With President Bush and his family looking on, the United States women’s basketball team began its quest for a fourth-straight gold medal with a rout of the Czech Republic.
Diana Taurasi scored 13 of her 17 points in the first half to lead the U.S. to a 97-57 victory in the opener Saturday night.
The Americans got off to a slow start, trailing 13-2 after giving up layup after layup to the feisty Czech team. Taurasi finally got the team rolling, much to the evident pleasure of Bush, who was dressed in a blue shirt and USA cap. Taurasi’s layup ignited a 20-4 run by the U.S. to close the first quarter.
The U.S. continued the run in the second quarter behind Cappie Pondexter, who scored seven of her 12 points in the period. Her 3-pointer at the buzzer gave the Americans a 49-31 lead at halftime.
The Americans continued the onslaught in the third quarter, using a 22-5 to put the game out of reach. The U.S. led 75-44 at the end of the third, sending Bush, his wife, Laura, and daughter Barbara home. President Bush gave a wave to the delighted crowd as he left at the end of the third quarter.
Sylvia Fowles scored 15 of her game-high 18 points in the second half for the United States
Eva Viteckova had 12 points to lead the Czech Republic, which will face Mali in its next game.
Even with the first family in attendance, the biggest cheer from the crowd was for the U.S. men’s basketball team, which was sitting behind the basket watching the game. At the half, the Chinese fans went through a roll call of the U.S. players, who obliged by standing and bowing, to the crowd’s delight.
Up next for the U.S. women is host China, which beat Spain 67-64 in its first game.
China beat the U.S. 84-81 in the gold-medal game of the Good Luck Beijing test event in April. The Chinese team was at full strength for the event, but the American roster only had four players who are currently playing in the Olympics.
“We gained some confidence, but know that the Americans were at half-strength,” Chinese coach Tom Maher said. “We have nothing to lose in this game, all the pressure is on them.”
Credit: Associated Press
