USA Routs China 114-66 to Finish First in Group A

The USA women’s squad showed how strong they can be as they dismantled China, 114-66, to finish the preliminary round of the men’s basketball competition of the 2012 London Olympics on a high note.

Diana Taurasi spearheaded USA’s balance attack, finishing with 22 points to go with four steals, while Angel McCoughtry added 16 points and six rebounds to go with six assists and five steals, helping the American squad record a new Olympic mark for points scored in a game.

“We’ve got a lot of good offensive players,” said USA head coach Geno Auriemma after the game. “When everything is clicking and they are in sync and the ball’s moving like it was today, we’re a fun team to watch and hopefully everyone who was watching enjoyed it.”

USA had a slow start, but they managed to end the first period with a 31-28 lead behind the eight-point performances of Tina Charles and Taurasi in the first ten minutes of the game.

With the momentum on their side, USA showed real strength in the next two quarters, outscoring China, 30-8 in the second and 33-12 in the third, and played terrific team basketball en route to the dominating 48-point win.

Aside from recording a new Olympic scoring mark, USA also broke the US record for assists as they tallied 33 dimes that led to a best-ever 52 converted baskets.

“This team takes tremendous pride in sharing the ball and we got good passers and finishers,” Auriemma said. “It’s a great testament to them and how much they are more interested in winning instead of who credits about scoring the most points.”

Charles and Maya Moore also had a fair share of offensive contribution with 12 points apiece, while Lindsay Whalen and Candace Parker added 10 points each with the latter adding six rebounds and four assists.

Nan Chen, on the other hand, China with 16 points, Xiaoyun Song added 15, while Zengyu Ma chipped in 13 points, but it was not enough as they took their second-straight defeat after starting the tournament with 3-0 record.

China will face Australia in the quarterfinals, while USA takes on Canada.

2012 London Olympics Women’s Basketball
China vs USA Box Score
(Click for Larger Image)SOURCE: london2012.fiba.com