BEIJING // The US men's Olympic basketball team put on a dazzling show of soaring slams and dunks today, as it beat China 101-70 in one of the most anticipated events of the Beijing Games. The US president George W Bush cheered from the stands as NBA stars LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Kobe Bryant certainly impressed the red-flag waving crowds at Beijing's basketball arena. "Look, I had five dunks in one game. That's because of the crowd," said Kobe Bryant. "Last time I had five dunks in a game I was like 17. So that's all because of the energy in this crowd.
"I think they knew that history was being made tonight and obviously it was a proud moment for their country as it was for ours. You could feel the electricity." Wade scored 19 points, James had 18 and Bryant finished with 13 points for the Americans in a match that USA Basketball officials were told could draw the largest viewing audience ever for a sporting event. China's Yao Ming, the all-star centre for the Houston Rockets, finished with 13 points. He started the showcase by drilling a three-pointer from the top of the key for the first score of the game.
NBA players are wildly popular in China, where the league estimates 300 million people play basketball. The Americans, still known as the Dream Team in China, enjoyed a huge backing during exhibition games in Macau and Shanghai, support that will surely help them here on their gold-medal quest for Olympic redemption. The Americans made 21 of their first 25 shots inside the three-point arc. Mr Bush and his family were wrapping up another long day of sports, more than 12 hours after they watched American swimmer Michael Phelps win the 400-metre individual medley for the first of his possible eight gold medals.
Yao's three-pointer to start the game sent the crowd back into a frenzy and China stayed in the game for a while by hitting from behind the arc. The Chinese hit eight of their first 12 attempts, with Sun Yue's three tying it at 29 with six minutes and nine seconds remaining in the second quarter. "It was our first game. We were very anxious. We missed shots that we normally would hit. But at the end of the day, you win by almost 30 points, you've got to take good things out of that," Wade said. "We played very, very hard. We give ourselves a chance defensively every night. That's what it's all about with us."
* AP
