U.S. women’s basketball team records ugly victory over Croatia
SUN-TIMES WIRES July 28, 2012 9:48PM
United States' Megan Rapinoe, left, shoots and scores the opening goal during the group G women's soccer match between the United States and Colombia at the London 2012 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 28, 2012, at Hampden Park Stadium in Glasgow, Scotland. (AP Photo/Chris Clark)
Updated: August 30, 2012 6:29AM
Tina Charles scored 14 points and Angel McCoughtry 13 to Coach Geno Auriemma had said he was hoping the United States could play a style of basketball that would be entertaining and help grow the game
lead the U.S. women’s basketball team to a sloppy 81-56 victory Saturday against Croatia in its Olympic opener.
internationally. That didn’t happen Saturday, as the United States struggled for the first three quarters before outscoring Croatia 28-9 in the fourth to pull away to win its 34th consecutive Olympic contest.
Despite missing its first 14 shots, Croatia hung tough for
the first 30 minutes before the United States finally pulled away.
Women’s Soccer
U.S. blanks Colombia
The U.S. women’s soccer team made it two victories in two games and remembered an Megan Rapinoe scored in the 33rd minute for the United States. After her goal, she reached into her sock and pulled out a birthday message for Ali Krieger, who blew out her knee in a qualifying match in January. Krieger turned 28 on Saturday. Abby Wambach made it 2-0 in the 74th minute, and Carli Lloyd closed the scoring in the 77th.
injured teammate in a 3-0 shutout of Colombia.
World record falls
Ye Shiwen of China set the first world record at the Olympics, winning the women’s 400-meter individual medley with a dominant finishing kick. Ye, 16, trailed U.S. teenager Elizabeth Beisel more than halfway through the grueling race but pulled away in the freestyle leg to win gold in 4 minutes, 28.43 seconds. She bettered the mark of 4:29.45 set by Stephanie Rice of Australia at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Beisel settled for silver in 4:31.27.
From shame to glory
Alexander Vinokourov of Vinokourov, who served a two-year ban after testing positive for blood doping during the 2007 Tour de France, has said he will retire from cycling after the Olympics.
Kazakhstan captured the gold medal in the men’s road race, winning a two-man sprint to the finish against Rigoberto Uran of Colombia after favorite Mark Cavendish of Great Britain had dropped out of contention.
Hooker leads way
Destinee Hooker had 21 points, and the United States held off South Korea 25-19, 25-17, 20-25, 25-21 in its Olympic opener. Hooker dominated the first two sets to stake the United States, which won the silver medal in
Beijing in 2008 and is ranked
No. 1 in the world, to a big early lead. South Korea rallied in the third set behind Kim Yeon-koung, who had 29 points, but it ultimately fell short.
