U.S. Team Roughs Up Physical Australians

Imagine being the target of a furious Charles Barkley, all 6 feet 6 and 252 pounds of him, heading your way with a scowl on his face and anger in his heart. All but the toughest of NBA veterans would quickly dash for the next zip code.

So where did that leave Shane Heal, the smallest member of the Australian Olympic team, when he got into a confrontation with Barkley Friday night at the Delta Center?

Standing his ground. The 6-1, 180-pound guard stayed in Barkley’s face and answered him expletive for expletive even though Heal had about as much chance of overpowering Barkley as his Australian teammates had of beating the U.S. Olympic squad.

Neither happened as the U.S. team rolled to another dominating victory, beating Australia, 118-77, before a sellout crowd of 19,911.

But it would have been worse had it not been for Heal, who kept his team in the game by providing an emotional lift and hitting 10 of 17 shots, including eight of 13 from the three-point line, to finish with a game-high 28 points.

Heal’s problems with Barkley began after Heal connected on one of those three-point baskets. Barkley appeared to foul Heal--later admitting he did foul Heal--but escaped without a call as Heal crashed to the floor.

Heal yelled an expletive at Barkley.

“Obviously he doesn’t realize who I am,” Barkley said.

He went after Heal, who repeated the expletive.

The two banged chests, and had to be separated a minute later at midcourt.

But Heal said he wasn’t intimidated. He’s getting used to this kind of thing from U.S. team.

When he played against the U.S. team at the World Championships in Toronto in 1994, Heal drove the lane after hitting three three-point shots in a row and came face to face with center Shaquille O’Neal.

“You come back in here and I’ll break your arm,” O’Neal told him.

The 25-year-old Heal, who has been playing basketball since age 5, is a star back home for the Sydney Kings of Australia’s National Basketball League. He once hit 13 three-point shots in a game and totaled 61 points in another game.

Heal hopes performances like Friday night’s will result in an NBA tryout.

“Hopefully something will eventually happen,” he said. “That’s my dream. I think I could play a role [in the NBA].”

Aside from Heal, the most impressive thing about the Australians was the physical level at which they played, banging the U.S. squad around more than any of its three previous opponents. The Australians would have been even more physical if center Luc Longley had been able to play for them. But he’ll miss the Olympics because of ankle surgery.

It also didn’t help that the Australians were trying to recover from the effects of a 24-hour flight from home that put them in Salt Lake City the day before the game.

Under optimum conditions, they might have only lost by 40.

Reggie Miller led the U.S. team with 19 points, including three three-point baskets in as many tries. O’Neal had 18. Barkley led all rebounders with eight.

When the game was over, Barkley posed for pictures with Heal and praised the Australian’s game.

“I wasn’t going to hit him. I don’t do things like that,” said Barkley, who was involved in a fight last weekend at a Cleveland bar, “except late at night.”