August 29, 2004

Team USA leaves Athens with bronze

Bronze is better than nothing. That's one Olympic lesson the U.S. men's basketball team was able to understand.

The Americans took the third-place game seriously Saturday night, earning some revenge and salvaging some self-respect in a 104-96 victory over Lithuania.

Although they didn't get what they wanted in Athens, they didn't embarrass themselves in their finale, either.

``You want to win the whole thing, but you've got to cherish the fact that you were able to win something,'' Allen Iverson said. ``You come all the way over here to Greece and then go home with nothing? That's a lot worse.''

Iverson stared at the Argentine flag as it was raised during the medal ceremony, nothing even remotely resembling a smile crossing his face.

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August 28, 2004

U.S. men's hoops lose to Argentina 89-81

No excuses, and no gold.

The Americans won't be the Olympic basketball champions for the first time since 1988, beaten by an Argentine team that lacks stars but simply knows how to play together better.

Manu Ginobili scored 29 points to lead Argentina to an 89-81 victory in the semifinals Friday night, humbling the nation where the game was invented and perfected.

Bronze is now the best the Americans can do with their hastily assembled assortment of NBA stars that showed weaknesses almost from the moment it began practicing in late July, a month after its opponents.

``We fought as hard as we could,'' Allen Iverson said. ``We couldn't get it done for whatever reason. They were a better team than us.''

August 23, 2004

USA Men Knock Aside Angola 89-53

Led by a balanced scoring attach, the suspence in the USA-Angola men's Olympic game was gone quickly as the Americans (3-2) led from start to finish and claimed an 89-53 victory. The medal round quarterfinals are next for the U.S.

Iverson scored 10 points, off 3 of 4 field goals and 4 of 4 from the line.

The Americans had to wait until Greece defeated Puerto Rico 78-58 in Monday's final game to find out their next opponent, Spain (5-0). China earned the final medal-round spot from Group A by upsetting Serbia-Montenegro 67-66 behind 29 points from Yao Ming.

Elimination play begins Thursday against Spain, which finished pool play with a 5-0 record.

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Iverson not having fun at Olympics - But Sixers guard says he would do it again

Allen Iverson is not having fun at his first Summer Olympics. But he'd do it again if he had the chance.

The United States' busy schedule of games and practices has prevented Iverson from enjoying the Games as much as he'd like. He hasn't been able to attend to any Olympic events in other sports, as he'd hoped, though there's still time.

"Honestly, even without the scrutiny and losses, it hasn't been that much fun for me anyway and I honestly feel like I can speak for a lot of the other guys on the team," he said after an 89-53 win over Angola today left the U.S. team 3-2 in group play. "It hasn't been that fun, but who said it was going to be fun? We came out here to accomplish a goal, to win a gold medal. That's supposed to be the funnest part of it all."

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August 21, 2004

Lithuania Rallies Back For 94-90 Win Over U.S. Men

Two losses in 68 years. Now two losses in a week. The U.S. men's basketball team suffered a late meltdown and lost to Sarunas Jasikevicius and Lithuania 94-90 on Saturday.

The Americans gave their best all-around performance of the Olympics and led for most of the game, but they missed 11 of 33 foul shots to allow Lithuania to stay close.

Tim Duncan, Allen Iverson and their teammates still qualified for the quarterfinals when Angola lost 88-56 to Greece in Saturday's nightcap. Their opponent will be determined by the results of Monday's games.

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August 19, 2004

American Men Stage Comeback Over Aussies

The U.S. Men's Olympic Team staged a thrilling comeback in the fourth quarter, outscoring Australia 24-12 during that span to take the 89-79 victory. Upping its record to 2-1 in Athens, the USA received an 18-point, 11-rebound effort from co-captain Tim Duncan, as well as 16 points apiece from Allen Iverson and Shawn Marion and 12 from Dwyane Wade.

The victory -- and the way the Americans turned the game around -- might be a big step toward reversing their fortunes after they struggled to beat Greece and were embarrassed by Puerto Rico in a 19-point loss.

Brown said the players are beginning to realize what it takes to win at the Olympics.

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We got one more qualifier against Lithuania, which should be rough, before the medal round starts. And it took him three games, but Larry Brown finally benched Richard Jefferson

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August 18, 2004

U.S. Men Back On Track With Win Over Host Greece

In front of a boistrous sold-out partisan crowd, the U.S. Men's Olympic Team defeated host Greece 77-71 on Wednesday night in Athens. The U.S. received 17 points from Allen Iverson, 14 from Tim Duncan and 10 from LeBron James.

The USA overcame some adversity as well Tuesday night. Iverson, the USA's starting point guard, played despite a non-displaced fracture of the right thumb that was suffered during the USA's game Sunday against Puerto Rico.

The USA men will continue their preliminary play in the 2004 Olympics on Thursday, Aug. 19 against Australia (1-1) at 2:30 p.m. (all times listed are Athens local times), then meets Lithuania on Saturday, Aug. 21 (8 p.m.), and the U.S. concludes its preliminary play facing Angola on Monday, Aug. 23 (2:30 p.m.).

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August 17, 2004

Iverson Has Broken Thumb, but Will Play

Allen Iverson broke his right thumb but plans to play anyway Tuesday night for the U.S. Olympic basketball team, which is coming off an embarrassing loss to Puerto Rico in its opener.

Iverson originally injured the thumb on his shooting hand during the team's 92-73 loss Sunday, then aggravated it during practice Monday.

"Will it keep me from playing? I hope not, I doubt it," Iverson said. "I don't think too much would keep me out of the game."

Iverson shot 5-for-14, including 1-for-10 from 3-point range, with four rebounds, three assists and three turnovers in the loss to Puerto Rico. It was unclear exactly how he injured his thumb, which has bothered him in the past.

If Iverson doesn't play against Greece, he could be replaced by LeBron James, Dwayne Wade or Carmelo Anthony.

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August 15, 2004

Shocker! Puerto Rico Stuns USA Men 92-73 In Olympic Opener
In an upset that was as historic as it was inevitable, the U.S. men's basketball team lost for only the third time ever in the Olympics on Sunday, 92-73 to Puerto Rico.

It was also the most lopsided loss in the games for the Americans, alarming not only for its significance but also for its decisiveness.

The loss was a blow to the confidence of Tim Duncan, Allen Iverson and the rest of the Americans, but it did little to hurt their gold medal chances. They need only to finish in the top four of their six-team group to reach the quarterfinals.

``They play the game the way it's supposed to be played,'' Iverson said. ``It's not about athletics. That's the game the way Karl Malone and John Stockton play it. It's good for kids to see how the game is supposed to be played.''

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Catch All The U.S. Olympic Basketball Action This Summer On NBC Networks
NBC recently announced its coverage of the 2004 Olympic Games and for the first time USA Basketball fans will be able to follow the 2004 U.S. Men's and Women's Olympic Basketball Teams on NBC and the CNBC and USA networks of NBC. More...

August 12, 2004

Here is a story on Allen Iverson and has 65 parking tickets from parking illegaly in Philly: Click here to read more.

August 11, 2004

• Video Clip: AI on Team USA
• Video Clip: Iverson NBA Season Highlights

August 5, 2004 - Video Clip: Iversons Game Winner (RealOne Player)

August 4, 2004 - Iverson bails out Team USA

The Americans needed a final-shot 3-pointer by Allen Iverson from just across midcourt Wednesday to pull out an 80-77 exhibition victory over Germany -- a team that failed to even qualify for the Athens Games.

`That was great. It felt good because it was the first time in my life I hit a buzzer beater like that,'' Iverson said. ``That's what basketball is all about.'

``I think we're getting better. Just to get a win in a place like this -- the crowd was really into it,'' Iverson said. ``We have to get used to it in Athens. Everybody will be rooting against us. So this will be a good test for us.''

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In other news, Sixers traded Derrick Coleman to Larry Brown's Detroit Pistons for Corliss Williamson. The 76ers made it clear they wanted to deal Coleman, who has two years and $9.5 million on his contract. If the Pistons want to release him after one season, they will owe him $2 million. Williamson has$18 million and three guaranteed years left on his deal.

US Team Embarrassed in Upset Italy 95, United States 78

The U.S. men's Olympic team did more than merely lose. It was embarrassed and exposed like never before in international competition.

Losing an exhibition game for the first time when using NBA players, the Americans were completely outclassed by lightly regarded Italy, never even making it close in the fourth quarter of a 95-78 upset Tuesday.

``This is a wakeup call for us,'' Philadelphia 76ers star Allen Iverson said. ``I think we need something like this to understand it's not going to be easy.''

Iverson winced when Massimo Bulleri made a 3-pointer despite falling down and having the past NBA scoring champion's hand in his face late in the third quarter.

``We just didn't communicate well on defense,'' Iverson said.

In an effort to avoid a similar display, the current U.S. squad is touring Europe before heading to Greece. On Wednesday, it will face Dirk Nowitzki-led Germany, which beat Italy 85-77 Sunday.

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The latest: Brown benches Iverson

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Allen Iverson was among three U.S. Olympic team players benched by head coach Larry Brown for arriving late to a team meeting. Joining Iverson on the end of the bench for Saturday's easy 96-71 victory over Puerto Rico were LeBron James and Amare Stoudemire. Quotes from AI:

Iverson claimed he ``couldn't have been more than five minutes late.''

``I'm the captain on the team and to be suspended just for being a couple minutes late just doesn't sit well for me,'' he said. ``I'm supposed to be one of the leaders of the team, and this is not a good look.''

``I was surprised at the whole thing,'' he said. ``I didn't know that if we came late to anything, we'd have to sit out a game. I didn't know that.''

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Larry Brown and Allen Iverson, the unbending coach and the free-spirited point guard, never really got along in Philadelphia. But a year after they parted ways, they're combining forces on the U.S. Olympic basketball team and finding that maybe what they had with the 76ers really wasn't so bad.

``To me, he's the best coach in the world,'' Iverson said.

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