Istanbul, Turkey ? The shot bounced off the back rim, then the front, then finally fell out.

With that, the United States walked off the court with a victory, and another warning: A world championship won’t come easily for this young team — if it comes at all.

The Americans survived their first tough test in Turkey, edging Brazil 70-68 on Monday when Leandro Barbosa’s shot rattled out at the buzzer.

“This game right here was an eye opener,” U.S. guard Derrick Rose said.

Kevin Durant scored 27 points and Chauncey Billups added 15 for the Americans (3-0), who essentially clinched Group B with the victory. But they have bigger goals than a group championship, trying to end a 16-year U.S. drought in this event.

This U.S. team has to do without Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and all the other players who led the Americans to the gold medal in the 2008 Olympics, and those guys never needed breaks at the buzzer.

“We know that teams are really coming in here to try to win this tournament and we’re here to do the same,” said Rose, the only other U.S. player in double figures with 11 points.

After the Americans trailed most of the first 2 1/2 quarters, Lamar Odom’s dunk with 7:14 left put them ahead 64-62. But they couldn’t build on the lead during a tense final few minutes, and Brazil had two chances to send the game to overtime.