LeBron James scored 20 points and was a defensive force Thursday night in his exhibition debut, helping the U.S. Olympic basketball team overcome some early sloppy play to beat Turkey 114-82 in its first game in China.
Carmelo Anthony added 17 points and Dwight Howard had some powerful dunks while finishing with 14.
The Americans allowed 10 field goals in the first quarter, then only 10 combined over the next two periods. They improved to 2-0 in Olympic tune-up play and face Lithuania here Friday before moving on to Shanghai for their remaining two games.
James was 8-of-9 from the field and finished with six rebounds, five steals and four assists in 23 minutes, sitting out the fourth quarter.