Team USA put up a convincing display of skill and teamwork in Seoul yesterday, soundly beating Lithuania 111-88 in a warm-up game before the world basketball championship which starts in Japan on Saturday.

The American squad of NBA superstars, led by Denver's Carmelo Anthony and Cleveland's LeBron James, put up a basketball clinic throughout the game, prompting screams and applause from the South Korean crowd.

Lithuania were outplayed throughout the game despite a solid effort in the second half, with centre Ksistof Lavrinovicius scoring 18 points in the fourth quarter, 26 in total.

Team USA are under pressure to erase the memories of the 2002 World Championship, when they finished sixth, and the 2004 Olympic Games which yielded only a bronze medal.

Doubts about Team USA's dominance in international play resurfaced last week, when the US survived a second-half scare against Brazil, allowing 16 unanswered points before ekeing out a four-point victory.

Team USA are scheduled to play one last warm-up game before the Japan worlds against South Korea tomorrow.

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