Team USA continued to roll on Day Three of the 2014 FIBA World Cup in Spain, beating New Zealand, while two other FIBA Americas teams, Dominican Republic and Mexico, notched wins of their own. Australia, Ukraine, and Slovenia also put up Ws to bolster their chances of advancing to round two.
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| Slovenia and Team USA remained unbeaten even as Ukraine and Australia notched huge wins. |
Game recaps (adapted from FIBA.com):
Group C:
USA over NEW ZEALAND, 98-71
Box Scores
The United States improved to 3-0 after trouncing New Zealand, which remained winless. Anthony Davis scored 21 points and corralled 9 rebounds as the USA dominated the Tall Blacks. Kenneth Faried also did well with 15 markers and 11 boards, while Stephy Curry was effective in the backcourt with a dozen points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. BJ Anthony led NZL with 11 points in 16 minutes.
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| Kenneth Faried continues to play really well for the Americans. |
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC over FINLAND, 74-68
Box Scores
The Dominican Republic won a vital game against Finland in the nightcap with Vargas dominating inside. Vargas finished with 18 points, 13 rebounds and 4 blocks for the Dominicans, who improved their record to 2-1. The Finns got a sensational effort from Petteri Koponen, who had 21 points, 9 assists, and 2 steals, but they slumped to 1-2 in the tournament. Orlando Antigua's side outrebounded Finland, 49-28.
UKRAINE over TURKEY, 64-58
Box Scores
Ukraine dug deep and beat Turkey to move up to 2-1 and bounce back after losing to Finland. The win for Mike Fratello's team was all the more impressive as it came in the absence of star shooting guard Sergii Gladyr, who sat out because of a foot injury sustained in Sunday's loss. Olexandr Mishula and Ihor Zaytsev led the Ukrainians by scoring 19 and 12 points respectively. Omer Asik’s 16-point and 20-rebound effort went up in smoke for the Turks, who fell to 1-2.
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| Mike Fratello has steered Ukraine to two wins so far in #Spain2014. |
Group D:
MEXICO over ANGOLA, 79-55
Box Scores
2013 FIBA Americas Championship winner Mexico bolstered its chances of progressing to the Round of 16 with a blowout of Angola. NBA center Gustavo Ayon had 17 points and 12 rebounds for Mexico, which notched just its first win. Hector Hernandez, meanwhile, hit 6 threes on his way to 24 points in leading the Mexican charge. Yanick Moreira impressed for Angola with 13 markers and 9 boards.
AUSTRALIA over LITHUANIA, 82-75
Box Scores
Australia stormed into a 47-28 half-time advantage against Lithuania and then held on to knock in its second win in three days. Joe Ingles had 18 points, 4 assists and 3 steals for the Boomers, who also drew a combined 27 markers from Matthew Dellavedova and Aron Baynes. The erstwhile unbeaten Lithuanians were paced by Renaldas Seibutis, who tallied 21 points on 7/11 FG shooting. Toronto Raptor Jonas Valanciunas was severely limited here, scoring just 4 points in 18 minutes.
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| Joe Ingles expresses his joy as the Boomers beat the Lithuanians. |
SLOVENIA over KOREA, 89-72
Box Scores
Slovenia was in a real dogfight with Korea for the first two quarters of their clash, but the former pulled away in the second half and cruised to the top of the group with a 3-0 card. Goran Dragic, not surprisingly, led the Slovenians with 22 points on 10/14 FG shooting, while compatriots Jure Balazic and Alen Omic paired up to contribute 24 points and 17 boards. Korea saw young gun Lee Jong-Hyun lead the way with a dozen markers.
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| Goran Dragic flashes a smile as the Slovenians weather a Korean storm on Day 4. |
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