GUANGZHOU, China _ After a pair of big blowouts, the U.S. finally got some competition.

Carmelo Anthony crashes into the bench during a match against Brazil in Guangzhou Tuesday night. [Shanghai Daily photo]

Carmelo Anthony scored 16 first-half points and Kirk Hinrich added 14 more as the United States ground out a 90-86 win over scrappy Brazil in a world championships warmup on Tuesday.

"I think this is a great game for us and we needed this," said Atlanta Hawks guard Joe Johnson, who had 12 points and closed out the win from the free throw line.

"We needed to be tested, and tonight we showed a lot of pride."

Down 14 points at the half, Brazil came alive at the restart, scoring 16 unanswered points over six minutes to take a 54-52 lead. The sides traded the lead constantly through the quarter and it remained a three-point game into the final 30 seconds when Brazil began to come apart.

Hinrich was 8-for-8 from the free throw line, and hit two out of four three pointers.

"It was a game of a lot of adversity for both teams," coach Mike Krzyzewski said.

"Our guys, I'm proud of them because they made winning plays down the stretch," Krzyzewski added.

Anthony helped set a blistering pace in the first half, giving the U.S. a 52-38 lead at the half.

But he slipped while chasing a ball to the sidelines, crashing into Krzyzewski, and left the game with a hyperextended right knee with 2 minutes 21 seconds left in the second quarter. Team officials said the injury did not appear serious.

With no one stepping in to fill Anthony's role, Brazil went on the attack. Guard Welington Dos Santos flummoxed the American defense with his speed and passing, while Leandro Barbosa of the Phoenix Suns and Alex Garcia repeatedly drove to the basket. Both finished the game with 14 points.

Meanwhile, Cleveland Cavaliers center Anderson Varejao dominated under the basket, racking up nine defensive rebounds and seven more on offense for the game.

But with Brazil behind 85-82, Varejao fouled-out and despite Brazil adding four more points, the Americans gave themselves insurance in the final seconds after Varejao's Cavaliers' teammate LeBron James scored on a layup and Johnson added one from the free-throw line. In all, Brazil saw four of its players foul-out.

The win follows two easy victories this month for the Americans _ a 46-point win over China and 45-point drubbing of Puerto Rico _ and offered a likely preview of how tough the competition will be at the worlds, which get under way in Japan August 19.

"We invented the game, we sent our players and our coaches out to teach the world and now they're closing the gap," Jerry Colangelo, the U.S. managing director, said ahead of Tuesday's game.

The U.S. next travels to South Korea for further exhibition games before heading to Japan.