By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.ne
This version of the Spanish national team is vulnerable and that was obvious in Belgium’s big 83-73 win. It’s a great step toward qualifications for the winners, as there’s now a three-way tie at 2-1 between those two teams and Montenegro in Group A standings.
Emmanuel Lecomte scored 20 points for the winners, Pierre-Antoine Gillet had 14, Ismael Bako just missed the double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds, and Retin Obasohan added 11 points.
“We showed up with the right mentality, very aggressive, very physical and we never gave up”, said Lecomte. “We have to believe in ourselves because nobody else will”.
“I am so proud of this group, we bounced up mentally from yesterday, I am super happy for them and for 35 minutes of an amazing effort”, added coach Dario Gjerdjia in the press conference as Belgium hasn’t beat Spain in a major FIBA tournament for the last 60 years.
Willy Hernangomez with 18 points, his brother Juancho with 11, and Lorenzo Brown also with 11, couldn’t save Spain which led even by nine in the second period.
However, at halftime, the score was just 33-32 in favor of coach Sergio Scariolo’s team and after a close third quarter, Belgium finished the game on a 12-0 run in the last 3,5 minutes.
Αs coach Sergio Scariolo said: “When we go above and beyond to the limits of our energy we can be a good team. When we don’t, like tonight, we are not. We know that our fuel comes from our defense”.
It was a historic win for Belgium as Pierre-Antoine Gillet said: “Spain it’s a great basketball nation, but we deserved the win”.
Photo Credit: FIBA.BASKETBAL