Spain thump France 98 – 85; Regain the FIBA EuroBasket crown – Part 1
When it comes to playing basketball in Europe; no one is as good as Spain.
Any doubt which could have been cast on this statement a fortnight ago, was shrugged off by the mighty Spaniards after they produced a splendid display of basketball against a strong French team in the finals of FIBA EuroBasket
to regain their title of the European Champions.
The Spanish were in the groove on the defining night of the tournament and beat their opponents 98 – 85 to stamp their dominance on the European stage.
Spain were always the favourites for the tournament in spite of teams like France and Russia posing credible threats. However, what all the other teams lacked was Spain’s depth of talent at pretty much every position.
The Spanish used that depth to devastating effect in the Final as France failed to cope with the many offensive talents on display.
Juan Carlos Navarro, who has been excellent throughout the tournament was at it again in the final and produced a memorable display, dropping a game high 27 points on the opponents and providing 5 assists.
Navarro was overcome with joy after the victory. He saluted his side in comments made after the game,
"This is a historic team," said Navarro, who was arguably the tournament’s most potent scorer. "We'll see what are the limits of this selection (of players)."
Pau Gasol was also in his element. The NBA superstar recorded a double-double with 10 rebounds and 17 points and also set up his teammates 5 times. Jose Calderon was also very impressive with his 17 point display.
Tony Parker was the shining light for the French team all night long. The San Antonio Spurs point guard did it all to help his team, although his efforts were ultimately not enough. Parker was excellent in all aspects of his game,
he scored a team high 26 points and had 5 assists and the same number of rebounds.
Other players who managed to shine for France were Joakim Noah and Boris Diaw. Noah had a team high in rebounds with 8 and managed 11 points while Boris scored 12 and laid on a game high 7 assists.
Spain were the better team right from the start. France produced some very good basketball of their own, but in the first half they just couldn’t stop the Spanish advance. France went ahead 4 – 0 at the start of the game but Spain
soon settled in and established themselves as the dominant team.
Whatever the French did, Spain would do one better. Once Spain took the lead, France never got it back. The lead was 8 points just before the end of the first quarter but a three-pointer by Batum helped reduce the deficit and end
the quarter at 25 – 20.
The Spaniards again scored 25 points in the second quarter, with the French defence helpless to stop them. They even took the lead into double figures and led by 12 with 6:18 left in the quarter. It ended with the French trailing
by 9 with the score at 50 -41.
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