The Basketball World Cup began this Saturday, August 25, in three venues: the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia. Australia did it with a win in one of the two games to open this championship. Their defeat by Spain in the semi-finals of the last World Cup, in that fiendish match that ended in extra time and was the key to opening the gold chest for Scariolo’s men, was the main precedent. One to bury And boy, have they started digging? The Oceanics got off to a strong start in Group E in Okinawa, beating Finland after a great second half. 72–98 for them. A promising start to finally attempt the assault on the true throne.
Finland opened with much greater success. Know where your virtues lie. Spain is also on his mind. The Finns, who were the first team to qualify for this World Cup in Windows, also lost to Spain in a well-known precedent, in this case in the quarterfinals. The EuroBasket that took place last year indicated that we are dealing with a growing team. When they so dominated, that thought seemed to be confirmed. After a dreadful encounter between Markkanen and the Norse, decided without major problems, the Norse reached the point that gave them the biggest lead of the game. A +8 in the second quarter after an extra triple from Lenovo Tenerife player Sasu Salin And then it was all over.
Australia’s physical might prevailed. Also, the quality They’re one of those teams that scare you, and it wasn’t easy at all at the start of the tournament. They don’t have Ben Simmons and come in with the loss of center Jock Landale, but what a team!
Giddey, a Thunder player aged just 20, is the one who will be in charge of leading Australia. And in the first rehearsal, there was already great agreement. The base clarified the ideas of his teammates and provided the quality they value. At halftime, Goorjian’s men were already +5 ahead, and then the breakout came. The Finns’ legs couldn’t hold up, and Australia ate the bears in bites. What happened between the third and fourth periods was not a tasteful dish for the Europeans, who acted like natives in this confrontation. Markkanen reduced his influence and success, and players like Nkamhoua or Maxhuni felt powerless over what was in front of them.
Australia could rest even their most prominent players in the final minutes and think of Germany, their next opponent.
Josh Giddey was close to a triple-double on his first opportunity: nine rebounds and eight assists added to his 14 points. The team’s other great value was Patty Mills, who was the top scorer of the two with 25 points. Ingles (13) and Exum (10) also hit double digits for the boomer party. Markkanen was the best in Finland with 19 points and 8 rebounds.
