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Team USA under-18 basketball utterly embarrasses Panama by 92 points

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Loaded with elite high school players and coached by Kansas’ Bill Self, the Team USA under-18 squad is bursting at the seams with talent.

Unfortunately for Panama, their under-18 squad isn’t nearly as stacked.

That being said, few could’ve seen just how insanely lopsided a matchup between the two would be in the FIBA U18 Americas Championship 2018 tournament.

Now, Team USA opened the FIBA tournament with a resounding 105-73 win over the Dominican Republic and had established themselves as a heavy favorite.

But what happened to Panama was borderline cruel.

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After just a quarter of action, the USA led 43-0.

The fact that Team USA scored 43 points in a quarter is almost as impressive as the fact that they held another team without a single point for an entire quarter. It’s almost impossible not to score a point, if only by a free throw here or a lucky bounce there.

Basketball fans were equally as dumbfounded at the first quarter score.

Other fans felt that mercy was in order.

Should Team USA have taken its foot off the gas?

Of course, no towel was thrown in and the beatdown marched forward.

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Team USA led 70-8 at halftime, with Panama possibly enjoying the most Pyrrhic victory imaginable by scoring eight measly points in one half of basketball. Considering that Panama couldn’t even get a simple layup off, they should find some minor contentment in scoring eight points.

When the game came to a merciful conclusion, Team USA beat Panama 118-26. That’s a 92-point differential.

From all indications, Team USA will likely romp through the rest of the FIBA U18 tournament. The talent gap is just far too much.

Team USA next faces Puerto Rico on Tuesday. It’s a virtual given that this game won’t be competitive either.

If Team USA lays waste to the competition as expected, it will continue one of the quieter sports dynasties in American sports. Held every two years, the FIBA U18 championship has become a showcase for the United States.

Dating back to 1990 (when the tournament was under-19), Team USA has won a gold medal eight of 10 times. No other country has more than one gold medal in that span. The only two times the USA didn’t win gold, they still came home with a silver and bronze medal. Team USA has also won the last four gold medals, and seems very much poised to win a fifth straight.

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Bryan Chai has written news and sports for The Western Journal for more than five years and has produced more than 1,300 stories. He specializes in the NBA and NFL as well as politics.
Bryan Chai has written news and sports for The Western Journal for more than five years and has produced more than 1,300 stories. He specializes in the NBA and NFL as well as politics. He graduated with a BA in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona. He is an avid fan of sports, video games, politics and debate.
Birthplace
Hawaii
Education
Class of 2010 University of Arizona. BEAR DOWN.
Location
Phoenix, Arizona
Languages Spoken
English, Korean
Topics of Expertise
Sports, Entertainment, Science/Tech




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