Apparently the US men are capable of putting a sub-par performance behind themselves in a big way. Second-half defensive breakdowns aside, the victory placed the US back in the group of elite teams in the world. Some quick thoughts.
- One can only hope that Jeff Powers can continue shooting as well as he has. Truly world class.
- JW Krumpholtz: let’s just forget for the moment that he will be a player for the next decade and more. Has anyone on the US team had a more productive tournament than him? In many ways one could say he’s been more effective in his limited time than any other American player, including the other centers.
- Merril Moses shows flashes of brilliance, and then on other occasions appears to depend too much on a field block to help him out. One hopes he can put together complete performances against Serbia or Croatia.
- Did anyone else who watched the live video feed online hear all the US fans yapping at the referees? Very funny. My favorite comment: “Look at Calcaterra! He’s ridiculous!”
- The Americans cut down on the number of offensive fouls compared to the China game – and they were very difficult to see via the webcast – but why are they so prone to them so far in this tournament? Those turnover statistics are troubling.
