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Duke wins 31-7 over James Madison

         The David Cutcliffe era at Duke began auspiciously with a long Lightning delay, but ended up with a decisive win as Cutcliffe became the first coach since Fred Goldsmith in 1994 to win an opener.

        Duke dominated James Madison before an announced crowd of 32,561. It would have been at least 3000-5000 if the weather would have cooperated. In this case the 31-7 score was indicative of the game. Duke had 24 first downs to 13 for James Madison. They had 366 total yards and held the Dukes to 248.

       Thad Lewis was 17-28 and had two touchdowns. But it was huge how the running game dominated and rushed for over 200 yards.

      Duke hosts Northwestern next week in what should be a tough game as they come off a 31-10 thumping of Syracuse.

 

Game day: Dawning of a new era

David Cutcliffe will tell you that the stretch of football that will determine their season won’t arrive until November, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t excited, or that expectations have never been higher for the start of the season at Duke, as the new head coach makes his debut against James Madison University on Saturday at 7 p.m. in Wallace Wade Stadium.

“Overall the thing that has helped us get better was better practice habits,” Cutcliffe said. “I knew the first time I saw this team that that was an issue.”

In a scene that was reminiscent of a scene from the summer-movie Hancock, in which Will Smith tells the city of Los Angeles, ‘You deserve better from me. I can be better. I will be better’, Cutcliffe said during his Tuesday press conference that we will be a better kicking, better passing, better tackling, better coverage and a better catching football team and you will see it on Saturday.

“Our job as coaches is to immediately correct that [practice habits], and if we continue to do that during the season by the time we get to November we can be a good football team. We are not the most talented team in the league by any stretch of the imagination. But we have enough talent to be a good football team, and when you are a good football team you can carry the game to the fourth quarter and find a way to win games.”

Fans are ready to fill up a usually sparse stadium to see the changes Cutcliffe has made to the team. Cutcliffe, brought in to change the football culture at Duke and make people forget about past struggles, has worked at teaching players that have lost for the last two seasons how to win a close game.

Because of an increased focus on offseason conditioning and practices designed around becoming a good fourth quarter team through absolute commitment and preparation, expect this year’s Duke team to be fresh when the fourth quarter rolls around. The Blue Devils were outscored last season 100-to-50 in the fourth quarter failing to score any points in the fourth until week five in a 24-14 loss at Miami.

Mike Krzyzewski has claimed three national titles, reached 10 Final Fours and won 803 games.

But these days, the 61-year-old Duke coach isn't taking any wins for granted.

Krzyzewski spoke at a press conference in Durham Wednesday, two days removed from returning from Beijing after coaching the United States men's basketball team to a gold medal. And he scoffed at the notion that returning the U.S. to the top of the basketball world was simply a relief.

"At the end of that Spain (gold-medal) game, where most people would said, 'Weren't you relieved?' No, I wasn't. I was exhilarated. It was euphoric. It was the way it should be.

"And that's the way it's going to be for me for the rest of my career, too. It's going to be that way."

Krzyzewski said that in the past, the pressure of having such high expectations placed on him and his teams has, at times, kept him from enjoying the moment. He said those days are behind him.

"Over the years, whether it be our own people here at Duke, obviously our opponents, people in the media, they expect you to be perfect," Krzyzewski said. "They don't look at process any more. It's like, 'What? We haven't gone to the Final Four? What? We didn't win a national (championship)?'

"You know, very spoiled. And it ruins it a little bit — really a lot. And so part of that becomes where you win and sometimes you're just relieved to win. I'm not saying that that happens all the time, but it happens.

"For the rest of my career, I'm not going with that relief thing."

For three years, Krzyzewski dedicated himself to the USA Basketball program in addition to his duties with Duke. Now, gold medal in hand, he doesn't expect to have much of a role with the national team besides some possible consulting. Life should become less hectic.

And less tiring, though Krzyzewski made sure to qualify the type of fatigue his two jobs have caused.

"We all get tired, but there's good tired and bad tired," he said. "A good tired is doing something I love."

Krzyzewski joined the ranks of coaches with both college championships and Olympic gold on his resume. When asked to put the accomplishment in perspective, he said, "You're lucky. I got on some good people's buses."

Looking forward, Krzyzewski and his staff believe the Olympics experience will be beneficial for the Duke program. Even last season, the Blue Devils employed some principles of the Phoenix Suns' offensive system that Krzyzewski learned from fellow U.S. coach Mike D'Antoni

Assistant coaches Chris Collins and Steve Wojciechowski were on their head coach's staff in Beijing, and Collins thinks the three-year commitment was as much a basketball tutorial as it was a job accomplished.

"I've said a lot, it was like being in a coaches' clinic the last three summers," Collins said. "There are so many ideas, there are so many times we sat with the whole staff exchanging ideas, exchanging philosophies.

"And I think even so last year with our (Duke) team there were things we tinkered with that were a little bit different here or there, and we'll even add more things that coaches on our staff did but also the things you learn from the different countries. You know, it's a different game and different ideas and different ways and different things and different plays."

Krzyzewski spent time during the experience observing foreign teams' coaches and the international players. He marveled at the spirit of the Argentina players and the toughness of the Greek squad, which didn't feature a single NBA player.

While Duke won't play against international teams any time soon, its coach now has a firm grasp of how the game is played globally.

"I learned a lot in the three years I've been doing this," Krzyzewski said. "I think I'm a better coach — I know I'm a better coach after going through this … there's no question about that.

"And (I) have a great understanding, I think, of the international game right now — (of) how many good players there are, how many good coaches there are."

The coaching staff was busy in Beijing, but at least Collins and Wojciechowski made sure to maintain contact with the Devils back home who were watching. Duke's players sent Krzyzewski and his assistants off with a get-together before they went abroad. And they were there to greet them after 24 hours of traveling Monday evening.

The focus will return now to Duke basketball, as the Devils return all but one of their top players from a team that finished second in the ACC last season. And as the 2008-09 season approaches, the Devils are confident that the gold-medal winning experience will only help the future of Duke basketball.

"I think it was nothing but positive," Collins said. "And for our whole staff to be there and be together and talk basketball, you know, in a normal situation — it's not like that in the (normal) summers."

Duke Basketball 2008-2009 Schedule

   

                  

Sat. 10/18 Blue-White TBA

Sat. 10/25 Virginia Union Exhibition TBA

Wed. 11/5 Lenoir-Rhyne Exhibition 7pm

Mon. 11/10 Presbyterian  2K Tournament 7pm ESPNU

Tue. 11/11 winner Georgia Southern/Houston 9pm ESPNU

Sun. 11/16 Rhode Island  4:30 ESPNU

Thur. 11/20 MSG NY  Semifinals 2K Tournament 7pm ESPN2

Fri.  11/21  MSG NY  Finals 2K Tournament 7pm ESPN2

Sun. 11/23 Montana  1pm Fox

Fri.  11/28 Duquesne 3pm ESPN

Tue. 12/2  At Purdue 9pm ESPN

Sat.  12/6 At Michigan 3:30pm ESPN

Wed. 12/17 UNC Asheville 7:30pm ESPN2

Sat.  12/20 Xavier at Meadowlands 2pm CBS

Wed. 12/31 Loyola Maryland 4pm ESPN2

Sun. 1/4  Virginia Tech 7:45 Fox

Wed.1/7  Davidson 7pm ESPN

Sat. 1/10 At Florida St. 1:30pm ESPN

Wed. 1/14 At Georgia Tech 7pm

Sat. 1/17 Georgetown 1:30 CBS

Tue. 1/20 N.C.State 8pm Raycom/ESPN2

Sat. 1/24 Maryland 12 noon ESPN

Wed. 1/28 At Wake Forest 7pm ESPN

Sun. 2/1 Virginia 2pm Fox

Wed. 2/4 At Clemson 9pm ESPN

Sat. 2/7  Miami 1:30pm Raycom

Wed.2/11 UNC 9pm Raycom/ESPN

Sun. 2/15 At Boston College 5:30pm Fox

Thur. 2/19 At  MSG St. Johns 9pm ESPN

Sun. 2/22 Wake Forest 7:45pm Fox

Wed. 2/25 At Maryland 9pm ESPN

Sat. 2/28 At Virginia Tech 3:30pm ABC

Wed. 3/4 Florida St. 8pm Raycom

Sun. 3/8  At UNC 4pm CBS

ACC Tournament March 12-15.

Coach K Leads Team USA to the Gold

     

The U.S. men’s basketball “Redeem Team” ended a frustrating eight-year stretch and regained international basketball prominence by beating Spain 118-107 and winning the gold medal on Sunday.

After winning gold at the 2000 Sydney Games, the Americans missed the podium entirely at the 2002 world championships and settled for bronze after they were knocked out of the semis at the 2004 Athens Games and the 2006 worlds.

"We've been working on this for four years," Toronto Raptor Chris Bosh told CBC Sports after the game. "It feels great, it's an incredible feeling."

Spain made things difficult for the Americans. They came out strong, led for most of the first quarter, and fought to keep within reach for the entire game.

But the Americans managed a 38-31 lead after ten minutes, and 69-61 at the half. The U.S. was a blistering 65 per cent from the field after 20 minutes.

The U.S. was able to shake off every other opponent in the tournament by halftime, but not so on Sunday, as the Spaniards spent most of the third quarter within single digits of the leaders.

In the fourth quarter, Spain was within two points of the U.S., trailing 91-89 with just over eight minutes left, and coming to within four with two minutes left.

"It is more important and more special than any championship that any of us will ever win," Kobe Bryant said after Sunday's game.

American star Dwayne Wade exploded for 27 points, while teammate Bryant netted 20 points.

Bosh added eight points for the Americans, and is the first Toronto Raptor to win a gold medal since Vince Carter in 2000.

Leading the Spaniards was Rudy Fernandez with 22 points, and Pau Gasol with 21.

Spain played without point guard Jose Calderon in the lineup. He was injured in the team's quarter-final win over Greece and reportedly has suffered a groin tear.

USA takes care of Argentina and takes on Spain for the Gold

Led by 19 points and 7-of-7 shooting from the field from Dwyane Wade (Miami Heat), the 2008 U.S. Men's Olympic Team (1-0) opened its Olympic play with a convincing 101-70 win over host China (0-1) in front President George W. Bush, former President Bush and a standing-room-only crowd Sunday at Wukesong Arena in Beijing, China.

"It was an honor for us to be in this game. I thought the Chinese team and our team both played extremely hard. I was proud of our effort," said USA and Duke University head coach Mike Krzyzewksi. "We have great respect for the Chinese team and the Chinese people, and I thought that was displayed in the effort that we showed. It showed a great deal of respect for the level of play and the country that China is."

LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers) contributed 18 points and six rebounds, while Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers) and Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic) rounded out the USA's double-digit scorers with 13 points each.

"I'm glad we finally played. It feels like we've been waiting forever to play our first game here," Wade said. "Running out on the court here, feeling the crowd roar when we came out, the emotions that were everywhere, we're just glad to be a part of this game. China did a great job of playing very hard for their fans, too. I think the fans in China got a great show tonight."

Yao Ming opened the game with a 3-pointer at 9:37, and the basket was an indicator of things to come as China made two more threes in the next three minutes to take a 9-7 lead at 6:43. Following another bucket from China at 6:30, James finished at the rim and then converted off a fast break assist from Bryant to tie the game at 11-11 with 4:47 remaining the period. Bryant sank a deep 3-pointer at 4:20 to give the Americans the lead, and from there the two teams traded baskets to bring the score to 20-16 at the first break.

As China continued its long-range attack in the second quarter, the USA exploited its speed and athleticism to dominate the interior. Zhu Fangyu opened the period with another basket from beyond the arc to pull China within one point of the red, white and blue, 20-19, but Wade slammed home a reverse dunk and Howard scored off a no-look feed from James to push the U.S. lead to five points, 24-19 at 8:49. As the USA raced ahead for transition dunk after fast break lay-up, including eight more points from both Wade and Chris Bosh (Toronto Raptors), China sank three 3-pointers to hold the U.S. advantage to 12 at halftime, 49-37.

While the USA shot a dismal 1-of-12 from 3-point in the first half, China was an impressive 8-of-16. The effort wasn't enough, however, to counter the USA's scorching 83.0 percent from inside the arc (20-24 FGs) in the game's first 20 minutes. By the halftime intermission, the USA had scored 38 of its eventual 60 points in the paint.

"We've been shooting the three alright, and I think we were just a little excited," said Jason Kidd (Dallas Mavericks). "Emotions were high. It's like you have Big Brown, the horse, I'm the jockey trying to hold him back and these guys broke the reins. It's just that the emotions were so high, you try to suppress them and we missed some wide open shots Hopefully we come back the next game and knock those down.

The U.S. lead remained moderate through the first five minutes of the third period, and an offensive rebound and tip in from Zhu Fangyu brought the score to 56-43 in the USA's favor at 4:34. Bosh collected and scored on his own offensive rebound at 4:02 and ignited an 18-5 U.S. run that closed the third quarter with the U.S. up 74-48 and put the game firmly out of the host country's reach.

Yao, who finished with a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds, was whistled for his fourth foul at 4:45 in the fourth quarter and headed to the bench with applause from the crowd. China, however, nearly kept pace with the USA in the final 10 minutes, scoring 22 points to the USA's 27 to bring the final tally to 101-70.

Bosh, who also grabbed eight rebounds, and Michael Redd (Milwaukee Bucks) each scored all nine of their points in the second half; Deron Williams (Utah Jazz) finished with nine points and four rebounds; and Chris Paul (New Orleans Hornets) dished a game-high six assists.

In Sunday's other contests, Group A action saw Russia (1-0) roll over Iran (0-1) 71-49 as J.R. Holden tallied 19 points and Andrey Kirilenko added 15 more; Linas Kleiza drained a three in the game's final seconds to propel Lithuania (1-0) to a 79-75 win over defending Olympic champion Argentina (0-1); and Croatia (1-0), which featured five players in double figures, disposed of Australia (0-1) 97-82. In Group B play, Spain took an important clash against Greece by an 81-66 score as Rudy Fernandez tallied 16 points; and Germany (1-0), behind NBAers Chris Kaman's 24 points and Dirk Nowitzki's 23 points, pounded Angola (0-1) 95-66.

Olympic men's basketball preliminary round action is being staged Aug. 10-18. The U.S. continues preliminary play versus Africa zone champion Angola on Aug. 12 at 8:00 p.m. (all times listed are Beijing local time, which is 12 hours ahead of EDT); on Aug. 14 at 8:00 p.m. the USA will face 2006 World Championship runner-up Greece; 2006 FIBA World Champion Spain on Aug. 16 at 10:15 p.m.; and the USA will close out preliminary play Aug. 18 at 8:00 p.m. against Germany, third place finisher at the FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

The men's Olympic quarterfinals action takes place Aug. 20, semifinals play is slated for Aug. 22 and the Olympic men's gold and bronze medal games will be held Aug. 24.

Serving as 2008 USA Basketball Men's Senior National Team assistant coaches are Syracuse University and Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim, New York Knicks head mentor Mike D'Antoni and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Nate McMillan.

USA Romps over Australia 116-85, Argentina is next

Riding a 19-0 run that started late in the second quarter and stretched until almost four minutes into the third period, the 2008 U.S. Men's Olympic Team (6-0) demolished Australia (3-3) in the second and third quarters on its way to a 116-85 win and a 2008 Olympic semifinal berth Wednesday night at Wukesong Arena in Beijing, China. The victory improved the USA record to 6-0 and advanced the squad into the semifinals.

Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers) turned in a 25-point performance as all 12 U.S. players scored in the contest, including five in double figures.

The USA will face reigning Olympic champion Argentina (5-1) in the semifinals at 10:15 p.m. (10:15 a.m. EDT) on Friday, setting up a rematch of the 2004 Olympic semifinals when Argentina beat the USA 89-81. Argentina advanced to play the USA after surviving Greece 80-78 in today's late game.

"We want to play the best. We want to play the defending champs," said Bryant. "It's all about challenges, and obviously, we welcome all comers. Argentina is the defending champs. You want to be able to play the guys who won it the last time."

In the 8:00 p.m. semifinal game, Spain (5-1), which earlier today topped Croatia 72-59, will play Lithuania (5-1), which downed China 94-68. The Olympic men's gold and bronze medal games will be held Aug. 24 at 2:30 p.m. and 12:00 p.m., respectively.

LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers) added 16 points, nine rebounds and four steals in the USA's win; Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets) tallied 15 points; and Chris Bosh (Toronto Raptors) and Deron Williams (Utah Jazz) each contributed 10 points.

"We had to play really well in order to win," said USA and Duke University head coach Mike Krzyzewski. "They caused us a lot of problems, and I'm glad my Duke team doesn't play St. Mary's next year. (Patrick Mills) is a great guard. He'll be an NBA guard, and I'm very, very impressed. We're ecstatic because we know we beat an outstanding team, who I think was playing their best basketball right now. So, it was a heck of a game for us."

While the USA shot an impressive 56.6 percent from the field (43-76 FGs), Bryant was 4-of-7 from 3-point to help the USA tie the U.S. Olympic record for 3-point field goals made with 12 for a second time in this tournament and set a new mark for 3-pointers attempted with 29.

"I think myself and Melo and the rest of our shooters, Michael Redd, we're starting to get a good rhythm for our shots," Bryant said. "And, it couldn't come at a better time. Being that it's do-or-die, it's go time. This is what we came here for, and we're all ready to go. Money's on the line."

The USA raced to a nine-point lead to start the game behind points from four U.S. scorers, and a James 3-pointer with 6:41 on the clock brought the tally to 12-3 in the USA's favor. Australia countered eight more U.S. points with three 3-pointers in the next three minutes, with the last one cutting the U.S. advantage to 20-17 with 3:20 remaining in the stanza. The teams traded scores to close the quarter, and the USA was ahead by one point, 25-24, as the period ended.

The USA put together its first consecutive points of the second period with a Bosh free throw at 8:25 and a James fast break bucket at 7:57 that brought the score was 33-28. Following two points from Australia, the USA again compiled four consecutive points, and Australia called its first timeout after a Wade fast break increased the U.S. lead to 37-30 at 6:43. The next four minutes were back and forth as both teams tallied 13 points, and the scoreboard read 50-43 when Australia's Brad Newley sank a three with 1:48 remaining before halftime.

That was as close as Australia would get for the remainder of the game. The score reached 55-43 after Bryant scored off an offensive rebound and Williams pulled up in transition with a 3-pointer to just beat the halftime buzzer.

"When I caught it, it was about three seconds," Williams recalled. "I could make it to the basket, but he (the Australian defender) kept backing up. That was my first thought. If he came up and challenged me, he was a big man, then I was going to try and get to the basket. But he kept backing up and I just rose up for the three."

The momentum, and the run, carried through the break for the USA. The red, white and blue sank three 3-pointers in the first 3:23 of the third period, including two from Bryant, as it raced to 14 unanswered points. The 19-0 run, which included 10 points from Bryant, was interrupted by a 3-pointer from Australia's Patrick Mills with 6:01 on the clock, but the Aussie response was too little too late.

"(Kobe) had a great performance, and he came up when we needed it the most, right at the start of the second half," Krzyzewski said. "It was such a possession by possession game, we were lucky that Deron hit that shot right at the end of the first half."

Having recorded just two assists in the first half, the USA went on to record nine assists on 12 made field goals in the third quarter to outscore Australia 34-19 in the period and stretch its lead to 28 points, 89-61, headed into the final 10 minutes.

With the game's outcome decided Australia never gave up, but the USA offense continued to overpower its opponent. With the help of six more points from Bryant and five from Williams and Michael Redd (Milwaukee Bucks) the USA tallied 27 points to Australia's 24 to bring the game to its final score of 116-85.

While the USA dominated the boards, outrebounding Australia 57-28, including 19 on the offensive glass, the Americans struggled from the free throw line, shooting just 58.1 percent (18-31 FTs) from the charity stripe.

The USA has played Argentina four times in Olympic action, recording wins on three occasions and a loss in the 2004 Olympic semifinals. The USA topped Argentina 96-68 in 2000, 85-76 in 1952 and 59-57 in 1948. Handing Argentina a 96-81 setback in the bronze medal game of the 2006 FIBA World Championship, and additionally, the USA beat a less-than-full strength Argentina squad twice in the 2007 FIBA Americas Championship, 91-76 in second round action and 118-81 in the gold medal game. The 2007 Argentina team, while featuring Luis Scola and Carlos Delfino, was without several starters including Manu Ginobili, who currently leads his squad with 20.3 ppg., and Andres Nocioni, who is the team's third-leading scorer with 12.8 ppg. and the leading rebounder at 6.8 rpg.

"Well we haven't accomplished anything yet," said Jason Kidd (Dallas Mavericks). "We've taken one baby step, and now our next step is going to be tough. When we play Argentina, we will have our hands full. We'll have to make sure that our defense is tight and remember that we are here for one thing and that is to win a gold medal."

Serving as 2008 USA Basketball Men's Senior National Team assistant coaches are Syracuse University and Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim, New York Knicks head mentor Mike D'Antoni and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Nate McMillan.

USA Rolls into the Medal Round after a 106-57 win over Germany

         

 

The 2008 U.S. Men's Olympic Team (5-0) compiled 40 minutes of efficient offense and harassing defense in its final preliminary round game against Germany (1-4), and in the process recorded its largest margin of victory yet of the 2008 Olympics posting a 106-57 win on Monday night at Wukesong Arena in Beijing, China.

Everybody scored for the USA, led by 22 points and 10 rebounds from Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic), who shot 9-of-10 from the field. LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers) contributed 18 points; Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers) added 13; and Chris Paul (New Orleans Hornets), who dished three assists, and Dwyane Wade (Miami Heat) tallied 10 points each.

Advancing as Group B's No. 1 seed, the USA faces Australia (2-3), Group A's No. 4 finisher, in the medal round quarterfinals on Wednesday at 8 p.m. (8 a.m. EDT time on USA, USA HD). The quarterfinals action will also feature Spain versus Croatia (2:30 p.m. Beijing time); Lithuania will meet China (4:45 p.m.); and Argentina will play Greece at 10:15 p.m.

"We're excited about finishing pool play undefeated and getting on to the medal round," said USA and Duke University head coach Mike Krzyzewski. "We're healthy. I think our team has played well. We're very excited about getting in the medal round. It's time to try to win a gold medal."

The game was never a contest as Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets) scored the USA first points with game barely three seconds old and never looked back. Sprinting on to a 20-3 lead less than seven minutes into the first period, the U.S. held Germany's NBA tandem of Dirk Nowitzki and Chris Kaman to just five first quarter points combined and to only 20 total points for the game. While Germany was held to just 30.1 percent shooting from the field, including 7-of-30 from 3-point, the red, white and blue outscored Germany in the paint 62-26 and won the battle on the boards 53-38.

"I think tonight's game was very exciting for me," Howard said. "I talked to Coach K earlier today before the game, and he really told me to get myself going and get myself back into how I know how to play basketball."

Behind eight points from Howard and seven from James, the USA raced to a 20-3 advantage after James snatched a steal, and converted a Paul assist with 3:35 remaining in the first period. After the first 10 minutes the Americans led by 19 points, 31-12.

The USA stretched its advantage to 24 points in the second period thanks in part to four 3-pointers, including two consecutive threes from James. Forcing 12 turnovers in the first half, the USA was 7-of-14 from deep in the first 20 minutes and headed to the locker room up 53-29 at halftime.

"We're trying to play with a chip on our shoulder," James said. "We go out every night and try to get better. Going against Greece and going against Spain were easy to get up for. We could have easily had one of those games (tonight) where we came in and made excuses, but we didn't take a step backwards today and that was good."

The USA continued its hot shooting out of the break, opening the third period with an old-fashioned 3-point play from Howard, who scored 10 points in the third quarter alone, followed by consecutive 3-pointers from Bryant, and the score had reached 62-29 just 1:24 into the period. The USA hit two more 3-pointers before the quarter ended, including one more from Bryant and one from Paul, to help take a 83-46 lead headed into the final stanza.

As the USA raced to 23 more points, including seven from Chris Bosh (Toronto Raptors) and six from Carlos Boozer (Utah Jazz), Germany made just five shots and added 11 points to bring the game to its final 106-57 tally.

"We're excited. This is what we've been preparing for," Wade said. "We've been preparing for these three games right here. We had to play these five games to position ourselves the right way. We did that, we played well. Now we have to take it up a notch and play even better. Some people say, 'well, how can you all do that?' Well, we feel that we're hungrier now and we're going to look at every game as a Game 7. If we continue to play defense the way we've been playing, if we continue to move the ball, it's going to be tough to beat us. But we know teams are going to come at us very hard. This is what we live for."

Following the USA's win, the team was congratulated in the locker room by U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps, who collected eight gold medals and set seven world records in the 2008 Olympics.

In Tuesday's other games, Group A saw Croatia (3-2) easily beat Iran (0-5) 91-57 with the help of 16 points from Marin Rozic and Marko Tomas; Australia (3-2) shot 16-of-25 from 3-point and Andrew Bogut tallied 23 points to top Lithuania (4-1) 106-75; and Luis Scola tallied 37 points to help Argentina (4-1) handle Russia (1-4) 91-79.

Headed into the medal round quarterfinals, Lithuania advances as Group A's No. 1 seed, Argentina is No. 2, Croatia is No. 3 and Australia is No. 4; while Russia and Iran have concluded their Olympic play.

In Group B competition, Yiannis Bouroussis and Vassilis Spanoulis scored 19 points to lead Greece (3-2) past China (2-3) 91-77; and behind 31 points from Pau Gasol, Spain (4-1) cruised past Angola (0-5) 98-50.

After No. 1 seed USA, Spain earned Group B's No. 2 spot, followed by No. 3 Greece and No. 4 China; while Germany and Angola will exit the tournament.

With game times still to be determined, semifinal match ups will be as follows: the winner of Spain versus Croatia will play the winner of Lithuania versus China; and the winner of Argentina versus Greece will meet the winner of USA versus Australia. The quarterfinal losers will conclude their Olympic play.

The Olympic men's gold and bronze medal games will be held Aug. 24 at 2:30 p.m. and 12:00 p.m., respectively.

Serving as 2008 USA Basketball Men's Senior National Team assistant coaches are Syracuse University and Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim, New York Knicks head mentor Mike D'Antoni and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Nate Mcmillan.

Running Backs Highlight 80 Play Scrimmage

           First year Coach David Cutcliffe kept the offense very vanilla in the 80 play scrimmage in front of a small crowd and the a trio of runnning backs dominated play. Sophomore Tony Jackson was a work horse as he led the way with 71 yards on 13 carries.Freshman Jay Hollingsworth added 62 yards on 11 carries and classmate Patrick Kurunwune had 46 yards on 13 carries.

           The offensive led by Cameron Goldberg, Jarrod Holt, Bryan Morgan,Rob Schirman and Fred Roland opened up some nice holes as they rushed for 179 yards.

        The quarterbacks led by Thaddeus Lewis and Zack Asack seldom threw downfield, but at times both looked sharpe. Lewis was 6-12 for 69 yards and he add a 8 scoring pass to senior Raphael Chestnut. Asack was 9-16 for 75 yards. Freshman Sean Renfree showed a strong arm on a couple out patterns as he was 2-4 for 26 yards and he also had a scramble for 8 yards.

         The Blue Devils kicked two field goals in the scrimmage with senior Joe Surgan nailing a 24 yarder and Will Snyderwine hitting a 26 yarder.

Notes: Senior running back Re'quan Boyette who had surgery early in the week was on the field walking around and Eron Riley who has a minor leg injury was also held out. The squad worked on special teams for 45 minutes before the scrimmage started. This coaching staff is very organized and every drill is handled with precision as there is no wasted time. Soophomore Sheldon Bell led all receivers with 4 catches, Jeremy Ringfield and Johnnny Williams had 2 each. Officially the Blue beat the White 26-21.

      

    

Josh Smith Interview on Premium

BDR: Can you tell me about what Coach K had to say to you when he called and offered you a scholarship?

Josh Smith: Coach K told me he saw me play in Cincinnati and he loved my game and my body. He said I reminded him of players that played at Duke like Elton Brand. He said he was really looking forward to recruiting me and getting to know me better.

    This is just an excerpt from the article on the premium page.