July 3, 2009
Belgrage, Serbia, July 3, 2009 - After struggling shooting in three exhibition games in Serbia, as did most of Team USA, Penn State guard Talor Battle (Albany, N.Y.) went a perfect 4-of-4 from the floor for 11 points as Team USA rolled past Finland, 87-40, in their first game at the 2009 World University Games in Belgrade, Serbia on Friday.
Battle was one of four players on Team USA to reach double-figures. Craig Brackins (Iowa State / Palmdale, Calif.) and Corey Fisher (Villanova / Bronx, N.Y.) paced the balanced attack with 12 points apiece while Robbie Hummel (Purdue / Valparaiso, Ind.) notched 10 points in a game that saw all 12 team members contribute to the scoring column.
"We showed our guys a little about Finland in our scouting report, but, obviously, we didn't have a lot," said USA and University of Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan. "If we don't learn to study when we are on the bench and then execute on the floor, things can get away from us in a hurry. The thing I like about our team, and I've told them from day one, is our guys do a great job of observing from the bench. Giving up two points in the fourth quarter shows that our guys made the adjustments."
Team USA (1-0) held Finland (1-1) scoreless over the final 8:50 forcing its opponent into shooting 1-of-15 from the field during the final 10 minutes. With its defense fueling its offense, the USA poured in 23 points in the final stanza, including a 21-0 game-ending run.
"We came out of the gate slow, but we picked it up," said Battle. "Especially in the second half. In the last quarter, we held them to two points. It started on the defense. We made stops, and we were able to get out on transitions and score some baskets."
The U.S. shot 50.0 percent (32-64 FGs) from the field and made a deadly 42.9 percent (9-21 3 pt FGs) from beyond the arc, while limiting Finland to just 23.4 percent (15-64 FGs) of its shots, including 16.7 percent (4-24 3pt FGs) from 3-point. The United States closes out preliminary play against South Korea (0-1) on July 4 (2:00 p.m. EDT). Second round action is scheduled for July 6-7, quarterfinals will be played July 9 and medal semifinals are slated for July 10. The gold medal will be contested on July 11 (3:00 p.m. EDT).