Paul George and the United States Survive Against Australia

The United States and Paul George struggled to get past a talented Australian team.

For the first time in this Olympic tournament, the United States found themselves trailing at halftime. The Australian side was the first team in Rio that had the talent a to challenge the United States.

In the end, though, the U.S. survived and won 98-88.

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The national team was in danger until mid-way through the third quarter when they slowly took the lead away from the Boomers and kept them at bay the rest of the night.

The Aussies’ cohesiveness was evident as the forced the U.S. to get away from a more selfish brand of basketball that was good enough against China and Venezuela but wasn’t as effective against a stronger opponent.

While taking advantage of mismatches won on Wednesday, they’ll need to play more like a team going forward, especially if they face this Australian team again.

Paul George’s stat line read 5 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 blocked shot at the end of the game. He shot 2-of-6 on the evening, making one 3-pointer but he never made it to the foul line.

Coach Mike Krzyzewski limited PG’s minutes to just over 17 after making him a starter, but he closed out the game with several hustle plays that included fighting for a needed offensive rebound and saving the ball by throwing it off Matthew Dellavedova.

PG picked up a technical in the first quarter when he and Dellavedova got into a small scuffle, which also led to early foul trouble for George.

George never found the rhythm that allowed him to shoot 6-of-7 and score 20 points in the U.S. win over Venezuela. He scored 15 in the opener against China, but he struggled offensively on Wednesday.

Carmelo Anthony led the way for Team USA as he scored 31 points in the game, taking the all-time lead in points scored for the national team.

He helped bail out the U.S. in the second half with his scoring as he ended the night shooting 11-of-21 from the field and 9-of-15 from beyond the arc. He shared the team lead in rebounds with DeMarcus Cousins, as both had 8.

Melo’s shooting was a big reason the United States won.

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The US plays again on Friday at 6 p.m. against Serbia.