Euro Basketball 2007...Re-caps ...Wins and Losses

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Good News, Bad News: Day Five

By Yarone Arbel

09 September 2007

 

Good News

 

Slovenia

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Portugal Surprise Israel

By Yarone Arbel

09 September 2007

 

Portugal recorded their first win in the qualifying round by beating Israel 94-85 this afternoon.

 

Both teams now have a 1-3 record in Group E and still hold a chance of qualifying to the quarter-finals.

 

After huge wins against Serbia and Croatia, some may have thought Israel would have an easier game against the team from Portugal - but that clearly wasn't the case.

 

"This victory is the confirmation of the work we have done in our preparation and of the

attitude we have, which is to go out and win every game," said Portugal's Joao Santos.

 

"This is our second triumph at the EuroBasket and if our first was special, this is one is even more."

 

Valentyn Melnychuk's men, who have beaten Israel twice in the last qualifying campaign, were in control from the very first minute and never trailed thanks to a great preperation job by the veteran coach.

 

"All the things I was afraid about happened today. we started the game very bad, and didnt succeed in doing the things we like to do," said Israel's coach, Zvika Sherf.

 

"Portugal dominated the boards as they do in every game against us." he refered to the 45-25 difference under the boards.

 

By the time Israel got their act together, Portugal already held an 8-0 lead and were well on the way to a 28-14 advantage at the end of the first quarter.

 

Francisco Jordao collected nine points in that period alone while Yotam Halperin scored half of Israel's points.

 

The blue-and-white showed character and started their comeback early in the second quarter, but that didn't last too long.

 

Portugal got a boost from Mario-Gil Fernandes and Joao Santos who made big shots from behind the arc and recovered their double-digit lead, going into the locker room up 46-34.

 

"We chased them from the first second and it was difficult to close the gap," confessed Israel's forward, Guy Pnini, at the end of the game.

 

"We were very tired after the last two weeks to begin with, so to chase after such a quick and athletic team was a tough task."

 

Eliyahu continued to excel for Israel, but their opponents were just on fire.

 

Joao Gomes finished a half-court pass with a big alley-hoop and sliced the Israeli defense time after time as Portugal stretched their lead to 56-41 with 16 minutes left to play.

 

Gomes had another big alley-hoop before the end of the period and his team went into the final frame with a massive 65-48 advantage.

 

"We knew that Israel were a complicated team but we also knew we wanted to win and we played for the victory. We have fought hard," shared after the game Francisco Jordao.

 

But, with four minutes left, Santos committed his second unsportsmanlike foul in the game and had to leave.

 

Israel made the most of it.

 

Matan Naor came off the bench to sink his third three-pointer and make it just a nine point game, 73-64, with 3:36 to go which torubled Portugal slightly.

 

Israel's coach Zvi Sherf turned to a short line-up, and used a full-court pressure defense.

 

A minute later, Israel were only down by eight with the ball in their hands, but that

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09 September 2007

Spanoulis Beats Croatia At Buzzer

 

Vasileios Spanoulis sank a buzzer-beating three-pointer to beat Croatia 81-78, earning Greece their first win of the qualifying round to hugely improve their chances of advancing to the quarter-finals of EuroBasket 2007.

 

The defending champions entered this game having lost their last two against Russia and hosts Spain and in desperate need of a win to stand a chance of making it through to the last eight.

 

Croatia

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09 September 2007

No Way Past Jose

 

Jose Calderon led a rampant Spain past previously unbeaten Russia 81-69 at the Telefonica Arena in Madrid on Sunday night.

 

Calderon, the Toronto Raptors point guard, scored nine of his team-high 17 points in the third quarter when Spain took control and built a 12-point lead.

 

They led by as many as 15 points in the final quarter and were never seriously threatened by David Blatt

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Lithuania Bid To Stay Unbeaten

By Simon Wilkinson

10 September 2007

 

France will bid to end Lithuania's undefeated run so far in EuroBasket 2007 when the teams meet today in a rematch of a 2005 EuroBasket quarter-final.

 

Two years ago, Claude Bergeaud's men scored a big upset when they knocked out the then defending champions with a 63-47 win behind Boris Diaw's 18 points and 11 rebounds.

 

Lithuania currently tops Group F with a 3-0 record and, along with Slovenia, are the only two remaining undefeated teams left and have both already qualified for the quarter-finals.

 

France go into today's game knowing that a win will secure their place in the last eight.

 

Last Time Out: Tony Parker scored 23 points and got a lot of help from Florent Pietrus and Tariq Kirksay as France beat Germany 78-66 in their first game of the qualifying round. Meanwhile, Rimantas Kaukenas tallied 22 points as Lithuania overcame a groin injury to Sarunas Jasikevicius to hold off Italy 79-74 as Ramunas Butautas's side became the first to secure its passage to the last eight round.

 

Key Match-up: Parker vs. Jasikevicius. If the Lithuania point guard is healthy - in addition to the groin injury he picked up against Italy, he also has had a right knee injury

since the team's second game of the group stages and has had to wear a big brace - he will make things very tough on his French counterpart. If Jasikevicius is healthy enough, then this will make for a great battle. After a relatively slow start in his team's win against Poland, Parker has been in fine form in the last three games.

 

Statistics: With Boris Diaw having a quiet game offensively against Germany, Pietrus and Kirksay stepped up their play and combined for 24 points. More importantly, they were the ones who helped France turn the game in their favour when they accounted for 10 of the points in a 15-2 run to turn a 28-28 tie into a 43-30 lead in the second quarter.

 

X-Factor: Jasikevicius' status. If his injuries get the better of him, look for Lithuania to turn to Kaukenas once again.

 

Sounding Off: "Since Jasikevicius left the Lithuanian national team, they haven't won much of anything and I don't think that's a coincidence. Now that he has returned, they've benefited from his leadership, his scoring and his good set of skills. They've built the team around him. But stopping him alone won't be enough to beat Lithuania. They have six scorers on that team and we must try to stop them too." - Claude Bergeaud.

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Desperate Germany Look For Big Win

By David Hein

10.09.2007

 

Dirk Nowitzki's chances of making the 2008 Olympics - or at least reaching the pre-Olympic qualifiers - are slowly fading as Germany face unbeaten Slovenia desperately looking for a victory to move back on course for the quarter-finals.

 

The 2005 silver medalists have dropped two straight games in falling to 1-2 in Group F.

 

The Germans remain in fourth place (which means a spot in the quarters), but with a loss

they will be even with the winner of the Italy-Turkey match.

 

Slovenia meanwhile have already qualified for the quarter-finals.

 

Last time out: Slovenia stuffed Turkey 66-51 for their fourth straight win in Spain, while Germany lost to France 78-66.

 

Key Match-up: Nowitzki vs. the entire Slovenia team. The reigning NBA MVP has said for years that his goal is to reach the 2008 Olympics. Don't be surprised if the Dallas Mavericks star tries to carry even a larger bulk of Germany's load than he's done so far.

 

X-Factor: Slovenia have beaten France and Turkey despite getting just five total points from Jaka Lakovic. The Barcelona star has struggled from the three-point stripe and his ability to score - especially from the outside - could free up others to get baskets.

 

Stats: Three - the total number of double-digit scoring games by Germans not named Nowitzki or Ademola Okulaja - the others being Mithat Demirel (18 points against Czech Republic), Demond Greene (10 vs. Turkey) and Robert Garrett (10 against Lithuania).

 

Sounding off: "It's going to be tough for us. In the German national team. everyone looks up to Dirk Nowitzki. He will score his 30 or 40 points but our chances are in limiting the other guys. Dirk is such a dominant player that if you base your game on him the likelyhood is you will fail. We cannot hope that Dirk has a bad game, you cannot count on luck, because it will kill you, it will destroy you." -Slovenia big man Uros Slokar

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Italy And Turkey Feel The Pressure

By Cindy Garcia-Bennett

10.09.2007

 

Italy and Turkey go into their EuroBasket clash today knowing a win is the only result that will stave off elimination for both sides.

 

The Italians have been reeling ever since they lost to Slovenia on a last-second three-pointer from Slovenia.

 

They also slipped up against France and then bounced back to beat Poland but crashed to defeat in a thriller against Rimantas Kaukenas and Lithuania in their qualifying round game on Saturday.

 

Turkey have been hammered in their three defeats, though, most notably against the Slovenians two days ago.

 

Last game: Italy lost 79-74 to Lithuania and Turkey fell against Slovenia 66-51.

 

Statistics: Italy were out-rebounded 44-29 against Lithuania while free-throws continues to be a problem for Turkey. They are shooting just 57.7% (60-of-104) at the foul line over their four games.

 

Key match-up: Mehmet Okur v Angelo Gigli. Okur has much to prove after struggling to make a big impact on the tournament, while Gigli has arguably been Italy's best big man in this EuroBasket.

 

X-Factor: Marco Belinelli has been coming off the bench and, in the fourth quarter against Lithuania, almost single-handedly kept the Azzuri in the game with his ability to knife into lane and score. If he plays like that for the entire game, it would be a huge plus for his team.

 

Speaking out: "We are disappointed regarding our defeat to Lithuania because we could have won. In any case, we are improving and we must win our next two games in order to progress to the next round. Turkey is a very strong squad that has a very good coach and two NBA players (Okur and Hedo Turkoglu). Turkoglu can shoot from long range and can penetrate while the second is dangerous underneath the basket."

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Good News, Bad News: Day Six

By Yarone Arbel

10 September 2007

 

The Good News

 

Croatia can take some comfort in defeat - The saying goes "You win some and you lose some". Croatia beat Spain with a tough three-pointer from the right wing in the last seconds of their group stage finale, but last night they lost to Greece...on a tough three pointer from

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10 September 2007

Italy Need OT To Secure Crucial Win

 

Hedo Turkoglu poured in a game-high 34 points for Turkey but it wasn't enough to upset Marco Belinelli and Italy on Monday.

 

Belinelli scored all 17 of his points after half-time as the Italians won 84-75 in overtime.

 

Turkey had a chance to win at the end of regulation but Ibrahim Kutluay missed a wide-open attempt from the left corner to leave the game tied at 70-70.

 

Engin Atsur hit a three-pointer to put the Turks into a 73-72 lead but Italy responded with a 9-3 run to take control for good.

 

Belinelli, who is set to begin his rookie season with the Golden State Warriors in the NBA, was amazing.

 

He scored most of his points on an array of drives to the basket that Turkey could not stop.

 

"It has been a tough game," said Belinelli.

 

"We trailed by 15 points in the first quarter but we managed to comeback.

 

"We had to win this game and we did. We played some really tough defense in the third and fourth quarters. And the team won, not me.

 

"Now we have to prepare for another challenging game against Dirk Nowitzki's Germany."

 

Kutluay's thee-ball gave Turkey a 25-10 lead with less than two minutes to go in the first quarter but Italy managed to cut the deficit to trail 43-34 at half-time.

 

Neither team could pull away in the second half and the game was eventually decided in the extra period.

 

Turkoglu was a hero even in defeat with one of the finest performances of the EuroBasket, making five of eight shots from the arc and pulling down six rebounds and dishing out four assists.

 

"It doesn't matter because we lost so there's no consolation," said Turkoglu.

 

"It was a good game and we played well. I'm happy for my team and my team-mates because of that but it wasn't enough."

 

Turkey were plagued by poor free throw shooting again, making just 16 of 29 (55%) for the game.

 

With the loss, Turkey were eliminated from the competition with an 0-4 record.

 

The Italians, meanwhile, face Germany on Wednesday - still with a chance to reach the quarter-finals should they win.

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10 September 2007

Lithuania Remain Unbeaten

 

Lithuania gave birthday boy and team captain Ramunas Siskauskas the best possible present on the day as they beat France 88-73 to remain undefeated (4-0) and remain top Group F of the 2007 EuroBasket.

 

The 2003 EuroBasket led by as many as 20 points at one point in the first half and recovered from a slow start in the third quarter to send France (2-2) to their second loss of the qualifying round, putting their chances of reaching the quarter-finals in the balance.

 

Siskauskas, who turned 29, finished with a game-high 19 points and was glad to have a good performance on the day.

 

 

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Slovenian Steamroller

By David Hein

10 September 2007

 

Matjaz Smodis led three players in double figure scoring with 22 points as Slovenia remained undefeated at the 2007 EuroBasket with a 77-47 thrashing of Germany to set up their top-of-Group F clash with Lithuania - a showdown of the final two perfect teams in Madrid.

 

Radoslav Nesterovic tallied 13 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots and Jaka Lakovic collected 12 points and five assists for the winners, who improved to 4-0.

 

Dirk Nowitzki scored 16 points and had eight rebounds to lead Germany, who shot just 28% (17-of-60) for the game.

 

Ademola Okulaja was the next best scorer for Germany with five points.

 

"We played very well tonight. We didn't expect the game to turn out how it did, but we still had to play hard until the end," said Lakovic.

 

When asked if he expected the Slovenians to be undefeated after playing Germany, the Barcelona guard said: "No, but then again we didn't expect to be undefeated before this game either. But we go game by game and don't look too far ahead."

 

"We stopped Nowitzki and their shooters," said Slovenia coach Ales Pipan.

 

"We played extremely good on defense, and played very good on rebounds. We deserved the win tonight, and we were the better team on court."

 

The Germans, on the other hand, were desolate.

 

"There's really not much to say. It was a horrible first quarter, maybe the worst first quarter I've ever seen from the German team since I started to coach them," said German coach Dirk Bauermann.

 

"Not only didn't we score but we were also terrible on defense. Once you are having a bad start like that, down by 21 after 10 minutes, it's almost impossible to come back. I don't know why it happened. It was really disappointing. But today isn't Wednesday. On Wednesday we play a championship game for the fourth place (against Italy)."

 

"There's no excuse or explanation for what happened today. We all embarrassed ourselves. Games like that, as bad as they are, I don't think they define who you are or what you are. What defines you is the ability to bounce back, and we will bounce back."

 

Germany couldn't get anything going offensively in the first quarter but still trailed only 13-7 when Slovenia went on a 17-2 surge to pull away by 21 points after one period, 30-9.

 

In the second quarter, Uros Slokar picked up where he left off from his heroics against Turkey by scoring nine straight points as Slovenia extended their lead to 39-16 midway through the period.

 

German coach Dirk Bauermann tried his best to find a line-up that would work.

 

Eventually he saw Demond Greene hit a three-pointer and Nowitzki convert a three-point play as the Germans trimmed the deficit to 20 points.

 

That, however, was as close as they would get the rest of the way as the advantage was back up to 23 points, 45-22, at the break with Germany shooting just 29% (9-of-31) from the floor in the first 20 mintues.

 

Slovenia continued to dominate in the third period as a Smodis long bomb pushed Ales Pipan's team ahead 50-22 two minutes into the half.

 

Bauermann's troops tried to chip away, getting the margin back down to 24 points, 52-28.

 

But the Slovenians remained unstoppable, increasing their lead to 30 on their way to a 63-34 cushion going into the fourth quarter.

 

Both coaches emptied their benches in the final 10 minutes and Slovenia never let up, even pushing the advantage to 36 points, 75-39, with 3:45 remaining.

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Greece Face Rising Portugal

By Jeff Taylor

11 September 2007

 

Greece knew that advancing to the quarter-final round would be anything but straightforward after losing Antonis Fotsis in the build-up to the EuroBasket to a broken finger.

 

It is no surprise, then, that they must beat a dangerous Portugal side on Tuesday to reach the last eight.

 

The defending champions showed signs they may be returning to the form that saw them win the title two years ago and then stun Team USA at last year's FIBA World Championship in Japan.

 

Portugal, meanwhile, are on an emotional high after keeping their quarter-final hopes alive with a surprise win over Israel.