By Panos Katsiroumpas/ info@eurohoops.net
The World Cup shots is an everyday round up from Eurohoops in which we will summarize everything that we liked or dislike during the games! So sit back and enjoy some very important details, this time about the semifinals and the upcoming big final of the tournament!
USA- LITHUANIA
Team USA prevailed over Lithuania after a great second half and will play in the final game against Serbia on Sunday night. Even though they didn’t scare anyone with their performance , they won easily because they are very effective in some key aspects of the game.
Attacking defense
The main characteristic of this team is that they can press the ball very effectively. They force their opponents to make turnovers and also wear down their guards. This explains why, when the game reaches the 3rd and 4th quarter, they start to make runs, opening the game and the point differential.
Third period
This is quarter in the knock-out stage during which team USA becomes more agresssive in defense and press the ball, after understanding and testing the game of their opponents. When this happens, they start to feel more comfortable and to find solutions on both ends. In the thee knock-out games, the partial score for Team USA in the 3rd quarters against Mexico, Slovenia and Lithuania combined is 94-47.
Turnovers, fast breaks, rebounds
These are the three aspects of the game that any team has to control in order not to be destroyed from the United States. Lithuania, even though they have size, they were outrebounded 50-38 (18 offensive rebounds for USA). They made 21 turnovers and allowed 24 points from them. If we add all those numbers to the 17 second chance points of the winners, then we talk about a total point differential of 41 points.
Athleticism
Even though United States are playing mostly individual basketball on half court and have very few team plays, they still manage to win the games because of their quickness and their athleticism. They are very difficult to contain with a man to man defense for any team and they are good individual defenders. Their athleticism overcomes the problems of team chemistry
FRANCE- SERBIA
The second semifinal was a real classic game and it will be remembered as one of the best in World Cups history. Serbia took a fair win in the end, because they controlled most of the game. The French team, despite a first half during which everything went wrong, they showed character, quality and made a huge comeback to make this game a memorable one.
Milos again
In the first half he was the real dominator of the game. He scored 18 points on 7/9 field goals and 3 assists. He scored in any possible way! Behind the screens in pick and roll situations, in transition, after the screen away from the ball with a penetration to the basket. He created all the plays of the Serbian team and he took the ideal decisions on the court. He finished the game with 24 points and 3 assists. The MVP of the tournament so far
Defensive plan
The Serbian team created a special defensive plan for Boris Diaw. They understand that he is the brain of this team and decided to make everything difficult for him. They used double teams with Radulica when he was attacking in the post and risked taking damage from the offensive game of both centers Gobert and Lauvergne. Radulica was playing like a “goalkeeper” in the paint helping Bjelica and never letting Diaw post with ease. Moreover, when the French forward tried to create plays from outside, there was always a defensive help on him, with a good hedge out mostly in pick and roll plays. He had 13 points, 10 rebound and 5 assist but his play was not as effective as it was in the game against Spain
Small ball and Batum
In the last quarter France used small ball with Pietrus and Diaw in the forwards positions and played without a true center. They started being more agressive on pressing the ball, swiched in every screen without creating miss matches and started forcing problems in the offensive game of Serbia. They made the passes from pick and roll situations extremely difficult and gained psychology from defense. In the offensive end, it was all Nicolas Batum. He couldn’t be stopped. The French had Diaw as center in offense and they opened the court and the distances. That’s how they found the needed spaces and executed extremely well. Batum scored mostly after a side screen and got help from Heurtel and Fournier.
Bjelica and Bogdanovic
In the end, when the game started to turn around and with Teodosic was under full pressure from the French defense. they stepped up. Bogdanovic exploited the defensive weakness of Fournier and scored huge baskets after a screen or on one vs one penetrations. Bjelica was the real playmaker in the last minutes. He created all the plays for his teammates and did everything on the court. He finished the game with 10 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and NO turnovers! In the end the best team won but everyone has to respect France for their huge comeback
THE FINAL
Sunday night will be judgment time for Serbia and USA. The Serbian team for sure are overachieves and they will play the game without any stress. At this point they seem to have a great spirit and faith in themselves. They don’t have something to lose and they are very dangerous. The United States were in the weakest bracket of the Tournament and they didn’t face a lot of really good teams, in our opinion. This will be a real test for them and they are obliged to win. We expect a big game that will not be so easy for team USA. Let’s see the keys to the game for both teams.
Keys for Serbia
* Control the rhythm, don’t allow easy points in the transition
* Try to win the rebounding battle and don’t give second chance points. At last, to protect the defensive rebound with successful box – outs
* Remain to their team play strategy even when they will lose some key plays. Do not drift towards the game that suits the United States
* Good turnover/assists ratio!
* Play clever individual defense and take some risks on players like Faried
* Stop the execution of the Golden State duo (Curry, Thompson)
Keys for USA
* High pressure on the ball, especially on Teodosic
* Try to run whenever this is possible
* Stop the pick and roll execution of Serbia
* Make the game more physical
* Execute with high percentages behind the three poinst arc
We are looking forward for a big game and may the best team to win the Championship. In the end it will be a deserved win for one of the best two teams in this World Cup.