BEIJING — If there was any doubt that its defensive play could make the U.S. men a contender in the Olympic water polo tournament, consider it erased.
With three goals from Tony Azevedo and a continuation of the defensive effort it displayed in its previous game, the U.S. men upended defending world champion Croatia 7-5 on Saturday at Yingdong Natatorium, putting the team on a verge of a spot in the medal round.
The U.S. men, who have not won a water polo medal since 1988, are 3-1 — as is Croatia, which entered the day as the lone member of the 12-team field with a perfect record.
“We scored goals when we needed to, but the key was on defense,” said U.S. coach Terry Schroeder, a player on that 1988 team. “We had them frustrated. They were kind of out of sorts a little bit, and when we kept them off balance by moving on offense and doing things to kind of keep them having to play defense and having to work on the other end, so their offense was a little slower, too.”
Schroeder agreed it was a signature win, but a real accomplishment — a place in the medal round — will require a win over Germany in Monday’s final pool-play game.
“Upstairs is where these guys needed to improve the most the last couple of years,” Schroeder said, referring to his team’s mental state. “And they play like that, they’ve got to know right now that they could win this thing. So it’s a huge boost — but it doesn’t mean anything unless we win on Monday.”
One thing it did show was that the U.S. men have continued to raise their defensive level since barely holding on to beat Italy 12-11 in their second tournament game. They followed that with a 4-2 loss to Serbia — the lowest-scoring Olympic game since 1980 — then held Croatia to six fewer goals than it had scored in any previous game.
“We really sat down,” said Azevedo, “and said, ‘What’s going to put us through is our defense. That’s what we’re known for. We have great guards, we have great movement, and we’re going to win this tournament playing defense.’ And that’s what we did. And every game, we got better and better and better, and now we’ve found our groove.”
Goalkeeper Merrill Moses, who had 11 saves for the second consecutive game, has been a big part of that defensive effort.
“I think after that Italy game, he kind of beat himself up a little bit,” said Jeff Powers, who had a spectacular leaping steal that exemplified the U.S. defensive effort, “and it kind of fired him up. … He’s playing awesome. That’s a huge bonus for us, having him play that well.”
Moses was quick to share credit.
“When you’re hot, you’re hot,” he said. “And I’m feeling pretty good right now, but I have a lot of support with my team. Their shot blocking is helping me out, giving me confidence. They’re taking away their part of the goal.”
Schroeder and several of his players also cited an 8-5 win over Croatia in a May exhibition in Westlake Village, Calif., as a significant foundation for Saturday’s result.
“At that point we really needed a big win,” said Powers. “That was a rallying point for the team. We remembered that win all the time until the Olympics when we were training. We knew we could beat the best in the world, and we kept telling ourselves that. And it showed out here.”
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