By Cesare Milanti / info@eurohoops.net
MANILA, Philippines – After providing a dominant performance in his first-ever FIBA World Cup game against the Philippines, Karl-Anthony Towns was essential for the Dominican Republic’s huge win against Italy.
The Minnesota Timberwolves center, after dropping his second straight double-double with 24 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists, entered the mixed zone with an ironic question: “Was this an upset?”. He then went on to explain what he meant. “I thought we wanted to win. We had great things in the second half, that’s what brought us the victory. We did a great job as a team, everybody down the line was amazing”, he added.
On how much this 87-82 win against the Italian national team meant for them, Towns had nothing but great words. “It’s huge, we came here to win. It feels good to know that we are 2-0, we’ve got another one still against Angola. We have to keep fighting and playing well. Thinking about wins, you’ve got to get them all”, the 27-year-old also said.
After starting the game down 12-0, the Dominican Republic came back to the court with a new rhythm following the second timeout in three minutes by Nestor Garcia. “Coach told us to stay to what we were doing. I think our game plan was great, coach Nestor was amazing at making it. We had to stay disciplined and made some shots, we finally started to make in the second half. It’s great, really great”, Karl-Anthony Towns said.
“I thought we played a little harder, stepped up our defense. They were making a lot of shots in the first half, we did a great job finding ways to make them miss and get the job done”, he analyzed. Finally, he revealed his MVP of the game: “The Dominican Republic, because the support is felt always from here”.
PHOTO CREDIT: 2023 FIBA World Cup
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