By Clay Kallam
Publisher
The medal round starts Wednesday for the United States (4-0), Australia (3-1), Brazil (4-0), Russia (3-1) and Italy (3-1) -- and it will be a surprise if three of those teams don't wind up clibming the podium Aug. 4.
OK, it's possible Ukraine might be able to get its act together, but the Ukrainians will have to beat Australia at 7 a.m. (Pacific time) Monday to convince anyone they can do much against the better teams. After all, that 33-point loss to the United States was followed by an upset by the lightly regarded Koreans, and there will be no Koreas in the medal round.
Otherwise, Monday's games will be as much exercise as anything else, though Japan (1-3) has a crucial game against Canada (0-4). If the Japanese manage to get by the disappointing Canadians, then they'll very likely be through to the playoffs; if they don't, a Chinese upset of Russia could allow China (1-3) to slip in. Of course, China hasn't shown much yet, and assuming they continue to struggle, the finalists will be Brazil, Italy, Russia and Japan from Group A and the United States, Australia, Cuba and Ukraine from Group B.
All that was settled in six games Saturday, which went like this:
United States 96, Australia 79 Pfffffffftttttt. That was the sound of the air escaping the Australian balloon Saturday at the Georgia Dome. Australia did lead by six midway through the first half, and was down just 46-43 in favor at half, but a 20-6 run and some big-time performances by United States veterans doomed the Aussies to their first defeat at the Atlanta Games.
Teresa Edwards, playing in her fourth Olympics, went seven for eight from the field, hauled in seven rebounds and handed out an amazing 15 assists to spark the American attack. Katrina McClain continued her campaign to be named the world's best power forward with a 12-for-14 shooting night and 11 rebounds. Sheryl Swoopes was seven-for-11 from the floor and finished with 17 points as the United States just had too much for Australia to handle.
Tara VanDerveer had her coachly cautionary tales ready after the game, saying that the Americans were likely to see Australia again, but that 47-28 domination of the boards and stifling defense spoke louder than VanDerveer's quotes. Australian Coach Thomas Maher said the same thing, but, as the team's leader, he has to believe his hard-working team will make more than four of 18 three-pointers -- though the Americans probably figure to do better than two-of-nine as well.
Australia's Michelle Timms had 26 points to lead all scorers but she was seven-of-19 from the floor and the Australians shot just 28 percent as a team.
They'll need to regroup against Ukraine Monday to get ready for the medal round, which international veterans know will be a different story. It doesn't matter how anybody did in pool play -- from Wednesday on, it's single-elimination, and your first bad game will be your last.
Brazil 98, China 83:
If a 6-8 center toppled over in an empty forest, would she make a sound? Maybe not, but when 253-pound Zheng Hiaxia failed to deliver yet again, everyone in the women's basketball scene heard the echoes. In a must-win game for the Chinese, against a Brazil without superstar Hortencia, Zheng came up empty -- fouling out after just 14 minutes, and finishing with just three points and two rebounds.
In her absence, Janeth Arcain had 26 points and nine rebounds, and 6-2 center Marta Sobral added 22 points. But even with Zheng in the game, the Chinese couldn't get it going. They trailed 15-4 in the early going, and unlike the Canada game, never overcame that early deficit.
And though Hortencia didn't play, she'll be back Wednesday -- and the defending world champion Brazilians seem destined to play in the gold medal game.
Ukraine 87, Cuba 75: For a team that many expected to medal, Ukraine has not looked particularly impressive, but when the Ukrainians needed a win, they found a way.
Yelena Zhirko had 18 points in the first half to keep the eventual winners in the game, and after intermission, it was all Ukraine. They led the entire way, and were up by at least nine in the last 3 1/2 minutes.
Yamilet Martinez continued her fine play for Cuba with 20 points and 12 rebounds, and the Cubans also continued to show that they can rebound with anyone this side of the NBA. Unfortunately, their backcourt play has not been up to the same standard, and they will advance to the medal round with only an outside shot at making the semis.
Italy 66, Japan 52: The Japanese looked like they might be for real, holding a 41-35 lead with 14:23 left in the game, but Catarina Pollini sparked a 19-0 run that cemented the Italian spot in the medal round.
Japan shot just 35 percent over all and 27.2 percent from three-point distance to offset a strong rebounding performance. Even though the Japanese have only two six-footers on the roster, they battled the much taller Italians evenly on the boards. But Pollini, one of the top players in the world, took over during that second-half run and Mara Fullin finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Italy will get a real test Monday against Brazil in a game that means nothing more than seeding to the two teams -- though the loser will most likely have to face the United States in the semifinal game rather than playing the Americans for the gold medal.
Korea 95, Zaire 71: Chun Eun-Sook had 29 points and 14 assists as Korea broke open a close game late in the first half. The Koreans took advantage of Zaire's defensive weaknesses by shooting 54 percent from the field. Chun was nine-for-15 overall and six-for-10 from beyond the three-point arc.
Mabika Mwadi had 30 points for Zaire and Muane Tshijuka continued her fine play with a 14-point effort.
Russia 68, Canada 49: Canada's depressing Olympics took another downward turn against the Russians, who put themselves in position to medal with this easy win.
Yevgeniya Nikonova had 18 points for the Russians, and Yelena Baranova, one of the smoothest offensive players around, added 16 and 11 rebounds.
Dianne Norman had 15 for Canada, but the Canadians again struggled with their outside shooting. They were zero-for-eight from three-point range (which makes them one-for-32 in the last three games) and hit just 29.8 percent from the field.
All the Canadians can hope for is a win over Japan Monday to salvage some pride. The Russians will get a shot at another disappointing team, the Chinese, Monday, as they get ready for the medal round.