FIBA World Cup 2014 Day 3: Groups C & D
There was only action from Group C and D during Day 4 of the FIBA World Cup 2014, with twelve nations taking to the court in another round of frenetic action. The tournament has started at a fantastic pace and the quality of the Basketball continued to wow the crowds around Spain. Hoops fans around the world were treated to close games, runaway successes, and spills and thrills aplenty as the FIBA World Cup 2014 starts to hit its stride.
The ultimate festival of Basketball paved way for the following results on Day 4.
Group C
Ukraine handed Turkey its second consecutive defeat, winning 64-58 to make up for its own loss on Day 2. The victory pushed Ukraine to second in the group, tied with the Dominican Republic on 2-1, while Turkey slipped down the table with 1-2 in 5th. It was a tentative first frame as both teams looked cold at the basket, trading nets through the ten minutes to tie 13-13 at the first split. Things hardly picked up in Q2 as the low scoring continued, but Turkey did edge out Ukraine in the second quarter to have a one point lead at halftime (25-26). In the second half Ukraine improved and managed to snatch what was another low scoring period, winning the third 16-13 to lead 41-39 after 30 minutes. A 23-19 closing stanza was enough to hand Ukraine the win, while Olexandr Mishula celebrated for the winners as the high scorer with 19 points.
The USA made it three from three for a perfect start to the FIBA World Cup 2014 by downing a dogged New Zealand team 98-71 in Bilbao. Dogged New Zealand may have been, but the US cruised again, comfortably heading to the top of Group C with a 3-0 record. Their opponents are a stark contrast, propping up the group with 0-3. Anthony Davis had 21 points and 9 rebounds for the winners, but it was a team effort that saw the USA start hot, outscoring New Zealand 27-20 in the first. The tournament favourites continued the fire in the second frame, piling in 30 points to lead 57-35 at the long break. New Zealand hit back in the third period to win it 18-19, but the US went up the gears in the fourth to ease down the stretch.
The Dominican Republic made it two on the bounce by gunning down Finland 68-74, stopping their opponents from taking two consecutive. A tough first quarter saw both teams attempting to dominate the hardwood with hustle and bustle, but it was the Dominicans who succeeded, outpacing Finland to lead 15-16 after ten minutes. The second quarter was huge for the Caribbean country as they found more space inside the Finnish perimeter and won the period 17-25 to lead 32-41 in the locker room. The lead was extended through a tight third quarter and after 30 minutes on the floor the Dominican Republic lead 50-60. The double digit lead was put to the test as Finland hit back in the final quarter, but the minutes run out as the European team crashed to its second defeat.
USA 3-0
Ukraine 2-1
Dominican Rep. 2-1
Finland 1-2
Turkey 1-2
New Zealand 0-3
Group D
Mexico got its FIBA World Cup 2014 back on track by defeating Angola 55-79. The wheels have come off for Angola since their opening day win, and they now hold a 1-2 record, the same as the improving Mexicans. It was the Africans who looked sharper on the court in the first quarter, dictating more of the ball in key areas to lead 20-15 at the first break. Mexico got to grips with the Angolan attack in Q2 while also finding a pattern in its own offense, reversing the deficit to lead 35-36 at the midway buzzer. Angola collapsed in the third, failing to breach the Mexican defence on a consistent basis and only scoring 10 points through the period. Mexico on the other hand looked more consistent after the break and opened a 45-57 lead at the last split. Another crushing 10-22 quarter followed from Mexico as they put plenty of shiny gloss on the scoreboard on the way to a first victory in the tournament.
An impressive start to the competition continued for Slovenia as the team saw off South Korea in comfortable style, winning 72-89 in Gran Canaria. The Europeans did not have it all their own way though as Korea actually stole a high octane first frame to lead 21-19 at the opening buzzer. Slovenia responded with an 18-21 second 10 minutes, but the game remained tight at the long break, with the score at 39-40. The third stanza proved the difference as Slovenia found some heat on the boards and streamed in 30 points through the period. Korea could not keep pace and only managed 17 points in reply to hand Slovenia a 56-70 lead with 10 minutes left to play. Moving to 3-0 in Group D, Slovenia extended through the fourth quarter to win the game. Goran Dragic proved to be the go to guy for Slovenia as he hit 22 points in victory.
After losing to Slovenia on Day 1, Australia has looked good on the court and the team continued that with an 82-75 victory over Lithuania. A stunning opening frame saw the Australians pile on the points, consistently bothering the basket to lead 30-20 after ten minutes. If attack had been the name of the game in Q1 for the team from down under, it was defense in the second stanza as they held Lithuania to just 7 points. At the other end the Aussies scored 17 to have total command at halftime (47-28). Credit must go to Lithuania as they mounted a massive comeback in the third stanza, the halftime rally cry from head coach Jonas Kazlauskas obviously paying off. The Europeans won the frame 15-28 to make the score 62-56 after 30 minutes. That huge effort took all the energy from Lithuania and Australia rode through the last quarter to eke out a win that should have been much more comfortable.
Slovenia 3-0
Australia 2-1
Lithuania 2-1
Mexico 1-2
Angola 1-2
South Korea 0-3