The Americans will go to Beijing
The Americans are headed to Beijing, looking good enough to be golden again.
Carmelo Anthony scored 27 points, Michael Redd had 23, and the United States earned a spot in the 2008 Olympics by crushing Puerto Rico 135-91 on Saturday in the semifinals of the FIBA Americas tournament.
A 78-point second half gave the Americans their third-highest scoring game since they started using pros in 1992. The Dream Team scored 136 points against Cuba in its first game, and the Americans had 137 against Russia in the 1994 world championships final.
James added 19 points and nine assists, Kobe Bryant scored 15 points, and the three stars keyed a dominant third quarter stretch that showed why the Americans will arrive in China as one of the gold medal favorites. Then they headed to the bench, where they sat while fans chanted their names in the final minutes.