The Milwaukee Bucks' Historic Victory Over the U.S.S.R
by Zayn Khalid, age 13
The United States and the Soviet National team (U.S.S.R.) had one of the biggest basketball rivalries of the '70s and '80s, especially when the U.S. lost to the U.S.S.R. in the 1972 Olympic finals. Then 15 years later, the Milwaukee Bucks played the U.S.S.R., and the game was not even close.
In 1987, the Milwaukee Bucks beat the U.S.S.R. at the McDonald’s Basketball Open. The final score of the game was 127-100 with the Bucks leading by 50 points at some parts of the game. The win was the second of a three-day tournament.
The Bucks still dominated with three of their better players out, including Sydney Moncrief, who had just received knee surgery, John Lucas, and Rickey Pierce. The U.S.S.R. was also missing players like their dominant 7 '2 center Arvidas Sabonis, due to an Achilles injury, and his backup, Aleksandr Belosteni, who suffered a sprained left ankle. [Read More]