The United States put forth a fantastic opening effort in the Olympics by cruising past China 119-62. The Stars and Stripes shouldn't have any troubles in their next match against Venezuela on Monday night in Rio.
Olympics Odds at BookMaker.eu
United States -49.5
Venezuela +49.5
Over/Under 165.5
TOURNAMENT UPDATE
The United States held China to just 10 points in the first quarter on Saturday night to open up their Olympic campaign and never looked back from there. They put up at least 28 points in all four quarters en route to their 57-point win, and most expect them to end up with having an easy time again in this one. Kevin Durant led the way with 25 points in just 23 minutes on the court.
Venezuela, a team which is expected to struggle here in Group A, certainly looked like a team in a tough spot against Serbia. Granted, the Serbs are dark horse medal contenders, but the fact that Venezuela scored just 23 points in the first half was borderline disgusting. The Venezuelans were beaten 86-62, though it should be noted that their fourth quarter was their best quarter, as they at least outscored the Serbians 21-18 in that last frame to build some moment towards this game.
ROSTER ANALYSIS
Mike Krzyzewski is sticking to his guns and letting his "Dream Team" play out games. It's hard to "put in the reserves" when you've got a team this good though, and as a result, all 12 men played at least 12 minutes in the game against China. Durant is clearly going to end up being one of the key cogs on this team throughout this tournament, though any combination of players could end up leading the way.
Venezuela is a little more cut and dry. Its bench isn't nearly as deep as that of the United States, as there isn't a single NBA player on the roster. Nester Colmenares led the team in minutes with 31 against Serbia, but the fact that he only scored 11 points in that span was a problem for sure. Gregory Vargas and Gregory Echenique were tied for the team lead with 12 points apiece.
LIVE BETTING
Venezuela went -16 on the glass against Serbia. Just how bad could it be against the United States? The Americans have historically hit the boards hard as a team, and they went +23 against China.
Of course, the margin for the Yanks isn't really the big deal. It's really all about the rebounding share when you're talking about live betting. The Venezuelans are going to miss shots. It's really a matter of how the Americans do on the glass. If Venezuela can't get any second chance opportunities, this game is going to get ugly in a hurry, because the underdogs simply don't have the shooters to be able to stick with the Americans from the outside.
QUICK PICK
Coach K has to be thrilled with that first outing against China, and he's probably going to be just as happy with the results here in this one. The Americans really feel like they're taking a no-nonsense mentality into Rio, and it showed in that opening game.
Venezuela just has to be happy to be here, and at some point, just as China more or less just gave up the fight, will end up doing the exact same thing. It's hard to lay nearly 50 in a 40-minute game, but the Americans should cover this number.
Olympics Odds: United States 111, Venezuela 57
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