One sequence over the first five-and-a-half minutes of the second quarter went like this: a dunk by Elton Brand, a high-arcing alley-oop pass from Mike Bibby to McGrady for a dunk, an alley-oop dunk by Carter off a pass from Bibby, a basket for Argentina, a fast-break dunk by Carter, a steal and layup by Bibby, an alley-oop dunk by Jermaine O'Neal off a pass from Kidd.
When it ended, the score was 53-19. Game over -- except for the formality of the final 24-and-a-half minutes.
Karl Malone and Kobe Bryant are expected to be on the roster next summer, and Kidd, Allen Iverson, Ray Allen, McGrady, Duncan, O'Neal also have been guaranteed spots. Carter, a veteran of the 2000 Olympic team, seemed to play more than well enough to earn himself a spot, and Brand may have done the same.
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