Will Groulx was the game's leading scorer with 14 goals.

Throughout the first half, U.S. head coach James Gumbert (Austin, Texas) utilized the depth of his team and constantly rotated new players and line-ups onto the court. Each new line-up brought a mix of speed, height, and experience to the floor and the early result was a 20-17 U.S. lead at the half.

"One of our biggest assets is that we have 12 quality athletes on our team," said Gumbert. "When we can continuously throw new people at the other team it makes us unpredictable and its going to keep our guys fresh throughout the tournament."

The strong pressure defense by the U.S. had clearly taken a toll on Japan by the start of the second half and the U.S. showed no sign of letting up. The Americans came out of halftime on a mission and forced three consecutive turnovers right out of the gate. Halfway through the third quarter, the U.S. had stretched its lead to 25-19.

Coach Gumbert continued to get his players minutes on the floor, eventually getting all 12 athletes into the game. There was never any let down, regardless of which U.S. players took the court, and the depth and experience of the United States helped them to the 10-goal, 44-34, victory.

Will Groulx (Portland, Ore.) led all scorers with 14 goals. Mark Zupan (Austin, Texas) also contributed 11 goals to the American effort.

"This was a perfect first game for us, but this is a seven game tournament, it's a marathon," said Andy Cohn (Mesa, Ariz.). "The team's strength is its depth and hopefully everyone will continue to contribute and that will wear down the other teams."

Pool play continues on Wednesday with the United States facing both Germany and Denmark.

For more information, or to request an athlete interview, please contact Susan Katz at susank@lakeshore.org.

Complete tournament results are available at www.wwrc2006.co.nz.