By Semih Tuna/ Stuna@eurohoops.net
As Pau and Marc Gasol retired from international basketball, Sergio Rodriguez as well, the Spain senior national team also lacking injured Ricky Rubio, was presented with a different challenge in 2022 EuroBasket. From being labeled a favorite to win it all to aiming for an extended run.
Drawn in Group A of the preliminary round, making the knockout stage of the tournament was the first goal. The additional bonus was taking the top seed following the win against Turkey Wednesday.
“We played our game. It was a tight game. Everyone contributed, everyone fought and we won,” Juan Hernangomez mentioned immediately following the Gameday 5 contest, “We are very happy but have to prepare for the Round of 16 and yet another difficult game.”
La Roja will collide with Lithuania Saturday. The matchup was the first confirmed for the Round of 16 and the remainder of the tournament to be held in Berlin, Germany.
“This means more experience for our team,” the Toronto Raptors big described new-look Spain moving forward, “We went through a challenging game against experienced players, NBA players, talented players. But we stuck to our gameplan and believed in ourselves.”
Debuting in the final stage of a major international tournament, Joel Parra contributed 3.8 points and 2.2 rebounds per contest in the preliminary round.
“We came here to compete. We are Spain, we always compete, it is in our DNA,” mentioned the 22-year-old forward, “Our first goal is achieved. We are now going to Berlin.”
“We are not done yet,” he added, “We ranked first in the group, that is true, but we have to stay focused and go as far as possible.”
Photo Credit: FIBA.BASKETBALL