Team USA had
its toughest test of the tournament, but the Americans buckled down to work and
passed with flying colors. In the end, Team USA defended its U17 crown and
pocketed a rare FIBA World three-peat at the expense of a very gritty
Australian five.
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| Malik Newman is named the tournament's MVP after leading Team USA to a rare FIBA World three-peat. |
SCORES & RECAPS:
Final Day:
USA over
AUSTRALIA, 99-92
Malik Newman
led the way for the Americans, totaling 21 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 assists
to win the MVP. As USA Basketball notes, he joins some impressive company in
the young history of the tournament (Bradley Beal was 2010 MVP and Jahlil
Okafor bagged it in 2012). Interestingly, Newman was the only player on the
team to hit a shot from behind the arc, with the rest of the squad combining to
go 0-of-7. Still, the 57-31 rebound differential helped the team get tons of
second-chance points. Australia's Dejan Vasiljevic had 29 points in the losing
effort, while big man Isaac Humphries was limited to just 8 markers and 7
boards.
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| The Boomers finish second for the second time in a row. |
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| Team USA celebrates after beating Australia in the Final. |
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| From left to right: Diamond Stone (USA), Dejan Vasiljevic (AUS), Malik Newman (USA), Nikol Rakicevic (SRB), and Isaac Humphries (AUS) make up the tournament's All-Star Five. |
SERBIA over
SPAIN, 62-59
In a
back-and-forth game, Serbia got the last laugh when Spain's Sergio Garcia
missed a three-point shot in the closing seconds. Serbia was able to hold on
for the three-point lead and secure a third-place finish in this tournament.
Ramon Vila managed 20 points and 10 rebounds for Spain, but it was not enough
to overcome Nikola Rakicevic, Vanja Marinkovic, and the rest of the Serbian
squad. Rakicevic dropped 17 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals,while Marinkovic
had 14 markers on 3/5 shooting from long distance.
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| Serbia celebrates its highest-ever finish in the biennial event. |
PHILIPPINES
over UAE, 115-51
Batang Gilas
ended its nearly winless campaign on a bright note, outclassing host country
UAE to finish in 15th place. Five players finished in double-figures for the
Philippines, led by 25 points from Paul Desiderio. Mike Nieto and Mike Dela
Cruz each scored 15 in support. Of course, the defense was the story as UAE
finished with zero assists and 33 turnovers in a losing effort. The host nation
will have to settle for last place in the tournament after a rough week.
PUERTO RICO
over CANADA, 65-63
Ivan Gandia
hit the game-winning basket to break a 63-63 tie in the closing seconds and
help Puerto Rico win one of the closest battles of the tournament. Canada held
an eight-point lead at halftime, but the squad could not hold on thanks to
great guard play by Puerto Rico. Gandia finished with 14 points and 3 assists
with Leandro Allende adding 16 points as the squad was able to secure a
respectable fifth place. Jamal Murray paced Canada with 17 markers, 5 boards,
and 2 assists.
CHINA over
FRANCE, 87-79
There were
some great individual efforts on display in the battle for seventh place. Hu
Jinqiu, Zhao Yanhao, and Fu Hao combined to score 71 points for China as France
could not contain the trio anywhere on the court. Amine Noua managed 32 points
and 9 rebounds in the losing effort, although he did not receive much help in
the disappointing loss.
ITALY over
ARGENTINA, 66-62
Italy used
some great three-point shooting to stay ahead of Argentina in its final game of
the tournament. The squad went 8-of-18 from beyond the arc and consistently got
to the free-throw line to go ahead and earn ninth place. Maximo Fjellerup,
Aryan Carvalho, and Guillermo Aliende each scored at least 15 points for
Argentina, but the rest of the team struggled offensively as the South American
squad goes home in disappointment. The Azzurri, meanwhile, were led by Leonardo
Tote’s 11 points and 6 boards.
ANGOLA over
GREECE, 59-51
With a
balanced effort that featured four players in double figures, Angola surprised
Greece with an impressive eight-point win to capture 11th place. Silvio de
Sousa led the way for Angola with 14 points and 10 rebounds as the squad
overcame the fact it committed 20 turnovers. Antonis Pefanis and Vasilis
Mouratos paced Team Hellas with 11 points apiece, while Georgios Papagiannis
tossed in 10 markers.
EGYPT over
JAPAN, 68-53
Ahmed Khalaf
was dominant inside for Egypt with 15 points, 19 rebounds, and 6 blocks, giving
Japan little chance to get anything going in the paint. This allowed Egypt to
build up a 38-20 lead at halftime and the squad held on for a convincing
victory. Although most of the tournament has not gone Egypt's way, this was a
solid finish to end the week on a high note. Yuto Nomi was the most efficient
Japanese with 11 points, 3 assists, and 2 boards.
Recaps were adapted from Bleacher
Report.
Images are from FIBA.
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