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RIO DE JANEIRO -- The blowouts are over. The Olympics are underway.After nothing but pushovers this summer, the U.S. mens basketball team faced someone who pushed back.This is the real world now and thats good for us, coach Mike Krzyzewski said.Finally tested, Carmelo Anthony and Kyrie Irving had the answers.Anthony scored 31 points on the night he became the U.S. mens Olympic career scoring leader, combining with Irving for all the Americans baskets in the fourth quarter of a 98-88 victory over Australia on Wednesday night.Irving -- born in Australia -- added 19 points, including a 3-pointer with 1:35 left after Australia had closed within four.A team that won its first two games by a combined 101 points could never get a comfortable lead -- and for a while couldnt get one at all. The Australians, with big bodies inside, quality point guards to counter the American pressure and a wealth of NBA championship experience, stood toe to toe with the team that had blown them out of the last two Olympics in the quarterfinals.But Anthony, the first U.S. male to play in four Olympics, steadied the Americans in the first competitive game most of this new team had ever experienced.We kind of expected a game like this, a physical game, a grind-out game from playing against Australia over the past couple years, Anthony said, and going into tonight we knew it was going to come down to the end of the game where we were really going to have to buckle down and focus in and make plays down the stretch.Kevin Durant capped off the scoring with two free throws, making him the only other player than Irving or Anthony to score in the period.The Americans, who had barely broken a sweat in Brazil, trailed early in the fourth quarter before Anthony hit a flurry of 3-pointers to put the Americans on top.Patty Mills, the tournament scoring leader, had 30 points for Australia.After five easy exhibitions preceding routs of China and Venezuela to open the tournament, the Americans trailed 72-70 with about 9 minutes left. Anthony scored to tie it, hit a 3-pointer to give the Americans the lead for good, and then hit a couple more 3s that pushed it to 83-76.The team staying on a luxury cruise ship could never relax until scoring the final five points in the last 27 seconds on free throws, with Irving hitting the first three.The Americans, so carefree in their opener that reserves DeMar DeRozan and Jimmy Butler played rock, paper, scissors to determine who would shoot a free throw, realized they were in a fight in this one.It got real, Paul George said. It definitely got real.An enraged Krzyzewski screamed at an official after Andrew Boguts hard foul on Irving just in front of the U.S. bench in the third quarter, his face looking as red as the shirts the coaching staff wore.Bogut finished with 15 points for the Australians, who have never won a medal but four of their players own NBA rings. They nearly became the first team to knock off the Americans in the Olympics since Krzyzewski took over in 2005.We have a pretty gritty group thats pretty tough and we battled all night, Bogut said.Australia had opened the Olympics with impressive victories over France and Serbia, both ranked among the top six in the world. Then the Aussies gave the team ranked No. 1 all it could handle.The Americans clinched a spot in the medal round, though that was never going to be in doubt.This game, though, was.It was the second straight game the Americans were tied after one quarter. They quickly blew away Venezuela after it was 18-all, but the only second-quarter surge in this one was made by Australians.They used a 15-3 burst to make it 46-39, and Krzyzewski actually needed a timeout to calm his team that by then can usually make its postgame plans.Anthony moved past LeBron James as the U.S. career leader in Olympic scoring and did it quickly, using a hot start to make up the 11-point advantage James had entering the game.Irving once considered playing for Australia, where he was born while his father was playing there professionally. He exchanged a pregame hug with Matthew Dellavedova, his former backup in Cleveland, but things didnt stay nice for long.The Aussies hit hard and the Americans hit back, with George getting a technical foul for a shot at Dellavedova.It was a welcome test for the Americans, who have been so dominant under Krzyzewski that it sometimes seems the U.S. players are the only ones who dont make a gold medal sound assured.Theyve said it wont come easily.Now theyve finally had a game that wasnt.---Follow Brian Mahoney on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Briancmahoney NBA Jerseys .C. -- Charlotte Bobcats coach Steve Clifford said after all of these years in the NBA hes still amazed at some of the things LeBron James does. Stitched NBA Jerseys . -- The proud fathers huddled near the Dallas Stars dressing room, smiling, laughing and telling stories while wearing replica green sweaters of their sons team. https://www.cheapnbajerseysjustwholesale.com/ . Coach Tom Thibodeau says the former MVP will probably start travelling with the team in the next few weeks. Rose tore the meniscus in his right knee at Portland in November and was ruled out for the remainder of the season by the Bulls. Fake NBA Jerseys . What general manager Dave Nonis called "short and productive" negotiations ended with Kessel signing a US$64-million, eight-year contract on Tuesday. Wholesale NBA Jerseys .Y. -- The Buffalo Sabres have placed centre Cody Hodgson on injured reserve and recalled two players from their AHL affiliate in Rochester. The British Horseracing Authority has defended Haydocks decision to allow a race to go ahead in spite of thick fog which shrouded the course.The heavy fog which had afflicted the venue for most of Saturday afternoon descended with venom during the concluding Handicap Hurdle.With conditions worsening, it was only after the horses returned to the enclosure that the judge was able to announce Clyne had landed the spoils but no distances were recorded, nor any official finishing time.A stipendiary steward was positioned in one of the on-course medical vehicles to watch the runners and riders at ground level, while another steward monitored the horses finishing from the winning post.Shortly after jumping off for the last race, the fog came in very quickly and conditions deteriorated quite rapidly, BHA media manager Robin Mouunsey said.ddddddddddddThe judge made it clear to the stipendiary team that it was difficult to judge the race, but the integrity of the result wasnt in doubt in the end.The result took its time to be announced, but that was much more preferable to rushing the result, so as to be absolutely certain of what actually happened.Stewards were also in contact with jockeys throughout the entire day as to whether racing should continue.There has obviously been a response to the race being run, and part of our job is to assess things like this, which is something we will continue to do.Jockeys were supportive that horses and their own welfare wouldnt be impacted, and that was our number one priority. 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