-Read Article HereThe US team of National Basketball Association stars began its quest for Olympic redemption Sunday with a 101-70 victory over a China team that gave glances of a challenge.
Dwyane Wade scored 19 points, LeBron James added 18 and Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard each added 13 for the Americans but China was impressive early, battling the US stars even for the first 14 minutes of the Group B contest.
US Olympic teams went 109-2 and won 12 gold medals through 2000 but were humbled in 2004 when NBA stars lost three times and settled for Athens bronze, sparking the new bid to reclaim the throne by the self-styled "Redeem Team".
China played surprisingly competitive with the Americans through most of the first half, the US pulling away only with a 20-7 run late in the second quarter on the way to a 49-37 half-time lead.
With an up-tempo style of their own, China showed vast progress over past meetings with NBA squads, showing aggressive defense and deadly 3-point shooting at times.
The much-awaited US-China showdown was expected to reach a global television audience approaching one billion people given the heavy interest in China and the worldwide appeal of the US NBA stars.
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