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The game ended three times. The first time the clock ran out but the ref ruled that the coach had called timeout, even though the rules stated that a timeout MUST be called by a player on the court. The clock was reset and the ball inbounded, but the Soviets did not score. I can't remember what the next excuse was but somehow there was another problem and the Reds got another chance, and the US coach Hank Iba messed up by not puting the tallest player, Tom MicMillian if I recall, on the guy throwing the ball in. The heave went down the court, the Russian guy knocked the defender down and made a short shot at the buzzer.

You have a good memory -- better than mine, to be sure.

I couldn't remember if the Russians got two or three tries but anyway, it was more than they should have gotten. You're right in that the Americans probably should have face-guarded the inbounds pass with their biggest player, but when you wondered how many tries the Russians were going to get in the first place it might have been a moot point.