US & Iran face off

“It was an honor to play against your team,” said US coach Mike Krzyzewski, who competed in Iran in the early 1970s. “I’ve been to Iran … I have good friends who are [of] Iranian descent in the United States. So I have a good feeling for the Iranian people, and there’s no political aspect in my mind in the ballgame.”

Unlike previous sports matches, this basketball game garnered no high-level political attention. In fact, it may have been the most “normal” sporting face-off yet between America and Iran.

“I am very happy, because I play today against the best team in the world,” Iranian team captain Mahdi Kamrani said after the contest, in which Iran was beat 88-51. “I try [my] best, to play against the best…. For me it’s a normal game; maybe for fans it’s different. [But] it’s really basketball.”