U.S.A.-Greece: First-Half Impressions

For the third game in a row the U.S.A. men's basketball team came out a little flat to start with, and for the third time Dwyane Wade came in to provide the spark the Americans needed. The Miami Heat star has been terrific on both ends of the floor, leading the team to a 51-32 halftime lead. Wade has 10 points 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals after two quarters of play, and made the play of the tournament so far when he connected with Kobe Bryant for an alley-oop.

The biggest key for the Americans up to this point is that they have been extremely active on defense. After looking a little shaky early, the team has been much more active, clogging the Greeks' passing lanes, while preventing them from running their patented pick and roles.

Along with Wade, Chris Bosh has been a force early, chipping in 12 points and 4 boards and providing a presence in the paint on defense. One thing to keep an eye on as we head into the second half is that there are five players on the U.S. squad who have at least two fouls, (the point guard trio of Williams, Paul and Kidd who has three are amongst this group) so it will be interesting to see how Coach K shuffles the lineup if and when that time comes.

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