RIO DE JANEIRO -- Carmelo Anthony took aim and shot to the top of U.S. basketball history.Anthony scored 31 points -- and the Americans needed every one of them -- as the overwhelming gold-medal favorites in the Rio Games outlasted Australia 98-88 on Wednesday night.The first American male basketball player to appear in four Olympics, Anthony also passed LeBron James as the most prolific scorer to ever wear a USA jersey. Anthony opened the game by making three 3-pointers and then moved past James, his close friend, with another 3 from the left wing with 1:08 left in the first quarter.Of course I was conscious of it, Anthony said of the scoring mark. My teammates was making sure I was aware of the situation, but tonight was one of those nights where I wanted to let the game come to me and take the shots that was given to me, take the open shots and kind of play basketball.And at the end of the day I was in my zone, I was playing basketball.Anthony knocked down nine 3-pointers -- one shy of his U.S. record -- and finished 11 of 21 from the field. He added eight rebounds, two steals and may have saved the Americans from a loss by scoring 14 points in the fourth quarter.Carmelo was magnificent, said U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski.Anthony has scored 293 points in Olympic competition, 20 more than James, who skipped a chance to play in his fourth games after leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to an NBA title this season. David Robinson (270) is third on the scoring list followed by Michael Jordan (256) and Charles Barkley (231).For comparisons sake, Brazilian legend Oscar Schmidt scored 1,093 points during his Olympic career, but unlike Anthony, he didnt have his minutes restricted while playing on powerhouse teams.Anthony was delayed in attending his postgame news conference, and when he arrived wearing a white USA baseball cap adorned with the five Olympic rings, Krzyzewski congratulated the New York Knicks star on his accomplishment.We have had great, great players and great teams play for the United States, Krzyzewski said. His commitment to USA Basketball and international basketball, hes one of the best players in the world, but over this last decade he has proved to be one of the best international players.Although James and some other NBA stars passed on a chance to play in Brazil, Anthony signed up again and is making the most of what will undoubtedly be his final games.He was wanting that moment, teammate Paul George said after the Americans escaped an upset. He was special tonight. We joke about it, this being his farewell tour.Anthonys Olympic odyssey began with a disappointing performance in Athens, where the Americans staggered to a bronze medal and worldwide embarrassment. But hes been a major part of the U.S. programs resurgence.His leadership has really blossomed big time, said Jerry Colangelo, USA Basketballs director. I would say if Carmelo played on any team long enough he would be the leading scorer, thats the kind of scorer that he is. Wholesale Flyers Jerseys . 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PITTSBURGH -- Sidney Crosby cant seem to find the right word for whats happening. If the Pittsburgh Penguins captain is being honest, he is not really interested in finding one. He would rather just enjoy a hot streak that is bordering on absurd even by his remarkably high standards.The two-time MVPs 17 goals lead the NHL just over a quarter of the way into the season, even though he missed the first six games while recovering from a concussion. Even though injuries have forced head coach Mike Sullivan to shake up his lines. Even though Crosby insists he hasnt made some sort of conscious decision to pepper the opposing net.You can call it whatever you want, Crosby said.Just dont call it luck.You dont get puck luck (that many) times, teammate Patric Hornqvist said. I just think hes in the right spot at the right time.Over and over and over again.The games most creative player is in the midst of a rebirth at 29, a renaissance that coincided with Sullivans arrival last December. Its a union that has propelled Crosby to some of the finest hockey of his career. He captured the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP last June after the Penguins won their fourth Stanley Cup title and he hardly looked weary from a shorter than usual summer while captaining Team Canada to a remarkably easy stroll to the gold medal in the World Cup of Hockey in September.The player who appeared on the other side of his prime a year ago has reclaimed his spot as face of the sport and appears in no mood to give up the mantle anytime soon. Not that Crosby wants to talk about it. He figures hes just doing what hes always done.Im in the same spots, the same areas, said Crosby, who is putting the puck on net 3.5 times per game, just a slight uptick from with his usual average. When you think its going in you tend to shoot a little bit more because you feel good, you believe its going in ... When youre struggling a little bit, you feel you need to bring it closer or pass up a shot and make a pass. I think thats normal for everybody. Thats pretty common.Crosby never met a teammate he didnt like to set up, but maybe he is finally getting a little selfish. It wasnt always that way.Playing against him in the past, I would try to make sure I was taking away passing lanes from him, said forward Eric Fehr, who spent nine years facing Crosby while skating for Washington before signing with Pittsburgh in 2015. You dont really expect him to pull up and shoot. You see him coming down in aa 3 on 2 youre expecting him to lay it in somewhere.dddddddddddd I think thats changed him a little bit and that makes him tough to defend.The proof came Monday night against Ottawa. Crosby and Hornqvist broke in on the rush in the first period and even though Hornqvist had a step on the defender, Crosby ripped a wrist shot over Craig Andersons blocker instead.Then there are the things Crosby does that are nearly impossible to defend, instances when his ability to read a play before it happens puts him a split second ahead of everyone else on the ice. His team trailing by a goal as the seconds ticked down against New Jersey last month, Crosby stood calmly off to the side during a scramble in front of the net, let things sort themselves out then picked the puck out of a sea of bodies and casually flipped it over goaltender Keith Kincaide to send the game to overtime.Last week against Dallas, the athlete who once homered while taking batting practice at the home of baseballs Pittsburgh Pirates stunned everyone by trying to bank a shot in off Stars goaltender Antti Niemi from behind the net. When the puck bounced off Niemi and right back to him, Crosby swatted it out of midair . The puck smacked off the middle of Niemis back and into the goal.Only a few players in the league can bank those in and its always the same guys, Hornqvist said. If you have the skill, might as well do it.Its the type of thing that is happening for Crosby more and more and seems to represent his career coming full circle. Hes only led the NHL in goals once, when he poured in 51 in 2009-10. He was on his way to doing it again the following year when he a hit to the head in the 2011 Winter Classic against Washington sent him on a nomadic path back that robbed him of the better part of two seasons. Some wondered if the magic would ever return in full.Its also why the concussion he suffered in an early October practice raised so many alarm bells. Yet he preached calm instead of panic as he recovered, then went out and scored in his season debut against Florida as if to tell everyone to relax. It also started a run that shows no signs of slowing down.Theres no really great way to describe it, he said. You just hope it keeps going in.---This story has been corrected to delete a reference to a crosscheck to Crosbys head in the 2011 Winter Classic. Cheap NFL Hoodies Stitched NFL Jerseys China NFL Hoodies Cheap Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Wholesale Cheap NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys Free Shipping ' ' '