On the evening of September 1, the men's basketball World Cup round of 16 group stage ended the first match. The 16-team rematch in the rematch was a blast as Latvia defeated defending champions Spain and Brazil narrowly beat favourites Canada.
Defending champions Spain face Latvia in Group L, and although Spain are losing their golden generation without stars such as Rubio and Lorenzo Brown, they are still not to be underestimated as European champions, winning all three of their group games. In their first match in the round of 16, Spain made frequent mistakes against Latvia, who were playing in the World Cup for the first time. Spain led by three points at halftime. In the third quarter, Spain, which played a small 14-0 climax, established a double-digit lead, and in the fourth quarter, Latvia relied on the outside to tie tenaciously, and Latvia defeated Spain 27-11 in a single quarter. After beating European Championship runners-up France in the opening match of the group stage, Latvia beat the defending champions 74-69.
(Brazil Men's Basketball 69-65 Canada Men's Basketball)
In the other match of Group L, the Brazilian men's basketball team defeated Canada 69-65 and was upset again. Canada won all three games in the group stage. However, against Brazil, the start was cold. In the second quarter, Canada, which was gradually regaining their form, scored consecutive points to lead Brazil by 10 points at halftime. In the final quarter, Brazil seized the opportunity to take advantage of a wave of scoring climax, Canada missed the shot, made a mistake, and Santos scored consecutive points to set Brazil the victory.
All four teams in this group have a record of three wins and one loss. In the next match, Canada vs Spain and Brazil vs Latvia, the winner will advance directly to the quarter-finals.
(Serbia 76-78.) Italy)
Serbia was defeated by Italy 76-78 in Group I. The two European teams played hard in the first half, and before half-time, Bogdanovic made a brilliant whistle-blowing three points to give Serbia the lead. Serbia, which blossomed inside and outside in the third quarter, led their opponents by 16 points, while the tenacious Italy relied on outside three-pointers to constantly calculate small points. In the final quarter, Fontecchio's heroic performance helped Italy achieve a comeback. In the other match in the same group, Puerto Rico narrowly beat the Dominican Republic 102-97. Let the Dominica, led by Downs, taste defeat for the first time. All four teams are equally three wins and one loss. In the next match, Serbia vs Dominica and Puerto Rico takes on Italy, where the winners of both matches will reach the quarterfinals.
(Dominica 97-102 Puerto Rico)
The United States in Group J almost overturned against Montenegro, and Montenegro's tall interior created a threat to the US men's basketball team. At halftime, Montenegro led the United States by one point. In the second half, the U.S. offensive end gradually picked up, and in the final quarter, the U.S. led the opponent by only four points, and Reeves' key three points helped the U.S. team stabilize the situation, and finally defeated the opponent 85-73 and advanced to the quarterfinals. The Lithuanian men's basketball team beat the Greek men's basketball team 92-67 and also advanced to the quarterfinals. After the game, US coach Kerr also said it was a difficult game: "The opponent grabbed 22 offensive rebounds today, their tactical execution is very good, and they have been trying to suppress us inside. But I'm proud of the players. We'll look at the video to see what the problem is. There will always be games like this that you have to overcome. ”
Slovenia beat Australia 91-80 in Group K. Germany won 100-73 against Georgia. Slovenia and Germany won all four games to advance first.
Image source: Xinhua News Agency, @国际篮联篮球世界杯