The 1996 Dream Team might be the best basketball team ever put together, but Team USA in the London Olympics achieved something no other team has ever done.
With the New York Knicks’ Carmelo Anthony leading the way, the Americans set Olympic records in a 156-73 explosion against Nigeria.
It was a phenomenal shooting display, to say the least. How phenomenal? Let us count the ways:
The U.S. scored a record 78 points by halftime. 100 points was on the board with still five minutes remaining in the third quarter.
- Anthony eclipsed the Team USA single-game scoring record with 37 points in less than three quarters. He made 10 of 12 three-pointers.
- The 26 made 3s were an Olympic record.
- The Americans set a established a new record for field goals with 59
- The 71 per cent shooting percentage was a record.
- The 83-point margin of victory was a new
“Our guys just couldn’t miss,” coach Mike Krzyzewski said.
The U.S. stopped running fast breaks after halftime in an attempt to not embarrass its opponent. Didn’t matter.
“When we get hot, it’s a big problem,” Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers said. “So you have all these guys on one team and then all get hot on the same night, it’s tough.”
Bryant had 14 of his 16 points in the first quarter. Russel Westbrook had 21 points, Kevin Love, 15 and Kevin Durant 14.
“It’s a great accomplishment to get that record,” said Anthony, who broke Stephon Marbury’s scoring mark of 31 against Spain in 2004. “We did it in a very highly classy way. We went out there and we played basketball. We made shots. We make shots like that and play the way we played tonight, that record could have come on any team.”
