Team USA Basketball’s 2008 exhibition season kicked off Friday night, as they squared off with Canada at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. Granted, the team was without star forward LeBron James, who is currently nursing a sprained ankle, but it was still more than worth the time to watch.

The opening quarter of the game was hard-fought and aggressive on both ends. Canada put together a tough 2-3 zone early on to get Team USA’s offense a bit out of whack for a short time, but the United States countered with hot transition shooting. Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade, especially, got off to good starts shooting the ball. Heck, Bryant even managed to bury a three from the hash mark as the shot clock wound down.

However, Canada was connecting from long distance in the first quarter, as well. They connected on five of their first eight attempts from downtown, and gave the US a run for their money in the opening 10 minutes of the game.

End of 1st Quarter: United States 30, Canada 24

The first thing to catch your eye as the second quarter opened up was Kobe Bryant’s harassing man-to-man defense on Canada’s Carl English. The 2007-2008 NBA MVP set the tone defensively right from the get-go in the second frame, and the rest of the team followed. Team USA’s defense was so scrappy throughout the final 10 minutes of the first half that you could visibly notice frustration leaking from Canada’s pours, even through your TV set.

With that frustration came sloppiness; mix that in with strong bench play from the US bench, and you’ve got yourself the beginning of a blowout. Michael Redd showed off his beautiful stroke, while the two-point guard lineup of Chris Paul and Deron Williams brought a new wave of energy to the game.

Halftime: United States 61, Canada 38

Both teams began the second half in extremely sloppy fashion, leaving fans with a rather uneventful three-minute period of time. However, that’s not how Team USA Basketball likes to close out their blowout victories. They like to give the fans a little eye-candy to go home with, and they did just that. From full-court “touchdown” passes to Dwyane Wade windmills to more three-point shooting, they delivered.

Along with those highlights came more strong bench play. The second unit, once again, brought a great deal of energy to the floor to finish off the third quarter. Michael Redd continued to make it rain from deep, as he connected on two of four from three-point territory in the third quarter (both makes being back-to-back). Defensively, they wreaked havoc, picked pockets, and reignited their transition game. Chris Paul and Deron Williams put a thunderous stamp on the effort, as a swiping block by Williams was followed by a schoolyard-like floater in the lane by Paul, which extended the run and left the headline of “Murder, She Wrote” stuck in your head.

End of 3rd Quarter: United States 95, Canada 56

Fourth quarter details? I think I speak for everyone when I say, “what’s the point?” Team USA delivered a spanking, winning “55-point style,” as Rick Kamla would put it.

Final: United States 120, Canada 65

Carmelo Anthony, Michael Redd, and Dwyane Wade poured in 20 points apiece for the US, followed by 15 from Kobe Bryant and 14 from Deron Williams. From the other side, Jermaine Anderson was perhaps the most impressive player on the floor, as the energetic guard contributed 16 points for the Canadians.

Team USA will continue exhibition play on Thursday, July 31 against Turkey. The game will air live at 8:00 am ET on ESPN2, and will be replayed later that night at 8:00 pm ET back on ESPN2.