By Clay Kallam
Publisher
Upsets? Not really. Surprises? Not many. Close games? Not even that.
The first day of the 1996 Olympics followed the form charts to the point of boredom in women's basketball. The narrowest margin of victory was nine points, and the largest was 17 -- which came in pre-Games' favorite America's 101-84 win over Cuba.
If you're searching for novelty, though, there was that 20-13 Cuban lead in the first half, which dissipated under the assault of American depth. And it was somewhat surprising that unheralded Zaire hung with Ukraine, losing by just 16 (though it was a 19-point bulge at the half).
But Brazil's quickness in its 69-56 win over Canada was no surprise and equally unsurprising was the Canadians' inability to handle it. It was somewhat unsettling for American fans to note the 20 Canadian turnovers, something that the United States team couldn't force in any of three exhibition games earlier this year.
Canada shot just 34 percent and leading scorer Dianne Normann was not a factor. Andrea Blackwell was the only Canadian to break into double figures, while Maria Paula Silva and Janeth Arcain each had 17 for the defending world champions.
Brazil, though, will get another test July 23 against Russia at 5 p.m. (Pacific time) in the Georgia Dome, while Canada will need a win against Italy at 9 a.m. in Morehouse to get back on track.
The top four teams in each six-team pool do advance to the medal round, though, so the Canadian plight is not desperate -- yet. They will need two wins to move on, however, and even if you concede one against the Japanese, where the other will come from is far less certain.
Italy's 62-53 win over China gives hope to the Europeans because China and 6-8 Zheng Hiaxia were thought to be a medal possibility, if the Chinese managed to get their backcourt in order. Obviously, 53 points with a 6-8 mountain on the post isn't exactly a productive effort, so clearly there are some bugs yet to be worked out. (As there are on the IBM computer in Atlanta, which was supposed to supply everyone with access to statistics and box scores. All it's doing so far is crashing anyone who tries to visit and causing IBM worldwide embarrassment.)
Zheng should have her way against Japan (7 a.m. at Morehouse), which was seriously outrebounded by the Russians (45-31) in a 73-63 loss July 21. Six-four Yelena Baranova did most of the damage with 13 rebounds and 21 points, and she's definitely one of the top players in the world.
But speaking of top players, there's a lot of them on the American roster -- and many of them don't start.
Yes, the lineup that put the Cubans in their place was a little unexpected. After all, how often did Venus Lacey, Katy Steding, Dawn Staley and Rebecca Lobo make headlines in that long exhibition season? Not enough for Cuba to get a line on how to deal with Steding's steady play, Lacey's inside pounding, Lobo's all-around effort and Staley's crowd-pleasing passing.
And throw in Lisa Leslie's 24 points, seven rebounds and three assists, and you have a recipe for an All-American victory. But there were some ominous signs for those fans who chant "U-S-A" at every opportunity.
The free throw shooting was dismal (22 of 35), the three-point shooting was even worse (three-of-14) and the rebounding left a lot to be desired (21 offensive boards for the big but not huge Cubans).
Though that may cheer the other coaches watching in the stands, the Americans also showed why they are the favorites. They were dominant in the open floor (thanks in great part to superior conditioning and depth), the roster is solid from one to 12, and they play wonderful defense. That defense, in fact, is what turned the tide, for the Cuban backcourt suddenly ran out of options about 10 minutes into the game and never uncovered any alternatives. "Let's go one-on-one" described the Cuban attack, and too often that resulted in a missed shot, a fast break and an easy American hoop.
Worthy of note as well is the fact that the two players who had the most minutes for the United States were not Leslie and Katrina McClain, but rather veteran guards Ruth Bolton and Teresa Edwards. They are the glue that holds the Americans together, and as the pressure mounts, look for them to be on the court even more.
That pressure will be a little heavier at noon July 23 against the Ukraine, which handled Zaire 81-65 behind Maria Tkachenko's 27 points July 21. The 6-1 Tkachenko and 6-4 Lyudmila Nazarenko both started for the Unified Team's gold medal squad in 1992, and the Ukrainians also have 5-11 Yelena Zhirko for scoring and rebounding -- which is a lot more firepower than the Cubans could muster.
Australia should make it two straight at 2 p.m. July 23 against Zaire, especially after a routine 76-61 win over South Korea. The Aussies pounded Korea on the boards, and got 21 points and 10 rebounds from Rachel Sporn to seal the deal.
South Korea must regroup against Cuba at 7 p.m. at the Georgia Dome, and unless the Koreans can figure out how to neutralize the Cuban offensive rebounding, it won't be a pretty sight.
In fact, it looks like Group B's four advancers will be the USA, Ukraine, Australia and Cuba -- which means the next week's efforts will be mainly an exercise in seeding. Still, nobody wants to play Brazil from Group A in the first game of the medal round (or even in the last), so there's definitely something at stake.
The biggest pots July 23 will be raked in by the Group A winners of the Canada-Italy and Russia-Brazil games, but sooner or later there will be some upsets -- and all these tidy scenarios will be thrown out of whack. That, of course is what makes it fun. It's just too bad that no one will get to see any of this drama except people with tickets, but that's the way the Nielsen families want it, and that's the way NBC is going to give it to us.
Maybe things will be better in Sydney.