6-foot-8 star have an encore in Brazil? Keep an eye on Brittney Griner, the odds are the 6-8 American | Forum

MADRID -- Real Madrid equaled a record set by rival Barcelona as James Rodriguez and Karim Benzema scored in a 2-0 defeat of Espanyol on Sunday in the Spanish league. Charles Mann Jersey .It was the 16th straight league win for Madrid, going back to last season, matching Pep Guardiolas Barcelona in the 2010-11 season.Madrid maintained a three-point lead over Barcelona with its fourth straight league victory this season.Celta Vigo and Valencia remained winless, while Villarreal stayed near the top thanks to a spectacular goal from near the halfway line by Italian striker Nicola Sansone.Madrids victory came despite the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale, who were rested by coach Zinedine Zidane.What is important is to keep adding points, Madrid goalkeeper Kiko Casilla said. We are happy because we won again and stayed in the lead.Madrid is the only team to have won four straight to start the league. Barcelona won 5-1 at Leganes on Saturday to rebound from a 2-1 home loss to Alaves a week ago. Atletico Madrid routed Sporting Gijon 5-0 to win its second consecutive match and reach eight points, behind third-place Las Palmas, the leagues early surprise team.Rodriguez opened the scoring by converting a penalty kick in first-half injury time and Benzema sealed the away victory from close range in the 71st minute.Here is a look at Sundays other games:---VILLARREAL 2, REAL SOCIEDAD 1Sansone scored a spectacular goal from just inside the opposition half with a booming strike that sailed over Real Sociedad goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli in the 25th.The Italian striker took a chance with a right-footed shot that caught Rulli by surprise. The goalkeeper frantically raced back to try to stop the ball but couldnt reach it as it went over his head.The goal came only three minutes after Sansone had opened the scoring from inside the area.Former Brazil striker Alexandre Pato missed a 16th-minute penalty kick which happened after a foul on the Italian striker.He has a lot of resources, Villarreal coach Fran Escriba said of Sansone. Im sure that second goal will be shown all week long.It was the second win in a row for Villarreal, which moved to sixth in the standings with eight points. Real Sociedad, which scored with Yuri Berchiche in the 35th, is 13th.---ATHLETIC BILBAO 2, VALENCIA 1Aritz Aduriz scored two first-half goals to give Athletic Bilbao a come-from-behind win over Valencia, the only team to have lost all four games to start the season.Valencia went ahead with a close-range shot by midfielder Alvaro Medran just two minutes into the match at San Mames Stadium.Veteran striker Aduriz equalized with a header in the 24th and scored the winner with a right-footed shot from inside the area the 41st.When you go down a goal against a team like Valencia, its difficult to come back and we were able to do it, Aduriz said.Valencias next chance to rebound is Thursday at home against Alaves.We have to keep working hard and the victories will come, we havent been playing badly, Valencia defender Martin Montoya said. We know that our team is capable of improving and getting the results that we deserve.Valencia is the last team other than Barcelona, Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid to win the league title. It lifted the trophy in 2004.---OSASUNA 0, CELTA VIGO 0Celta Vigo and Osasuna remained winless and in the relegation zone after a scoreless draw.The result left Celta, which secured a Europa League spot with its sixth-place finish last season, second-to-last in the standings. It had lost three straight to start the season.Osasuna, which had lost two in a row, is in 18th place with two points.---Tales Azzoni on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tazzoni. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/tales-azzoni Bashaud Breeland Jersey . Ferrer, trying to win his fourth title on Mexican soil, will next play South Africas Kevin Anderson, who eliminated American Sam Querrey,7-6 (2), 6-4. Also Wednesday, Gilles Simon (6) of France beat Donald Young of the United States 6-4, 6-3, Ukraines Alexandr Dolgopolov downed Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 6-3, 6-4 and Croatias Ivo Karlovic defeated Dudi Sela of Israel 7-6 (4), 6-2. Art Monk Jersey . -- Three close looks at the bucket, three misses. http://www.authenticredskinsfootballonline.com/ . - Levi Browns tenure at left tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers is over before it even began. No team has been more dominant at the Olympics over the past 20 years then the U.S. womens basketball team, winning five straight gold medals.Theyll try and keep that streak going in Rio.Training time is always our biggest challenge, said three-time gold medalist Sue Bird. When you get to the medal rounds its one and done, but we have a lot of experience in those games and look to continue our recent success.The Americans have won 41 consecutive Olympic contests dating back to the bronze medal game in 1992, winning by an average of nearly 30 points a game. With nine players, including Bird, Diana Taurasi and Tamika Catchings, returning from the London Games, the U.S. is a heavy favorite to win another gold medal.Olympic newcomers Elena Delle Donne, Brittney Griner and Breanna Stewart will add a dynamic mix to the veteran core.The only potential thorn for the U.S. is lack of training time. While most other countries get to spend months together preparing, the U.S. will get about two weeks before its first game.Im hoping that they remember some of the stuff that we did last year at the World Championship and a couple years ago at the Olympics and maybe February at that little training camp that we had, U.S. coach Geno Auriemma said. Fortunately, theyre a lot of the same players that played. So we havent changed a whole lot. But theres not much time and theres not much that you can do to get ready. You just have to trust that theyre ... They never let you down. They always seem to respond when you need them to.The U.S. is in a difficult group with Serbia, China, Canada, Spain and Senegal.Obviously were in a tough group, Auriemma added. Because anytime you have the European champions like Serbia already in the group and Canada, the Americas champion, those are two really good teams. And then you add in China and Spain.Here are a few other things to watch for in womens basketball at the Olympics:A LITTLE REVENGEThe U.S. is also out for a little bit of revenge. The last time they played in Brazil att the 2006 World Championship, they lost to Russia in the semifinals. Dustin Hopkins Jersey. It was their only defeat in either the Olympics or worlds since 1992.I hadnt thought about that until you brought it up, Bird said laughing. The fans down there definitely know their basketball and like rooting against us. As the deficit against Russia grew, the cheers started getting louder for them.MEDAL CONTENDERSWhile the gold medal is most likely a foregone conclusion, the other two spots on the podium are up for grabs. France was the silver medalists in 2012 and Australia has won either a silver or bronze at every Olympics since 1996. Other candidates for a medal could be Serbia, which won the European championship, and Canada.SCHEDULE CHANGEThis year there will be a change in the competition structure. With the men and women playing in different arenas until the quarterfinal rounds, teams can play on consecutive days. The U.S. doesnt begin play until Sunday, Aug. 7 against Senegal. The Americans then play the next day against Spain. There will only be three or four games per day now instead of the six there used to be. Its the first time this format is being used since the 1984 Olympic in Los Angeles.GOLDEN GIRLSIf the U.S. does win another gold, Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird and Tamika Catchings will join Teresa Edwards and Lisa Leslie as the only basketball players to win four gold medals.SLAM DUNKAustralia center Liz Cambage became the first woman to dunk in the Olympics in London. Will the 6-foot-8 star have an encore in Brazil? Keep an eye on Brittney Griner, the odds are the 6-8 American will add her name to the list.IMPRESSIVE STREAKSOnly two other traditional team sports have longer consecutive gold medal streaks than the U.S. womens team. The American mens basketball team won seven consecutive golds from 1936-68. The India mens field hockey team won six in a row from 1928-56. 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