|
 Nolan Richardson's Mexico team kept the game respectable into the second half before the Americans pulled away for a 127-100 victory Monday night in the second round of the FIBA Americas tournament.
Carmelo Anthony scored 28 points, tying the American record in an Olympic qualifier. He had 16 in a sensational opening quarter, when the Americans shot 80 percent from the field.
But the Mexicans, who sneaked into the second round through a three-team tiebreaker, outplayed their more talented counterparts for much of the next two periods before the U.S. put them away for good late in the third.
Kobe Bryant added 21 points, and LeBron James and Dwight Howard had 19
each for the United States, which led by only 15 points midway through the third quarter after beating its first four opponents by 48.4 points per game. The Americans face Puerto Rico on Tuesday night.
Mexico rarely showed the pressure defensive style the Richardson used at Arkansas, but hustled for offensive rebounds and shot 15-of-28 from 3-point range to hang around.
Romel Beck, who played for UNLV, scored 20 points for Mexico, which plays Brazil on Tuesday.
Richardson beat U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski for the 1994 national championship when Arkansas edged Duke, but had little hope of winning this matchup. Still, he didn't coach any differently.
Richardson could easily be heard hollering instructions at his players in another mostly empty Thomas & Mack Center, and gestured frequently during a lengthy discussion with a referee moments after Howard had knocked a pair of Mexican players to the ground late in the first half.
Richardson chatted with Krzyzewski and U.S. assistant Jim Boeheim, another NCAA champion, before the game. But it wasn't long before Richardson had little to smile about.
[to top of second column]
 |
Krzyzewski made a pair of changes to his starting lineup, going with Chauncey Billups over Jason Kidd and replacing Howard with Amare Stoudemire. It didn't affect the Americans at the start.
Anthony's dunk capped a 17-2 run that gave the Americans a 35-14 lead with a little more than 2 1/2 minutes left in the first quarter. The U.S. made 14 of its first 16 shots before finishing at 16-for-20, taking a 45-23 lead into the second.
However, Mexico outscored the United States 28-20 in the second to make it 65-51 at the break. The smallest U.S. halftime lead had been 19 points Sunday against Brazil. The Americans pulled comfortably ahead early in the third, but Mexico battled back again, pulling to 82-67 on Victor Mariscal's 3-pointer with 4:45 remaining.
The Americans eventually broke away for good, but the Mexicans still had one last highlight. Beck, who came in as the tournament's No. 2 scorer with 22.8 points per game, had a four-point play late in the third after Bryant fouled him on a 3-pointer.
Anthony, who set the U.S. record for a world championships game last summer with 35 points against Italy, equaled Denver Nuggets teammate Allen Iverson's 28-point night from the '03 qualifier.
The Americans played without reserve Tayshaun Prince, who sprained his ankle Sunday against Brazil.
[Associated Press;
by Brian Mahoney]
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
|
