U.S. cruises past Australia

SAITAMA, Japan -- Look out, world.

The United States routed Australia, 113-73, on Sunday, sending an unmistakable message to the FIBA world championships. This isn't the team that proved an embarrassment in recent international competitions.

"We wanted to make a statement coming into the round of 16," said forward Chris Bosh, who grabbed a game-high nine rebounds.

On a day that every American scored, Carmelo Anthony led the U.S. with 20 points, while Joe Johnson added 18 and Dwyane Wade 15.

Granted, the Australians weren't much of a test. They went 2-3 in group play and have few weapons beside Milwaukee Bucks center Andrew Bogut, who scored 20 points.

But the Americans made it look almost too easy, turning a tight game into a laugher by outscoring the Australians, 32-6, in the second quarter.

Now, the U.S. can look forward to its quarterfinal matchup Wednesday night against Germany -- another team with a star NBA center and a mostly anonymous supporting cast. Dirk Nowitzki of Dallas is third in tournament scoring, averaging 24.5 points.

Given the way the U.S. is playing, it might be more fair to make them face Bogut and Nowitzki together.

"I think our biggest opponent is ourselves right now," Johnson said. "We've just got to keep our intensity up."

Asked if the U.S. is unbeatable when its shots are falling, Johnson replied, "No doubt. When our shots are falling and when they're not falling."

If Johnson sounds confident it's because the U.S. has outscored its past two opponents, Senegal and Australia, by a combined 216-131.

Of course, neither Senegal nor Australia is in the same hoops universe as Spain or Argentina, which are mowing down the opposition on the other side of the bracket.

That's why Elton Brand said he hoped his teammates weren't taking anyone for granted. Brand played on the 2002 U.S. world championship team that finished sixth in Indianapolis.

"We're not going to be cocky about it," Brand said. "There are some teams that can give us competition."

Australia wasn't one of them, at least not for 40 minutes. The Aussies led ,15-14, after five minutes and trailed, 27-23, at the end of the first period. But then, the U.S., which has been plagued by slow starts throughout the tourney, began to knock down shots on offense and crack down on defense.

The Americans outscored Australia, 32-6, in the second quarter, and it wasn't that close.

"The second quarter, we kind of took off and had the game in hand from that point," Wade said.

"Today was the best we played as a unit, with everyone making the extra pass, getting the guys the best shot possible," Wade said. "When you do that, it makes your team play that much better, because everyone feels good, everyone's involved, one through 12. That's what we're looking for."

Offense hasn't been an issue for the Americans, the highest-scoring team in the tournament. But the defense was inconsistent during group play, and that's why yesterday's game was so encouraging.

The U.S. limited the Australians to 41 percent shooting, including 24 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. Australia committed 24 turnovers, many the result of pressure.

"We know that, if we play defense, we'll be pretty good," Bosh said. "We know we can score the ball. We know we play with anybody offensively. But we know it's our defense that's going to help us out."

Defense may help the U.S. win the championship. But the Australians couldn't help but be dazzled by the Americans' attack.

Australian point guard C.J. Bruton likened this team to Dream Teams I and II.

"It's a squad compared to them because they move the ball like those teams did," Bruton said. "The teams that have won the gold medal for USA definitely move the ball as well as this team."

They move it well. And yesterday they shot it even better.

The Americans shot 54 percent from the floor. And after shooting 39 percent from beyond the arc in group play, the U.S. made 14 of 27 (52 percent) yesterday.

Even Bosh and Brad Miller hit their first international 3-pointers. Three-point shooting was supposed to be one of the Americans' flaws. If the U.S. starts knocking down long-range shots, it will be difficult to beat.

The U.S. has trailed after halftime in one game, against Italy, which it beat, 94-85.

Wade was asked if the Americans were tempted to look toward the finals and a possible showdown with Argentina or Spain, both also 6-0.

"You don't really think about it," Wade said. "You just win or go home. We just need to get better as a team."

Better• Look out, world.

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