Spain snap Semi-Finals curse, finish France to set date with destiny vs USA
Spain snap Semi-Finals curse, finish France to set date with destiny vs USA. SPAIN, MALAGA Spain’s historic run to the Final of the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2022 against the United States, five-time defending champions, will be the culmination of a new era for the Spanish national team.
Spanish youth basketball’s future stars, inspired by the presence of basketball greats like Pau Gasol, Jose Calderon, Juan Carlos Navarro, Carlos Jimenez, and Felipe Reyes in the stands at Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena, defeated France 68-53 to end a three-year losing streak in the U17 World Cup Semifinals. The United States, who are undefeated in the tournament’s history, will be their opponents on Sunday in the Final as they easily dispatched Lithuania, 89-62.
Spain depth shines
After three previous attempts ended in defeat in the Semifinals, Spain finally advanced to the Final of the U17 World Cup with a 68-53 victory over France. With 6:05 remaining, France was down by only two points, but they were held to just two points the rest of the way as Spain finished the game on a 15-2 run.
Spain’s victory was the result of a tremendous team effort. Alvaro Folguiras had 9 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks, while Izan Almansa had 10 points and 14 rebounds, and Conrad Martinez added 10 points and 4 assists. Aday Mara scored 16 points and grabbed 6 boards. Lucas Langarita scored 11.
The French surged out to an early 8-1 lead while Spain struggled to score for nearly 5 minutes. At the 10-minute mark, the score was 17-13 in favor of the French. At 20-19, the home team seized their first lead, which they would hold until halftime when they were up 32-30.
France’s offensive dominance increased in the third quarter, giving them a six-point lead at 48-42 and eventually a four-point lead at 48-46 at halftime. The game was close throughout, but in the final six minutes, spurred on by their home fans, Spain was able to stifle France’s offense and win their first U17 World Cup medal.
Faure’s squad, led by Killian Malwaya’s 11 points, shot just 2 of 19 from beyond the arc (11%). They will play Lithuania in a bronze medal game.
USA wastes no time
With their 89-62 victory over Lithuania in the first Semi-Final, the United States drew within one win of a sixth consecutive undefeated title. The United States took an early 17-2 lead and never looked back. Jeremy Fears had 18 points and 5 dimes, Karter Knox added 14, and Ron Holland chipped in 7 points, 10 boards, and 6 dimes.
It took Lithuania more than two minutes to score their first basket, and by the time they scored again, the United States had built a 17-2 advantage thanks to the Europeans’ 1-of-10 shooting and 6-turnover performance. After the first ten minutes, the lead was 21-7.
After falling behind by as many as 15 points, Lithuania finally began to execute on offense and stall the USA attack, closing the gap to eight points at 27-19 before halftime. Three quarters in, Lithuania trailed 64-41 despite cutting the deficit to 13 points twice. In the last period, the margin of victory never fell below 19 points.
Second triple-double
In Serbia’s 105-75 win over Poland in Classification 5-8, Ognjen Stankovic nearly became the second player in U17 World Cup history to score a triple-double, finishing with 20 points, 11 rebounds, 9 assists, and 5 steals. In 2016, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Aljosa Jankovic recorded the only triple-double in the history of the competition with 15 points, 18 rebounds, and 10 assists against the Dominican Republic.
Knock off Slovenia
After nearly throwing away a massive lead, Australia pulled away for an 86-74 win over Slovenia in Classification 5-8 and now has its sights set on finishing in fifth place. In the third quarter, Australia built a 19-point lead, but Slovenia came back to within 2 points with 4 minutes left to play. Nonetheless, the Oceania heavyweight prevailed thanks to 22 points, 10 boards, and 5 blocks from Rocco Zikarsky.
Spain snap Semi-Finals curse, finish France to set date with destiny vs USA