(AP)
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The last group in England with this many records was The Beatles: The US men's Olympic basketball team beat Nigeria 156-73 last night in an epic blowout that answered the Americans' detractors, who had earlier criticized their slow starts and outside shooting. "Our guys just couldn't miss," says coach Mike Krzyzewski. They led by 26 in the first quarter, had an Olympic-record 78 points in the first half, and Carmelo Anthony scored 37 points, including 10 of 12 3-pointers, to break the US single-game scoring record in less than three quarters.
Incredibly, they eclipsed the 100-point mark with 5 minutes still left in the third. They broke the Olympic record for most points in a game (138 points, set by Brazil against Egypt in 1988) with 4:37 still to play, and set US records for 3-pointers (26), field goals (59), and field-goal percentage (71). The Americans even one-upped the 1992 Dream Team: The 83-point margin of victory was the largest in US national team history, eclipsing the 79-point spread when Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Co. beat Cuba 136-57 in their first game. The Americans have won their first three games with ease, but things are expected to get a lot tougher as they approach next week's medal round.
