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Defensive Russians keep China at bay
Source: Agencies |
August 1, 2012, Wednesday
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NBA standout Andrei Kirilenko scored 16 points and Russia remained undefeated in Olympic round-robin men's basketball with a 73-54 victory over China yesterday.
The Russians, who opened on Sunday by beating Britain 95-75, became the first team to lead 2-0 in Group B. Reigning European champion Spain and Brazil could match them atop the six-team table with later victories.
Kirilenko, who also grabbed nine rebounds, scored all but one of his points in the first half to help Russia to a 40-25 half-time edge. The Russians stretched their lead to 61-39 after three quarters and cruised home from there.
"We didn't win the game by offense, we won it by defense. Our defense took China out of their usual game," Russia's American coach David Blatt said.
"China are deeper, have more options (on rotation) and more experiences at such a high-level competition. They challenged us on offense and defense. Anyone who will play China down the string will find it's not an easy game," he added.
Kirilenko, a 2.06-meter forward, signed a two-year deal worth US$20 million last week to play for the NBA Minnesota Timberwolves next season along with his Olympic teammate Alexey Shved, who had 14 points and six assists against China.
He played last season for CSKA Moscow after leaving the NBA when a lockout over money issues jeopardized the eventually shortened season.
"The Russians are tall and physical and they really kicked our butts," China's American coach Robert Donewald Jr. said. "When the game gets physical, we usually disappear a little bit. Their physical plays bothered our defense and we're slow all the day. I'm not very happy with the game."
China shot 37 percent in the field and 38 percent on 3-pointers when it was also overwhelmed on the board, 46-29.
Yi Jianlian, formerly of the Dallas Mavericks, led China with 16 points and seven rebounds. "I was too much consistent on my shooting in the first quarter. I should have pulled back a little bit.
"But in a game against a team like Russia, you cannot do a single thing wrong. Their defense dragged us out of the game," Yi said.
The Russians, who opened on Sunday by beating Britain 95-75, became the first team to lead 2-0 in Group B. Reigning European champion Spain and Brazil could match them atop the six-team table with later victories.
Kirilenko, who also grabbed nine rebounds, scored all but one of his points in the first half to help Russia to a 40-25 half-time edge. The Russians stretched their lead to 61-39 after three quarters and cruised home from there.
"We didn't win the game by offense, we won it by defense. Our defense took China out of their usual game," Russia's American coach David Blatt said.
"China are deeper, have more options (on rotation) and more experiences at such a high-level competition. They challenged us on offense and defense. Anyone who will play China down the string will find it's not an easy game," he added.
Kirilenko, a 2.06-meter forward, signed a two-year deal worth US$20 million last week to play for the NBA Minnesota Timberwolves next season along with his Olympic teammate Alexey Shved, who had 14 points and six assists against China.
He played last season for CSKA Moscow after leaving the NBA when a lockout over money issues jeopardized the eventually shortened season.
"The Russians are tall and physical and they really kicked our butts," China's American coach Robert Donewald Jr. said. "When the game gets physical, we usually disappear a little bit. Their physical plays bothered our defense and we're slow all the day. I'm not very happy with the game."
China shot 37 percent in the field and 38 percent on 3-pointers when it was also overwhelmed on the board, 46-29.
Yi Jianlian, formerly of the Dallas Mavericks, led China with 16 points and seven rebounds. "I was too much consistent on my shooting in the first quarter. I should have pulled back a little bit.
"But in a game against a team like Russia, you cannot do a single thing wrong. Their defense dragged us out of the game," Yi said.
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