RIO DE JANEIRO -- The night began with Carmelo Anthony?--?while all 11 of his teammates were still on the floor finishing their pregame warm-ups -- sitting alone on the Team USA bench with his arms stretched widely and casually.The night was winding down when Anthony leapt off that bench before anyone else in red, white and blue and headed straight for DeMarcus Cousins, determined to console Cousins, who had just fouled out.Im not really a hugger, Melo confessed afterward.But on this occasion?Sometimes you just gotta give [Cousins] a hug, man, and tell him everythings gonna be all right.Thats Anthony. He always believes its going to work out.Yes: Even with the Knicks.Hes a Hall of Fame optimist.Hes an uncertain hugger but definitely not a worrier. Hes not going to sweat a slow start against Venezuela at the Olympics, hes not going to fret about the foul trouble Cousins and DeAndre Jordan endured against the Venezuelans and presume that even bigger problems on that front loom Wednesday night against Australia, and hes most certainly not going to listen to the naysayers who say hes a better player in FIBA competitions than the NBA.I havent heard that one, Melo said.And thats, of course, because hes not listening to the judgy pundits whove been batting that one around for the past five or six years.Hed prefer to listen to peers such as Team USA point guard Kyrie Irving, who asserted the other day that an NBA championship and a gold medal are pretty much the same.I believe so, Anthony said in support of Irvings proclamation, insisting he finds tremendous satisfaction in his status as the only four-time Olympian in U.S. mens basketball history ... with a record third gold medal now just six wins away.I believe so.It obviously behooves Anthony to take that stance, with no championship in sight back home for Melo and his beloved New York Knickerbockers. Yet he seems so at peace these days in this incarnation as Team USAs elder statesman, in addition to his leading role in the world of athlete-driven social activism, that you tend to believe three gold medals will be enough for him if thats how it plays out.If theres ultimately no NBA ring in his future.I enjoy it, I enjoy it, Anthony told ESPNs Hannah Storm in a SportsCenter interview that aired this week, explaining the pull of representing his country for a fourth time when three big names from what he calls our brotherhood -- LeBron James, Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade -- either passed on the chance to do the same or (in CP3s case) were sidelined by injury.I like it. I enjoy learning about different players personalities, not just as basketball players, but as people. I feel like Im that bridge, that gap, between the veterans and the young guys.Me and Draymond [Green] instantly clicked, Anthony said, because its like we just sit back and we just talk trash all day. ... This whole team, man. ... [On] the first day, we put together a group text, and its like nonstop trash-talking. I know people wish they could see these group texts, these team chats.On this night, folks had to settle for seeing Melo, as Team USAs older leader, stepping up in the second quarter when little else was working. The Americans finally stopped fouling Venezuela in that quarter and watched happily as Melo scored 10 of his 14 points in the period to restore some much-needed order.Really what changed this game was the steal by Melo, Team USAs Paul George said after finishing with a team-high 20 points. Kyrie?came down and kicked it out for a 3. That really ignited us on the bench. That ignited Melo, it ignited that group out there on the court. That was really the turn of events in this game.Not that Anthony was terribly impressed with himself. He has now played in 25 of these Olympic basketball games, more than any other American man, and he just passed Michael Jordan to become the United States third all-time leading scorer in the Olympics -- but predictably, he wasnt aware of the milestones until a reporter informed him postgame.I never even knew that, Anthony said.Why would he?Tuning out the noise and wanting what youve got, Sheryl Crow-style, is working well for a thirtysomething whose NBA legacy remains a matter of fierce debate but whos destined to go down as one of the most versatile and impactful players in the history of the international game.Its all basketball, Melo said. Its all the game of basketball.Perhaps we should be listening more to him. Kobe Bryant Jersey . Los Angeles star goalie survived those perilous gymnastics with no problem, and he eventually backstopped the Kings to a skid-snapping win. Quick stopped 27 shots in his return from a 24-game injury absence, Jeff Carter scored the tiebreaking goal with 7:55 to play, and the Kings snapped their five-game losing streak with a 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night. Carmelo Anthony Jersey . Q: Team Canada announces their Olympic roster three weeks from today. Who is general manager Steve Yzerman watching? LeBrun: Over the last 48 hours, hes taken in the home-and-home between the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche with Jamie Benn and Matt Duchene being the obvious targets. https://www.sportsstarsjerseys.com/kemba-walker-jersey/ . The Canadian squad, skipped by Jennifer Jones of Winnipeg, got on the board first with two in the second end, and followed that with two more apiece in the fourth and sixth ends. Signed Tom Brady Jersey . According to a report from the Winnipeg Free Press, the Bombers will name Acting GM Kyle Walters to the post full time. Larry Bird Jersey . 31, the CFL club announced Monday. The team also has yet to decide on the future of Doug Berry, who began the season as a consultant to the head coach but took over the offensive co-ordinators duties in July. Two women who reported being gang raped by multiple football players in 2012 reached a financial settlement on Tuesday with Baylor University, and details of the alleged sexual assaults hadnt previously been reported in the media.Baylor officials have said previously that 17 women had reported 19 sexual or physical assaults involving football players since 2011, including four gang rapes. According to university officials, the alleged incidents that led to Tuesdays settlement were included in the four gang rapes.The terms of the settlement with the university were undisclosed and the women never filed a lawsuit. No details about the nature of the assaults, the players involved or the women who reported the rapes were released.One of the two women also reported being physically assaulted by a football player in 2013.In a joint statement issued by the womens attorneys and the university, Baylor interim president David E. Garland confirmed that the football players implicated in these reported sexual assaults and the athletic department personnel identified as having received the report of physical assault in 2013 are no longer a part of the university.It breaks my heart that even one student would be sexually assaulted while a part of this university. I offer my sincere apologies, both personally and on behalf of the university, that we did not do more to prevent, respond to or support the care of these young women, Garland said.Since the time of the reported assaults, Baylor has established a full-time Title IX office, created a specific Title IX policy and instituted a prevention and education program for all students, faculty and staff, the statement read.ddddddddddddIn the statement, the womens attorneys, John Clune and Chris Ford?of Boulder, Colorado, commended Baylor for its recent work in improving its handling of sexual assaults and following up on the findings of law firm Pepper Hamilton, which Baylor hired last year to review the universitys response to sexual assault cases involving students.Were very glad to get these cases resolved, Clune told Outside the Lines. They were two of the most horrific and heartbreaking stories that weve ever heard. Hopefully, the settlement will help them both in their recovery and, more important, to be able to finish their education.Clune also represented the former soccer player who accused former Baylor football player Sam Ukwuachu of rape. Ukwuachu was criminally convicted of sexual assault in August 2015, and his case is currently being appealed. The woman reached an undisclosed financial settlement with Baylor last December.Earlier this month, the school issued a statement describing a gang rape involving a different female student athlete -- identified by sources as a volleyball player -- about which several athletic department officials and coaches had been told but did not report to judicial affairs or anyone outside of athletics. Baylor assistant coaches disputed the schools assertion and sources told Outside the Lines that the incident was reported to judicial affairs.Four federal Title IX gender-equity lawsuits are pending against Baylor, three of which involve women who said they were assaulted by a football player. ' ' '