The Olympic Games have finally seen the men's basketball tournament reach the medal round. The 2012 Olympic Basketball USA vs. Australia game gets underway on Wednesday afternoon with a 5:15 p.m. EST start time and it will be televised nationally on NBC Sports Network. Currently the odds for the matchup have the United States favored as 33 point favorites for the contest, which has a total of 189 points.
The Americans had their one scare in the Olympics with a 99-94 win over Lithuania the other day. Outside of that, no one has even come close to playing a full, hard four quarters against the best team in the world. Argue all you want about whether or not this team could compete with the Dream Team of 1992. None of that matters anymore. There was a time not so long ago when the stars of the NBA struggled in the Olympics as American players. In fact, LeBron James still has issues with that team earning a bronze medal back in 2004, the first USA squad to return home without a gold medal since NBA professionals became eligible. Let's be real here. This team is not going to finish with a bronze medal and everyone on the planet knows it.
If the point spread is any indication of how this game is going to go, the Australians are probably in a bad spot. The United States lit up Argentina by 30 points after that game was close with the Americans leading by just a single point at halftime. Then, like a light switch being flipped, the Americans came out on fire in the second half and absolutely pounded the Argentinians like a drum.
The Aussies have only broken the 85-point barrier once, in a 106-75 drubbing of Great Britain the other day. They aren't going to come close to that against the United States, who has played the best defense of any team in the Olympics so far. Australia is averaging a total of 80 points per game, but they're just 3-2 overall. The United States has yielded less than 80 points per game on average to their opponents, and I'd be shocked if the Aussies got there.
Free Pick: Laying that kinda lumber at 33 points is a lot once we've reached the medal round, but this American team seems to be focused on the task at hand. Here, it's important to look at the total, which is set at 189 points. If we assume the Aussies get close to their average and hit 80 points, that leaves 109 points for the Americans to come up with. So far, that hasn't been a problem at all as the United States has averaged more than 117 points per game. I think this has blowout written all over it and the Americans cover the number closely.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012 Olympics Basketball Schedule and Odds:
Lithuania +7, Over 154
Brazil -7, Under 154
Argentina -3.5, Over 159
Brazil +3.5, Under 159
Spain -5.5, Over 151
France +5.5, Under 151
$25 of picks FREE! No Obligation - No Credit Card Required - Becoming a member is Fast and Free!