last Saturday, shut out Buffalo and is 7-1 on the season. He is an impressive 6-2 with a

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Theres one team that has lived up to high expectations -- even surpassed them -- at the Rio Games in mens basketball.Its the one with a roster loaded with skilled and experienced NBA players, an overall No. 1 draft pick, a backcourt featuring two guards with championship rings and a strong belief it can capture gold in Brazil.The favored U.S. team, to this point unbeaten but shockingly underwhelming, had better be careful.Australia just might win it all.Bonded by a deep commitment to the national team and each other, the Aussies have been the most impressive team in this tournament, which many expected to be dominated by Team USAs super-squad trying to win a third straight title. However, Australia, seeking its first Olympic medal with a program aided by players developing their games on college teams in the U.S., is focused on ending Americas run.No disrespect to the U.S., but we dont want to go into an Olympics aiming for second or fourth, center Andrew Bogut said after the Aussies put a fright into the Americans in group play before losing 98-88. We have a goal of being first.In some hoop circles, Australias performance has been a surprise. Not to the Americans.They play aggressive, said U.S. forward DeMar DeRozan. They execute extremely well, and thats a team thats been playing together for a while.International basketball observers have seen this Australian ascension coming.With Bogut, the 7-footer selected first by Milwaukee in the 2005 draft and four other players currently on NBA rosters, the Aussies, as fans in the U.S. have learned, play with a street-tough tenacity. Add in that guards Patty Mills and Matthew Dellavedova, and big man Aron Baynes have won league titles, and its no wonder the team from Down Under is on the way up.Its been rising for a while, said Australian assistant coach Luc Longley, who played on three Olympic teams and won three championships with the Chicago Bulls. I dont think this is a flash in the pan.It shouldnt be. Australia, which has finished fourth three times and will play Lithuania in Wednesdays first quarterfinal, has depth. Missing from the 2016 Rio team are forward Ben Simmons, the former LSU star picked first in this years draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, and Thon Maker, selected No. 10 by the Bucks. Also, Utahs Dante Exum was unable to play while recovering from a torn ACL suffered with the national team last summer.Three-time Olympian Joe Ingles, who has spent the past two seasons with the Jazz, sees bright days ahead for Australia.Were not all 18 years old anymore, but weve been together a long time and obviously with Ben and Thon and Dante and all these kids coming through. Dellys still young, weve still got a pretty young group -- apart from David, the forward said, referring to 36-year-old center David Andersen. But the rest of us are all 28 and under. I think we can sustain it for a little while, and the junior development of what we have in Australia is really good and we can continue to produce good players.Theres something else about the Boomers, as theyre known back home. They are a close-knit group, which grew tighter last year when Mills organized a team trip to Uluru, the iconic rock formation in central Australia considered sacred by the indigenous Aboriginals.The experience was life-changing for Mills, who has Aboriginal roots. He said the time spent together helped the Aussies better appreciate what it means to play for their homeland.Just to get to know everyone on the team and the meaning behind doing that was to find that deeper meaning of why we play for Australia and why we represent our country, said Mills, who has been with the San Antonio Spurs since 2011. I think everyone found that individually and as a team as well.As a reminder, the Australian team has a banner from its trip to Uluru hanging in the athletes village in Rio.To five-time Australian Olympic guard Andrew Gaze, the possibility of the Aussies stepping up onto the medal podium in the next few days, isnt all that surprising. Gaze has been impressed with this Australian groups resolve and its ability to crystallize in a short period.The flag bearer for his country at the 2000 Games, Gaze, who remains the second-leading scorer in Olympic history, was a win from a bronze in 1988 but ran into a U.S. team smarting from a loss to the Soviet Union.The Aussies came up short again eight years later in Atlanta, losing to Lithuania, which beat them again at Sydney.Weve been knocking on the door for a long, long time, Gaze said.If the green-and-gold can get to the gold-medal game, the U.S. could be waiting.Were not intimidated, Ingles said following the teams matchup in the preliminary round. Were not scared of anyone. We hope we can get another crack at them.Wales Soccer Jerseys . McCarthy, a player who played some games in the second tier for Wigan at the start of this season, would go on to shine inside Evertons midfield, outplaying the man he was brought in to replace, on one of the grandest stages in English football. On Saturday, it was fitting that Manchester Uniteds most recent dagger into the chest was delivered by Frenchman Yohan Cabaye, a wonderfully gifted central midfielder who put on an outstanding effort for Newcastle at Old Trafford. Gareth Bale Wales Jersey . Arsenal failed to take full advantage of its main rivals stumbles on Saturday as substitute Gerard Deulofeu levelled with a hard shot from a tight angle in the 84th minute to give Everton a deserved point. Ahead of a crucial fortnight that will see them play against Napoli in the Champions League, Manchester City and Chelsea, Arsenal leads by five points ahead of Liverpool and Chelsea. http://www.soccerwalesstore.com/gareth-bale-wales-UEFA-EURO-jersey/ . Peter Holland and Brad Staubitz were sent to Toronto on Saturday as the Maple Leafs traded defenceman Jesse Blacker and draft picks to the Anaheim Ducks. Gareth Bale Wales Jersey . Brazilian national coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has confirmed that the veteran goalkeeper is set to join Toronto on loan, saying it will help him be ready for the World Cup. Joe Allen Jersey . Lack made 20 saves for his third shutout of the season as the Canucks blanked the St. Louis Blues 1-0 in the first post-Olympic game for both teams night.BOSTON -- After winning an ugly game at home, the Columbus Blue Jackets visit the Boston Bruins on Thursday night.I think its a step in the right direction in winning a game a different way, Columbus coach John Tortorella said after his team blew an early 2-0 lead but got an overtime goal by 19-year-old defenseman Zach Werenski and completed a sweep of the two-game series with the Anaheim Ducks with a 3-2 home victory Wednesday night.A disjointed game, Tortorella said. Were we really good? No. But I think its a big step in the right direction in winning those games early, thats where you get your points in the National Hockey League as you see where you are come April and March.It was just an ugly game. I remember those games last year; wed lose those games and maybe lose them by two or three. Im happier about a game like this than when you win a game thats clean.Added Nick Foligno: We gutted one out. We found an ugly one. Im not taking anything away from a win here, but weve gotta play a better game tomorrow, were going into Boston.The Blue Jackets have just started playing without defenseman Seth Jones, out with a broken foot. Brandon Dubinsky was out Wednesday, others returned -- and Brandon Saad went from a possible healthy scratch to scoring a goal and an assist.This team is playing well, with points in eight of the last nine games to raise the season record to 6-3-2.They have won four in a row at home after the Bruins opened the season by wiping out 2-0 and 3-1 Columbus leads and winning 6-3 on opening night.The Bruins suffered a tough loss in Montreal, falling to 7-6-0. They beat the Buffalo Sabres in Boston Monday for their second win in five home games, and find themselves in a stretch of five games in seven night.ddddddddddddBoston outshot Montreal 43-23 only to lose on a late goal, dropping their second straight game against the Rival Canadiens.I thought we deserved obviously much more than what we got tonight, said Bruins coach Claude Julien. It was disappointing in a way, but encouraging in another that we played so well on a back-to-back game in this kind of situation. I think if we keep this right kind of attitude and focus then well win more than well lose.With Tuesday the back end of a back-to-back, rookie Zane McIntyre was in goal for the Bruins in Montreal. Tuukka Rask, who shook off a shaky outing against the New York Rangers last Saturday, shut out Buffalo and is 7-1 on the season. He is an impressive 6-2 with a 1.99 goals against average and .932 save percentage against the Blue Jackets, winning that Game 1 start -- and is the likely starter Thursday.Sergei Bobrovsky was in goal for the Jackets Wednesday, improving to 6-3-1 with a 1.81 goals against average on the season. Curtis McElhinney has played only once, losing a game in overtime.There was no official word regarding the Columbus goalie Thursday but two things point at McElhinney. One, it is the back end of a back-to-back. And two, McElhinney is 2-2-0 with a 2.27 goals against and .930 save percentage against Boston. Bobrovsky is just 0-3-2 with a 2.84/.916.With Patrice Bergeron out injured in the opener, David Backes, playing his first game as a Bruin, centered Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak. The line totaled 12 points with each player scoring twice. ' ' '