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RIO DE JANEIRO -- Theres one team that has lived up to high expectations -- even surpassed them -- at the Rio Games in mens basketball.Its the one with a roster loaded with skilled and experienced NBA players, an overall No. 1 draft pick, a backcourt featuring two guards with championship rings and a strong belief it can capture gold in Brazil.The favored U.S. team, to this point unbeaten but shockingly underwhelming, had better be careful.Australia just might win it all.Bonded by a deep commitment to the national team and each other, the Aussies have been the most impressive team in this tournament, which many expected to be dominated by Team USAs super-squad trying to win a third straight title. However, Australia, seeking its first Olympic medal with a program aided by players developing their games on college teams in the U.S., is focused on ending Americas run.No disrespect to the U.S., but we dont want to go into an Olympics aiming for second or fourth, center Andrew Bogut said after the Aussies put a fright into the Americans in group play before losing 98-88. We have a goal of being first.In some hoop circles, Australias performance has been a surprise. Not to the Americans.They play aggressive, said U.S. forward DeMar DeRozan. They execute extremely well, and thats a team thats been playing together for a while.International basketball observers have seen this Australian ascension coming.With Bogut, the 7-footer selected first by Milwaukee in the 2005 draft and four other players currently on NBA rosters, the Aussies, as fans in the U.S. have learned, play with a street-tough tenacity. Add in that guards Patty Mills and Matthew Dellavedova, and big man Aron Baynes have won league titles, and its no wonder the team from Down Under is on the way up.Its been rising for a while, said Australian assistant coach Luc Longley, who played on three Olympic teams and won three championships with the Chicago Bulls. I dont think this is a flash in the pan.It shouldnt be. Australia, which has finished fourth three times and will play Lithuania in Wednesdays first quarterfinal, has depth. Missing from the 2016 Rio team are forward Ben Simmons, the former LSU star picked first in this years draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, and Thon Maker, selected No. 10 by the Bucks. Also, Utahs Dante Exum was unable to play while recovering from a torn ACL suffered with the national team last summer.Three-time Olympian Joe Ingles, who has spent the past two seasons with the Jazz, sees bright days ahead for Australia.Were not all 18 years old anymore, but weve been together a long time and obviously with Ben and Thon and Dante and all these kids coming through. Dellys still young, weve still got a pretty young group -- apart from David, the forward said, referring to 36-year-old center David Andersen. But the rest of us are all 28 and under. I think we can sustain it for a little while, and the junior development of what we have in Australia is really good and we can continue to produce good players.Theres something else about the Boomers, as theyre known back home. They are a close-knit group, which grew tighter last year when Mills organized a team trip to Uluru, the iconic rock formation in central Australia considered sacred by the indigenous Aboriginals.The experience was life-changing for Mills, who has Aboriginal roots. He said the time spent together helped the Aussies better appreciate what it means to play for their homeland.Just to get to know everyone on the team and the meaning behind doing that was to find that deeper meaning of why we play for Australia and why we represent our country, said Mills, who has been with the San Antonio Spurs since 2011. I think everyone found that individually and as a team as well.As a reminder, the Australian team has a banner from its trip to Uluru hanging in the athletes village in Rio.To five-time Australian Olympic guard Andrew Gaze, the possibility of the Aussies stepping up onto the medal podium in the next few days, isnt all that surprising. Gaze has been impressed with this Australian groups resolve and its ability to crystallize in a short period.The flag bearer for his country at the 2000 Games, Gaze, who remains the second-leading scorer in Olympic history, was a win from a bronze in 1988 but ran into a U.S. team smarting from a loss to the Soviet Union.The Aussies came up short again eight years later in Atlanta, losing to Lithuania, which beat them again at Sydney.Weve been knocking on the door for a long, long time, Gaze said.If the green-and-gold can get to the gold-medal game, the U.S. could be waiting.Were not intimidated, Ingles said following the teams matchup in the preliminary round. Were not scared of anyone. We hope we can get another crack at them.Dave Casper Raiders Jersey . -- An ugly goal by Nick Bonino helped the Anaheim Ducks overcome the defensive-minded Phoenix Coyotes on a night when their ragged power play continued to struggle. Jack Tatum Jersey . 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Thats about all he can do right now, so hes trying not to think about when he might be able to play again for the Los Angeles Lakers.BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Coach Kevin Wilson tried to temper Indianas postgame party.Everybody else in Bloomington wanted to celebrate the milestone win.After enduring a series of coaching changes along with progressions and regressions over the past 25 years, the Hoosiers finally took a big step forward Saturday with a 26-24 come-from-behind victory over Purdue to claim their fourth consecutive Old Oaken Bucket and their second straight bowl trip.To Wilson, the feats were only part of what made this one special.All we talked about was the simplicity of the game, he said. But to give those guys (seniors) one more month, thats really cool because you get to spend more time together. To me, it was more about you just wanted more time with them than the historical deal. I think were trying to create our own history and trying to grow.Indiana (6-6, 4-5) tied the school record for most consecutive wins (four) in a series that dates to 1891. The only other time it happened was from 1944-47.The Hoosiers also earned their back-to-back bowl bids since 1990 and 1991 and won four conference games for the first time since 2001.All it took Saturday was a 1-yard touchdown plunge from Devine Redding with 4:59 to go, two forced turnovers in the final 66 seconds and the addition of one more bronze block I added to the chain that fits neatly inside the prized trophy.And in a season full of drama, it was a fitting way for the Hoosiers to snap a two-game losing streak and earn their elusive sixth victory.The Boilermakers (3-9, 1-8) certainly had some chances to end their losing streak at six.They scored the first touchdown of the day, would have tied the score at halftime if not for a missed extra point, took a 22-17 lead with a 31-yard TD pass from David Blough to DeAngelo Yancey to open the third quarter before missing the 2-point conversion attempt.Then it all unraveled.Indiana closed to 22-20 on a 46-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter and retook the lead on Reddings go-ahead score.Purdues final possession ended when Jonathan Crawford picked off Blough in the end zone on fourth-and-14 from the Hoosiers 27-yard line.TThere was no doubt in my mind we were going to punch it in, Blough said.dddddddddddd The last play, I just tried to give him a chance and it didnt go our way.Though the Hoosiers failed to run out the clock on the next possession, they took a safety with 1 second left rather than punt, and Crawford hauled in the first lateral on the ensuing free kick to seal it.THE TAKEAWAYPurdue: After missing the postseason for the third straight season, the Boilermakers face some major offseason upheaval. Parker and most -- or all of the coaching staff -- are not expected to return. And until a new coach is in place, its impossible to know what direction Purdue will go .Indiana: A historic win will give the Hoosiers some extra practice time -- and one more game this season.KEY NUMBERSRedding ran 24 times for 99 yards, becoming the first Indiana player since Vaughn Dunbar to top the 1,000-yard mark in two straight seasons. Redding has 1,050 yards with one to play.Yancey had six catches for 78 yards and his first career interception in his final college game. Linebacker Markus Bailey picked off two passes. The Boilermakers ran 34 times for 42 yards and got a 1-yard TD run from Markell Jones to open the scoring. Blough was 24 of 45 for 225 yards with two TDs and two interceptions.MISTAKE-PRONEIndiana and Purdue started the day with a combined turnover margin of minus-24, so a flurry of miscues should have been expected. Purdue picked off four passes, threw two and lost a fumble. Indianas Crawford and Purdues Bailey each had interceptions and both kickers missed an extra point.UP NEXTPurdue: Announcing a new coach. The Boilermakers have six weeks to search for a new coach but its unclear how close new athletic director Mike Bobinski is to naming one.Indiana: Will eagerly await the official bowl announcements Dec. 4 even though the Hoosiers should have some idea of where theyll be going long before that date.---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25 . ' ' '