Greece 101, U.S.A. 95: Setting off a national celebration, a Greek team with no current NBA players, and without its best player, Nikos Zisis, bested this most recent incarnation of the Dream Team, and advanced to the finals of the World Basketball Championships. Although Team U.S.A. will not have a "Miracle on Hardwood", the defeat was tempered by the knowledge that a scrappy team of red-white-and-blue overachievers led by Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James were able to push superstars like Vassilis Spanoulis, Sofoklis "Baby Shaq" Schortsianitis and Theodoros Papaloukas to the limit, and may have attracted the attention of top teams like Olimpiakos and Panathinaikos Athens. The U.S. can still win a bronze medal tomorrow against defending Olympic champion Argentina, who lost to Spain, 75-74.

The decline of American sports during the Bush Administration has become a national travesty.