Dazu, China – The NetScouts Basketball USA All-Stars (3-1) overcame a very sluggish first half and responded with a 62-point second half in defeating Canada (0-5) 91-76 before 4,714 fans in Dazu. Javier Carter led the way for the Americans with 19 points on 5-of-6 from the field. Carter scored 17 of his 19 points in the second half.
The USA All-Stars trailed at the half 35-29 as they committed 15 first half turnovers, They turned it around quickly, starting the second half on a 18-2 run to take a 10-point lead. They extended their lead to 24 points before coasting to the victory. In the second half the USA shot 19-of-26 (73%) on two-point shots and made 3-of-4 (75%) three pointers. For the game the Americans shot 69% on two-point attempts and 42% from beyond the arc. The USA’s perimeter defense was excellent as they held the Canadians to 3-of-22 (14%) three-point shooting. The USA kept control of the ball much better in the second half but still would up with 24 turnovers for the game, a statistic they will need to improve on if they are to defeat host China tonight.
Javier Carter
Point guard Diante Watkins overcame a poor first half to lead the USA’s transition offense and dished out six second half assists. Joining Carter in double figures was Julius Brooks (14 points on 7-of-9 shooting), Thomas Bropleh (14 points on 5-of-6 shooting), Will Artino (11 points on 5-of-6 shooting) and James Crowder (10 points on 4-of-6 shooting). Aaron Rountree did all the little things to help the team get the win as he blocked seven shots and came up with five deflections. The Americans face China tonight in the finale in Dazu.
Lithuania (4-1) defeated China (3-2) in the first game 83-71. The Lithuanians connected on 13-of-21 three-pointers and are now 26-of-44 from long distance in the last two games. Ignas Vaitkus led the way for Lithuania with 25 points on 5-of-6 from long-distance.
NetScouts Basketball USA All-Stars
Diante Watkins (Robert Morris/Germany) 8 points, 2 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals
Brandon Clark (Santa Clara) 0 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists
Mikey Thompson (Boise State) 2 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists
Aaron Rountree (Wake Forest/Iona) 4 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals, 7 blocks
Thomas Bropleh (Boise State/NBA D-League) 14 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals
James Crowder (Pfeiffer/Finland) 10 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist
Javier Carter (South Alabama/NBA D-League) 19 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 assists
Julius Brooks (Loyola-MD/Latvia) 14 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals
Will Artino (Creighton/Estonia) 11 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist
Mardracus Wade (Arkansas/NBA D-League) 9 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals
Media inquiries can be directed to Carl Berman at carl@netscoutsbasketball.com.
Information on NetScouts Basketball can be obtained here. Detailed articles on the tour will be found on the NetScouts Basketball Blog. Email carl@netscoutbasketball.com to get on the mailing list for tour related articles, information and photos
