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AP Photo/Dusan Vranic BEIJING (AP) -- The U.S. Olympic team stopped the pick-and-rolls -- and just about everything else Greece tried.
These Americans that looked so lost two years at the world championship when this team was being formed appear to have found their Olympic defensive way.
Batting away balls or swatting shots on seemingly every possession late in the second quarter, the Americans broke open a close game and went on to a 92-69 victory Thursday night to clinch a spot in the medal round.
Their offense wasn't too shabby either as the Americans were able to find the range on jump shots when the Greeks went to a zone defense to slow them down.
Kobe Bryant and Chris Bosh each scored 18 points for the United States (3-0), which moves on to a matchup of Group B unbeatens Saturday night against world champion Spain. The winner will earn the group's top seed for the quarterfinals.
Dwyane Wade added 17 points and LeBron James scored 13.
Greece stunned the Americans two years ago in the semifinals of the world championships, shredding the U.S. defense for 63 percent shooting with clinical execution of its pick-and-roll offense in a 101-95 victory.
This time, the Americans had an answer for everything, using a suffocating defense to extend a seven-point lead into a 19-point cushion in the final 5 1/2 minutes of the first half.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
