Team USA men's Basketball leads Australia, 56-42, at halftime in the quarterfinals at the 2012 London Olympics.
New York area athletes played a big role in the first half. Brooklyn Nets guard Deron Williams led all scorers with 13 points in 12 minutes. He also had an assist and two rebounds. New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony chipped in eight points in nine minutes. Knicks center Tyson Chandler had four points and two rebounds in four minutes before sitting due to foul trouble.
The U.S. outscored Australia in both quarters, 28-21. The defense has looked better from previous outings for the U.S. and they held Australia to 43 percent shooting in the first. Australia made just 3-of-10 from behind the arc. The U.S. shot 52 percent from the field and hit seven three-pointers. There were plenty of fouls to go around in the first half and both teams got to the foul line. The U.S. hit 13-of-18 free throws while Australia made only 9-of-17 at the charity stripe.
The foul situation will be something to monitor for the U.S. in the second half as Kevin Durant has three fouls. Williams has two fouls as does Anthony and Chandler. Patrick Mills led Australia in the first half with 12 points and four rebounds.
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