Team USA’s opening act a slam dunk

The Americans still are erratic shooters, their opponents remain in awe of the NBA superstars who constitute the USA roster, and they never lose in the FIBA Americas Championship.

All those factors were on display at times Wednesday at the Thomas & Mack Center as Team USA had little trouble disposing of Venezuela 112-69 in the opening game of this year’s FIBA tournament.

"We did everything we wanted to," said LeBron James, one of seven USA players to score in double figures with 11 points and who also helped set the tempo with his defense and rebounding. "It was a good first effort, definitely something for us to build on."

The Americans, who are 27-0 in this competition, are off to a 1-0 start in Group B and will face the U.S. Virgin Islands at 8 tonight on ESPN Classic (Cable 322).

The Virgin Islands is a small team and will have a hard time matching up with Team USA. But the Virgin Islands has a couple of good shooters, including former Pittsburgh guard Carl Krauser and Murray State’s Cutherbert Victor.

"I liked the way we attacked tonight," U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "When we’re attacking, we’re forcing teams to foul. I’d like to see that continue."

No one was expecting perfection when it came time to shoot the ball, and perhaps butterflies and rust remain, but things were dismal at the start as the Americans were 5-for-10 from the foul line in the first quarter and 2-for-9 from beyond the 3-point arc after the first 10 minutes.

Eventually, they settled down and finished 55 percent from the floor, 38 percent from 3-point range (10 of 26) and 69 percent from the line.

Team USA also made life miserable for Venezuela’s offense, and that offset some of its own shooting woes, particularly at the start of the third quarter as the Americans began with a 14-2 run, extending their 54-34 halftime lead to a 68-36 advantage.

"Our talent definitely showed but also showed how well our guys played together," Krzyzewski said. "This was our first international game together, and we have eight new guys. We’re still learning about each other. But I was very pleased with our first performance."

At times, the Venezuelans seemed in awe of the Americans. Right before Carmelo Anthony attempted a first-quarter free throw, Venezuela coach Nestor Salazar walked onto the court, approached a surprised Jason Kidd and extended his hand to the New Jersey Nets star point guard.

Kidd said he knows the coach from previous competitions. So he shook Salazar’s hand and then proceeded to pick apart Salazar’s team.

Kidd had four assists and made a great hustle play in the second quarter as he saved a ball from going out of bounds, flinging it to Anthony at the top of the key. Anthony quickly found James cutting to the basket and hit him in stride. James then delivered a behind-the-back pass to a trailing Bryant, who finished with a thunderous slam dunk that brought the Thomas & Mack crowd of 6,537 to its feet.

"This team likes to get out and run, but we can also play patient in the half-court," Kidd said. "Guys are always looking for each other, and that allows us to make the plays we did."

As expected, Krzyzewski started Anthony, who had 17 points, James, Bryant and Kidd. But instead of Amare Stoudemire, he opted to start Dwight Howard at center, and the Orlando Magic star delivered, finishing with 12 points, eight rebounds and three blocks.

Venezuela tried to defend the Americans man to man. By the middle of the third quarter, Howard and the rest of the starters were on the bench, their night’s work complete as the USA held a 79-41 lead. The second unit continued to push it, with Michael Redd going for 17 points and Stoudemire adding 16.