By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
The final day of the Group stage, opened with the combined forces of Marcelinho Huertas and Hilario Nene guiding the Brazilian national team to a 86 – 69 victory over Nigeria.
While the Olympic hosts prevailed over their opponents, eliminating them from competition, they are still waiting to find out if they will clinch a spot in the quarterfinals. Brazil is now hoping for Argentina to beat Spain, a result that will bring the end of the road for the Eurobasket champions.
But coach Magnano’s players wouldn’t be in a place to expect something from others, if they haven’t done their own job first. It was mainly a superb fourth quarter (27 – 17) that helped them break down the resistance of a tenacious, for 30 minutes, Nigerian team.
Huertas and Nene compiled a formidable duo which created many problems to its the opposing defense. The Lakers’ play-maker registered a double-double of 12 points plus 11 assists, while the veteran big-guy scored 17, grabbed 7 rebounds and dished 4 assists.
Led by one of Josh Akognon’s top performance in the Olympics (16 points), Nigeria was always a thorn in the Brazilian side. However, they severely lost their concentration on both ends of court during the final period.
Their opponents greatly took advantage of this, solidifying a double-digit lead that paced them during most crucial moments of the match.
