US takes on Brazil in Day 3 as Worlds heat up

In its day-one match, Turkey had an easy victory over Cote d’Ivoire on Saturday at the Ankara Arena, defeating the African side 86-47. The host nation kept their upper hand throughout the game. Ömer Onan led Turkey with 18 points and Ersan İlyasova added 17 points while only one player from Cote d’Ivoire, Kale, finished with a double-digit score.

Speaking to reporters after the game, Turkey Coach Bogdan Tanjevic said the team put forth a good performance, adding that the audiences were spectacular and they increased the team’s motivation. In a Group D thriller, Spain, the defending champion, was missing Pau Gasol and lost its opening game at the championship, going down 72-66 to France at İzmir’s Halkapınar Arena on Saturday. France, which did not have its National Basketball Association (NBA) star Tony Parker, got 16 points from Mickael Gelabale and made 10 of its last 12 free throws to seal the win. Spain, which also won the European title last year, built a 12-point lead early in the second quarter, but France used a 9-0 run to tie the game at 25 and it was close the rest of the way. Gasol, of the Los Angeles Lakers, and Parker, of the San Antonio Spurs, are only some of the NBA stars skipping the 24-nation tournament for various reasons.

The United States arrived without Kobe Bryant and the entire Olympic champion lineup, but still had an emphatic 106-78 victory over Croatia, getting 16 points from Eric Gordon. At İstanbul’s Abdi İpekçi Arena, the Americans turned a close game into a blowout by limiting the Croatians to six points in the second quarter. Chauncey Billups finished with 12 points. Instead of its Olympic superstars, the Americans were left with a young, undersized team featuring Kevin Durant, the NBA’s leading scorer, as its centerpiece. He scored five straight points to kick off the decisive burst early in the second quarter and added eight rebounds to his 14 points in just 21 minutes. But even without its biggest names, this team might be good enough to win the first world title in 16 years for the US if it plays the way it did in the second quarter. “We like that type of adversity,” Eric Gordon, who led the US with 16 points, said. “People think we’re too young or too small, but I think we’re playing well as a team and we play much faster when we’re smaller, and we’re just an overall good team.”

In another impressive start, Aleksandar Rasic made six of seven 3-pointers to lead Serbia with 22 points in a 94-44 rout of Angola despite the absence of two key players. Carlos Delfino and Luis Scola made four of six free throws down the stretch to secure Argentina’s 78-74 victory over a young Germany lineup without Dirk Nowitzki. Delfino finished with 27 points and Scola contributed 20 as Argentina overcame the absence of its other two NBA stars, Manu Ginobili and Andres Nocioni.

Australia came from behind for a lucky 76-75 win over Jordan, but another team from the Middle East, Lebanon, did win when it upset Canada 81-71 behind 31 points from forward Fadi El Khatib. Greece pulled away for an 89-81 victory over China, but not before China had gotten within two points late in the game. Russia defeated Puerto Rico 75-66, Lithuania beat New Zealand 92-79 and Slovenia eased past Tunisia 80-56. Also, Brazil beat Iran 81-65. In Kayseri, Angola was no match for Serbia, which shrugged off the absence of center Nenad Krstic and guard Milos Teodosic to blow past the African champion.

The championship will continue with six games today. In Kayseri, which is hosting the Group B games, Serbia takes on Jordan at 4:30 p.m. and Australia faces Germany at 7 p.m. In another Group B clash, top-ranking Argentina, one of the top favorites of the tournament, plays against African champion Angola. İstanbul will be hosting the thrillers of the day. In a Group B encounter, the US will take on Brazil at 9:30 p.m. In another clash, Slovenia and Croatia plays at 4:30 p.m. The two under-performing sides of the group, Tunisia and Iran, will meet at 7 p.m.

Live on TV today

NTV Spor

16:30 Slovenia vs. Croatia

19:00 Australia vs. Germany

21:30 USA vs. Brazil