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Superb Spain, Serbia and France roll on
Source: Agencies |
September 6, 2011, Tuesday
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Defending champion Spain booked a second stage berth in the European championship with a match to spare and stated its title credential with an emphatic 91-79 win over hosts Lithuania on Sunday.
It was joined by Serbia after the 2009 runner-up eased to a 75-64 defeat of Germany, and France, which trailed against Italy for three quarters before putting rallying to register a 91-84 success.
Surprise package Macedonia celebrated its third straight win after edging Finland 72-70, while Poland enjoyed a dramatic 84-83 victory over Turkey which left the runner-up of last year's championship facing an early exit.
Having played in fits and starts in its opening three wins against modest rivals, Spain demonstrated its full repertoire in a breathtaking first half against the Lithuanians, when they romped to a 62-36 lead.
Point guard Juan Carlos Navarro scored 15 points in the opening quarter and finished as the game's top scorer with 22 points, followed by Los Angeles Lakers centre Pau Gasol on 17, Serge Ibaka on 15 and Jose Calderon who had 12.
Focused
"We were prepared and played very well today but we can still be a better team and need to stay focused," Calderon said. "It's a long tournament with some very good teams, so we have to take it one day at a time, the good thing is that we got everyone into the game today. Now that we are through to the second stage, we have to keep working hard because this was just one step forward."
Ibaka added: "It was an easy game for us because we started aggressively in defence and that made scoring at the other end easier than two weeks ago, when we lost to Lithuania in a warm-up match."
Dirk Nowitzki, who steered the Dallas Mavericks to the 2011 NBA title, was lethal as usual scoring 25 points for Germany but a more resourceful Serbian team contained his teammates with tight defense and incisive passing at the other end.
The Serbs, who face France in a mouth-watering clash, had nine rebounds and eight assists more than the Germans, with point guard Milos Teodosic at the heart of their success with 12 points, nine assists and as many rebounds.
Forward Dusko Savanovic led the winners in scoring with 18 points and centre Nenad Krstic added 15, as both teams nailed nine three-pointers from 25 attempts in a fast-flowing game.
The world's top point guard Tony Parker had a poor game and scored only eight points for France, which relied on Nicolas Batum and Boris Diaw to claw out victory against the Italians.
It was joined by Serbia after the 2009 runner-up eased to a 75-64 defeat of Germany, and France, which trailed against Italy for three quarters before putting rallying to register a 91-84 success.
Surprise package Macedonia celebrated its third straight win after edging Finland 72-70, while Poland enjoyed a dramatic 84-83 victory over Turkey which left the runner-up of last year's championship facing an early exit.
Having played in fits and starts in its opening three wins against modest rivals, Spain demonstrated its full repertoire in a breathtaking first half against the Lithuanians, when they romped to a 62-36 lead.
Point guard Juan Carlos Navarro scored 15 points in the opening quarter and finished as the game's top scorer with 22 points, followed by Los Angeles Lakers centre Pau Gasol on 17, Serge Ibaka on 15 and Jose Calderon who had 12.
Focused
"We were prepared and played very well today but we can still be a better team and need to stay focused," Calderon said. "It's a long tournament with some very good teams, so we have to take it one day at a time, the good thing is that we got everyone into the game today. Now that we are through to the second stage, we have to keep working hard because this was just one step forward."
Ibaka added: "It was an easy game for us because we started aggressively in defence and that made scoring at the other end easier than two weeks ago, when we lost to Lithuania in a warm-up match."
Dirk Nowitzki, who steered the Dallas Mavericks to the 2011 NBA title, was lethal as usual scoring 25 points for Germany but a more resourceful Serbian team contained his teammates with tight defense and incisive passing at the other end.
The Serbs, who face France in a mouth-watering clash, had nine rebounds and eight assists more than the Germans, with point guard Milos Teodosic at the heart of their success with 12 points, nine assists and as many rebounds.
Forward Dusko Savanovic led the winners in scoring with 18 points and centre Nenad Krstic added 15, as both teams nailed nine three-pointers from 25 attempts in a fast-flowing game.
The world's top point guard Tony Parker had a poor game and scored only eight points for France, which relied on Nicolas Batum and Boris Diaw to claw out victory against the Italians.
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