USA wins Global Games!!!

[Drbio]

Team USA grabs Global Games gold
Bracey Wright's 30 points power 91-88 upset of Yugoslavia

07/10/2002

By GRAHAM WATSON / The Dallas Morning News

It was a classic game of "been there, done that," vs. "never been there at all."

Yugoslavia came into Tuesday's Global Games gold-medal game having been there the two previous years, winning one gold. But Team USA, which had never played in a Global Games championship, was not impressed.

With 4,000 fans looking on and coach Royce Johnson pumping his fist in the air, Team USA came back from as many as 12 down to upset last year's Global Games champion 91-88 at Reunion Arena.

"It was difficult at the beginning because we didn't know what to expect from [Yugoslavia]," Team USA guard and The Colony graduate Bracey Wright said. "Once we started playing, things just started clicking."

In the second quarter, Team USA changed its defensive strategy. It went from a zone defense to a frontcourt trap, stifling the Yugoslavian offense and forcing costly turnovers.

Despite the change, Team USA still trailed 46-41 at the half. However, Team USA took command in the second half.

"We were trying to press earlier, it just didn't look like it, " Johnson said. "The key was the guys coming off the bench. They had energy and were important when we got in foul trouble."

Amid the competing cheers of "U-S-A" and "Yu-Go-Slavia," Wright ended the debate with his perimeter play. Almost single- handedly, Wright kept Team USA in the game with 30 points, 18 from 3-point range.

But with three fouls early in the second quarter, Team USA's leading scorer found himself on the bench, forcing DeAngelo Alexander and Antoine Wright, with 14 points apiece and Chris Bosh, with 15 points, to pick up their games.

Yugoslavia worked to its strength and exploited Team USA's non-existent inside game. Missing the inside presence of Kevin Young and Eric Williams because of summer school commitments, Team USA allowed Yugoslavia's big men, Nenad Krstic and Blagota Sekulic, to score a combined 36 points.

But it was not enough as Team USA steadily closed the gap, narrowing it to one at the end of the third. With 9:18 remaining, Team USA took its first lead at 68-67 and with 5:30 remaining, took the lead for good at 79-78.

"To everyone we were the underdog the entire tournament," Wright said. "At least to everyone but ourselves. We never thought we were the underdogs. There was never any doubt in my mind."

Briefly...

Chris Bosh, Bracey Wright and Antoine Wright were named to the All-Tournament Team. In other games, Croatia, which lost its chance at gold with a loss to Team USA on Sunday, settled for the bronze after defeating Africa, 91-76. Like Team USA, Africa found Croatia's perimeter game hard to contain, scoring on 7-of-10 3-pointers. Center Andrija Zizic led Croatia with 21 points. After a day's rest, Mexico's luck didn't change, losing to Puerto Rico in the seventh place game 89-49 Germany defeated Ukraine 102-72 in the fifth place game.

[Murphy3]

isn't wright going to UT?

[The Crippler]

bracy wright is going to Indiana and antoine wright is going to a$m.

[Murphy3]

what was i thinking.. pipe dream
UT has all 5 starters coming back..only had two players in their recruiting class and one might push to become a starter

[The Crippler]

I think Buckman is going to be a stiff for UT, but others think very highly of him. He didn't impress me much in the McD's game this year.

Ok, maybe not a stiff, but not a college Mihm...

[Murphy3]

well, hopefully not.
the longhorns have all the pieces.. except one
a scorer