Post by Motorcity on Aug 4, 2004 17:49:46 GMT -5
U.S. Needs Iverson Heave to Beat Germany
By ROY KAMMERER, Associated Press Writer
COLOGNE, Germany - Things are not looking good for the NBA stars on the U.S. Olympic basketball team. The Americans needed a buzzer-beating 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.
A day after losing 95-78 to unheralded Italy, the United States celebrated a last-gasp triumph against Germany as though they had won an NBA championship. When Iverson's second 3-pointer in the final 1 1/2 minutes went through the net, two-time league MVP Tim Duncan raised a finger to the sky as if to say, "We're No. 1!" Other team members piled atop Iverson on the court.
Iverson has said in the past that he has never made a game-winning shot at the buzzer at any level: high school, college or pros.
The Germans' top player, Dallas Mavericks All-Star Dirk Nowitzki, appeared to have sent the game to overtime by making a 3-pointer over two defenders to tie the score at 77 with 3.2 seconds left.
But Iverson, a U.S. co-captain, came through with his own clutch shot, one day after calling the upset rout against Italy "a wakeup call." That 17-point difference was the largest margin of defeat for an NBA-stocked U.S. team.
One of Iverson's other four 3-pointers came with 1:18 left, staking the Americans to a 75-72 lead. Nowitzki, who finished with 32 points, cut that deficit to 75-74 with two free throws with 35 seconds to go.
Denver Nuggets rookie star Carmelo Anthony made two foul shots to make it 77-74, setting up the final long-distance drama.
The Americans held a slim lead early, never leading by more than five points, until Nowitzki's six straight points on jumpers lifted the Germans to a 59-56 lead with 2:40 left in the third quarter.
The Americans showed more intensity and better defense from the start than against Italy. Iverson set the tone in the opening minutes, hounding German point guard Steffen Hamann until jarring the ball loose and finishing a fastbreak with a layup.
The Germans, who beat Italy 85-77 three days ago, lacked the stellar outside shooters that proved so hard to handle for the U.S. team against the Italians.
Instead, the hosts relied on Nowitzki and plenty of support from the crowd of 18,000.
The U.S. team plays its first game in Athens against Puerto Rico on Aug. 15 as it tries to win its fourth straight gold medal since NBA players were allowed to compete at the Olympics. The Americans' next exhibition game is against Serbia-Montenegro.
By ROY KAMMERER, Associated Press Writer
COLOGNE, Germany - Things are not looking good for the NBA stars on the U.S. Olympic basketball team. The Americans needed a buzzer-beating 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.
A day after losing 95-78 to unheralded Italy, the United States celebrated a last-gasp triumph against Germany as though they had won an NBA championship. When Iverson's second 3-pointer in the final 1 1/2 minutes went through the net, two-time league MVP Tim Duncan raised a finger to the sky as if to say, "We're No. 1!" Other team members piled atop Iverson on the court.
Iverson has said in the past that he has never made a game-winning shot at the buzzer at any level: high school, college or pros.
The Germans' top player, Dallas Mavericks All-Star Dirk Nowitzki, appeared to have sent the game to overtime by making a 3-pointer over two defenders to tie the score at 77 with 3.2 seconds left.
But Iverson, a U.S. co-captain, came through with his own clutch shot, one day after calling the upset rout against Italy "a wakeup call." That 17-point difference was the largest margin of defeat for an NBA-stocked U.S. team.
One of Iverson's other four 3-pointers came with 1:18 left, staking the Americans to a 75-72 lead. Nowitzki, who finished with 32 points, cut that deficit to 75-74 with two free throws with 35 seconds to go.
Denver Nuggets rookie star Carmelo Anthony made two foul shots to make it 77-74, setting up the final long-distance drama.
The Americans held a slim lead early, never leading by more than five points, until Nowitzki's six straight points on jumpers lifted the Germans to a 59-56 lead with 2:40 left in the third quarter.
The Americans showed more intensity and better defense from the start than against Italy. Iverson set the tone in the opening minutes, hounding German point guard Steffen Hamann until jarring the ball loose and finishing a fastbreak with a layup.
The Germans, who beat Italy 85-77 three days ago, lacked the stellar outside shooters that proved so hard to handle for the U.S. team against the Italians.
Instead, the hosts relied on Nowitzki and plenty of support from the crowd of 18,000.
The U.S. team plays its first game in Athens against Puerto Rico on Aug. 15 as it tries to win its fourth straight gold medal since NBA players were allowed to compete at the Olympics. The Americans' next exhibition game is against Serbia-Montenegro.