Carmelo Anthony Leads USA to Victory Against Australia in Rio 2016 Olympic Basketball Tournament

Carmelo Anthony, who scored 31 points, was the top scorer of the game, leading the hard-fought victory of the United States against Australia (88-98) in the Rio 2016 Olympic basketball tournament, which was not resolved until the last quarter.

With this win, the United States remains the only undefeated team in Group A of the Olympic tournament. Before Wednesday's game, Australia had defeated France by 21 points (87-66) and Serbia by fifteen points (95-80).

Carmelo Anthony, who will become the first triple Olympic basketball champion if the United States extends their record of gold medals to fifteen, started the game with two consecutive three-pointers. However, that 0-6 lead only showed that the New York Knicks' forward, playing in his fourth Olympic Games, is fully focused on his goal.

Australia, with a starting lineup composed entirely of NBA players, quickly leveled the game and even had an eight-point lead in the first quarter (25-17), which ended in a tie at 29 points.

Two free throws from their captain, David Andersen, and a three-pointer from the remarkable Patty Mills, who will be Pau Gasol's teammate in the San Antonio Spurs next season, put the Boomers ahead (41-36). They even had a seven-point lead (39-46) before halftime, finishing the first half with a five-point advantage (44-49) over Mike Krzyzewski's Team USA.

After defeating China (119-62) and Venezuela (113-69) in their first two games, the Americans found a tough opponent in the Oceanian champions. With only seconds left, they closed the third quarter with a three-point lead (67-70) thanks to a "2+1" play from Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors. The game was certainly exciting, with Kevin Durant and Anthony leading the team with 14 points each.

Kyle Irving, NBA champion with the Cleveland Cavaliers, scored five points less than Durant, increasing the American advantage to six points (74-80) with six minutes left. Carmelo later increased it to seven (76-83). From that moment on, the top favorite did not lose focus and secured their third victory in Rio de Janeiro (88-98).

Preview

So far, the Dream Team from the United States has not disappointed in the basketball competition of the Rio 2016 Olympics. The team, led by Kevin Durant and company, crushed China and Venezuela in their first two matches.

Against China, the final score was 119-62, and against the South Americans, it ended 113-69. Two blowout victories. Now, the United States team will face Australia on Thursday (5:00 p.m. on Fox Sports/ESPN/DirecTV).

Australia also has two victories in the Rio 2016 Olympics. They defeated France in their debut (87-66) and Serbia (95-80) in their second game. They are the ones expected to challenge the Dream Team. We will see that this Thursday afternoon.

After this game, the United States will play two more matches to determine their position in Group A of the Rio 2016 Olympic basketball tournament. They will face Serbia on Friday (5:00 p.m.) and France on Sunday (12:15 p.m.).