Читать книгу Indiana University Olympians. From Leroy Samse to Lilly King онлайн

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“It really couldn’t have worked out better,” Buckner said. “I played for, easily in that era, maybe the two greatest coaches of all time. They went about the game very differently. Coach Smith was Coach Smith. He never swore; he never raised his voice. Coach Knight, he raised his voice all the time. One was very demonstrative, and the other really wasn’t.”

In Montreal, the Americans opened with a 106–86 victory over Italy. In their second game, Marquette’s Butch Lee, a New Yorker born in Puerto Rico, nearly led his team to a historic upset. Lee scored thirty-five points on fifteen-of-eighteen shooting but was called for charging with eight seconds left and Puerto Rico trailing 93–92. Ford made two free throws to cap a twenty-point game, and the United States won 95–94.

“They had us in a tough spot. I will not kid you,” Buckner said.

The Americans rallied for a 112–93 victory over Yugoslavia behind Adrian Dantley’s twenty-seven points and May’s twenty-four. Egypt withdrew from the tournament for political reasons, so the United States won by forfeit. After beating Czechoslovakia 81–76, the Americans faced host Canada in a semifinal before a crowd of nineteen thousand. May and Buckner led the Americans to an early 22–8 lead, and then rolled into the gold-medal game with a 95–77 victory. May finished with twenty-two points and Buckner with twelve.