International Basketball Thread (R)

[DoyleG]

2019 FIBA World Cup Qualification - Europe Pre-Qualifiers

Group A
Sweden 81-73 Bosnia & Herzegovina
Armenia 75-61 Slovakia
Armenia 82-69 Sweden
Bosnia & Herzegovina 84-71 Slovakia

Armenia 4pts
Sweden 3pts (+5 PD, H2H over Bosnia)
Bosnia & Herzegovina 3pts (-5 PD)
Slovakia 2pts

Group B
Albania 51-79 Austria
Austria 72-79 Netherlands

Austria 3pts (2 games played)
Netherlands 2pts
Albania 1pts

Group C
Kosovo 72-68 Macedonia
Macedonia 76-80 Estonia

Estonia 2pts (Points scored)
Kosovo 2pts
Macedonia 2pts (2 games played, 0-2 H2H and -8 PD)

Group D
Portugal 71-82 Bulgaria
Bulgaria 78-68 Belarus

Bulgaria 4pts
Belarus 1pts (-10 PD)
Portugal 1pts (-11 PD)

Top two teams in each group advance to 1st round qualification.

Click to read more...

 

[DoyleG]

FIBA AsiaCup (new name for the Asian Championships) is underway in Lebanon

Group A: Jordan, India, Syrian, Iran
Group B: Philippines, Iraq, China, Qatar
Group C: New Zealand, Lebanon, South Korea, Kazakhstan
Group D: Australia, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Japan

 

[darko]

Will be shocked if the winner is anyone other than Australia or NZ.

 

[DoyleG]

Results from European pre-qualifers

Group A

August 9
Slovakia 68-59 Sweden
Bosnia and Herzegovina 98-85 Armenia

August 12
Slovakia 78-92 Armenia
Bosnia & Herzegovina 72-88 Sweden

Standings
Armenia 7pts
Sweden 6pts (H2H advantage)
Bosnia & Herzegovina 6pts
Slovakia 5pts

Armenia only needs really one more win to basically lock up a spot in the next round. Sweden has its last two games at home against Slovakia and Armenia. Bosnia has to face the same two teams, but on the road.

Group B

August 9
Netherlands 91-77 Albania

August 12
Austria 97-63 Albania

Standings
Austria 5pts (x)
Netherlands 4pts (x)
Albania 3pts

The Austrians and Dutch are through to the next round.

Group C

August 9
Estonia 76-50 Kosovo

August 12
Macedonia 87-74 Kosovo

Standings
Estonia 4pts (+30 PD, H2H)
Macedonia 4pts (+5 PD)
Kosovo 4pts (-35 PD)

Estonia holds the top spot having beaten both their opponents. They host Macedonia at home and play Kosovo on the road. The Estonians hold their own destiny in their hands plus those of the teams they oppose.

Group D

August 9
Belarus 78-75 Portugal

August 12
Bulgaria 91-65 Portugal

Standings
Bulgaria 6pts (x)
Belarus 3pts (-7 PD, H2H)
Portugal 3pts (-40 PD)

Bulgaria is already through to the next round but can play a spoiler role for the other two teams. They play Belarus in Minsk next while Belarus plays in Portugal in the last game. That could decide who gets to move on as well.

 

[DoyleG]

FIBA AsiaCup 2017

Group A
Iran 101-54 India
Jordan 68-66 Syria
India 54-61 Jordan
Syria 63-87 Iran
Iran 83-71 Jordan
Syria 87-78 India

Standings
Iran 6pts (x)
Jordan 5pts (y)
Syria 4pts (y)
India 3pts

No surprise that Iran takes this group as they weren't really under threat. India led Syria by 17 at the half but the Syrians blew them out in the second half.

Group B
China 87-96 Philippines
Iraq 75-66 Qatar
Qatar 67-92 China
Philippines 84-68 Iraq
Iraq 60-61 China
Philippines 80-74 Qatar

Standings
Philippines 6pts (x)
China 5pts (y)
Iraq 4pts (y)
Qatar 3pts

The 2015 Finals rematch went to the Gilas Pilipinas this time without the controversies about fans and officals in China (which hosted the competition then). China is hosting the 2019 World Cup and will be certainly looking to build towards that.

Group C
Kazakhstan 49-70 New Zealand
Lebanon 72-66 South Korea
South Korea 116-55 Kazakhstan
New Zealand 86-82 Lebanon
South Korea 76-75 New Zealand
Kazakhstan 74-96 Lebanon

Standings
New Zealand 5pts (x)
Lebanon 5pts (y)
South Korea 5pts (y)
Kazakhstan 3pts

The top 3 finished with the same records and were even in H2H. The Tall Blacks get top spot because they scored one point more than The Cedars when the records and points of the 3 teams are comapred.

Group D
Japan 68-84 Australia
Hong Kong 62-77 Chinese Taipei
Chinese Taipei 49-87 Japan
Australia 99-58 Hong Kong
Japan 92-59 Hong Kong
Chinese Taipei 50-90 Australia

Standings
Australia 6pts (x)
Japan 5pts (y)
Chinese Taipei 4pts (y)
Hong Kong 3pts

No shocks in this case as the group went the way it would be expected.

The group winners now have a bye to the QF while the 2nd and 3rd place teams will enter a playoff round to see who will advance.

Lebanon v Chinese Taipei (winner gets Iran)
Japan v South Korea (winner gets Philippines)
Jordan v Iraq (winner gets New Zealand)
China v Syria (winner gets Australia)

 

[DoyleG]

FIBA Europe pre-qualifiers

Group A
Sweden 93-70 Armenia
Slovakia 74-92 Bosnia and Herzegovina

Sweden clinches a spot in the next round as they've beaten Armenia and Bosnia in the H2H tiebreaker. Slovakia is eliminated with the loss and its now down to Bosnia-Armenia in Yerevan on the 19th

Group B
Netherlands 71-78 Austria

No much here as both teams have already moved on to the next round. Austria gets revenge for the earlier loss

Group C
Estonia 74-65 Macedonia

Estonia is through as well with a win and home. They go and play Kosovo on the 19th.

Group D
Bulgaria 84-70 Belarus

Belarus now has to deal with Portugal on the 19th if they are to go through.

 

[DoyleG]

FIBA AsiaCup Knockout Round

14 Aug
Lebanon 90-77 Chinese Taipei
Japan 68-81 South Korea

15 Aug
China 81-79 Syria
Jordan 84-70 Iraq

Quarterfinals

16 Aug
Philippines 86-118 South Korea
Iran 80-70 Lebanon

 

[DoyleG]

Iran and Australia will meet for the FIBA AsiaCup title on Sunday.

Iran held off South Korea 87-81 as the Koreans long range shooting seemed to have abandoned them.

Australia knocked off New Zealand 106-79. The Boomers are still the bosses when it comes to their rival.

 

[DoyleG]

FIBA Europe pre-qualifiers

Group A
Bosnia and Herzegonvina 83-66 Armenia
Sweden 86-82 Slovakia

Sweden and Bosnia go through with the Swedes getting the top spot due to better H2H results against the Bozniaks.

Group B
Albania 37-113 Netherlands

Yes that score is correct. Funny given that Albania was leading 16-14 after the 1 Quarter. The Dutch turned it on to get them past the Austrians to take the top spot in the group. The Austrians get second.

Group C
Kosovo 75-69 Estonia

Kosovo gets the win they need to be the 2nd team through.

Group D
Portugal 79-78 Belarus (OT)

Portugal wins but its Belarus that advances with a better H2H result (they had beaten Portugal by 3 in Minsk).

Now, we we'll see where the qualified teams end up.

There will be a draw on Thursday, 24 Aug, at 10:30 CET in Munich to determine where each team goes in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 European Qualifiers. The draw will be streamed at YouTube.com/FIBA!
There is a catch:

Sweden, Estonia, Bulgaria and the Netherlands - as group winners - can go in these groups:
Group B: Turkey, Latvia, Ukraine.
Group D: Italy, Croatia, Romania.
Group F: Czech Republic, Iceland, Finland.
Group H: Israel, Great Britain, Greece.

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belarus, Kosovo and Austria - as second placed teams - can join:
Group A: Montenegro, Slovenia, Spain.
Group C: Poland, Lithuania, Hungary.
Group E: Belgium, France, Russia.
Group G: Germany, Serbia, Georgia.*
*(Kosovo cannot be in the same group as Serbia)

 

[DoyleG]

Asia Cup Final

Australia 79 Iran 56

Australia are the Asian championships and weren't under threat for the game.

 

[darko]

I don't know about other teams but Australia had their 2nd string team there.

 

[Asiantuntija]

Finland - Russia last night. Finland lose the game but Timothey Mozgov got bullied by Lauri Markkanen. Markkanen was way too much for Mozgov and he didn't find any kind of answer how to defend Lauri. On the other side of the court, Markkanen was our best defender against Russian bigs. He was always contesting the shots and made very solid job as a defender. Markkanen made huge dunks in the game, he made huge traffic dunk trying to posterize Mozgov and some other Russian player. They foul him, but referee didn't notice that one. Tell me more about how soft he is? Soft players doesn't even try to posterize Mozgov and his teammate.

 

[darko]

Markkanen is basically Ben Wallace with Dirk Nowitzki's offensive game.

 

[DoyleG]

I don't know about other teams but Australia had their 2nd string team there.

With the exception of Eurobasket, teams are putting second stringers into the continental competitions.

World Cup qualification starts in November so teams are looking at options that don't rely on the NBA or Euroleague.

 

[DoyleG]

2017 FIBA AmeriCup has started with the prelim rounds in three different countries (Columbia, Argentina, and Uruguay) with Cordoba holding the final round.

Group A (Medellin - Brazil, Columbia, Puerto Rico, Mexico)

August 25
Puerto Rico 66-69 Mexico
Brazil 76-74 Columbia

August 26
Mexico 99-76 Brazil
Columbia 72-91 Puerto Rico

August 27
Brazil 80-89 Puerto Rico
Mexico 82-70 Columbia

Standings
Mexico 6pts (x)
Puerto Rico 5pts
Brazil 4pts
Columbia 3pts

Mexico basically has gone perfect in the group and advances as a group winner to the final round in Cordoba.

Group B (Bahia Blanca - Argentina, Canada, Venezuela, USVI)

27 August
USVI 83-71 Canada
Argentina 67-62 Venezuela

Standings
USVI 2pts (+12 PD)
Argentina 2pts (+5) (x)
Venezuela 1pts (-5)
Canada 1pts (-12)

While one should be shocked by Canada's defeat, don't be. Only Anthony and Andrew Nicholson are the only ones here with significant NBA experience (the former is an FA at the moment). Roy Rana is running the team for this tournament and for the WC quals that start in November. There are two NBL players and a player from Ryerson on this roster. Ironically, they will be playing the USVI in qualifying in the new year.

It should be noted that, as they will be hosting the final round, Argentina will advance regardless of where they place. If they win the group, the 2nd place team will follow.

Group C (Montevideo - Uruguay, DR, United States, Panama)

Group play starts on Monday.

 

[DoyleG]

The draw took place for the 1st round of European qualifiers for the World Cup that will start in November.

Group A - Montenegro, Slovenia, Belarus, Spain
Group B - Sweden, Turkey, Latvia, Ukraine
Group C - Poland, Kosovo, Lithuania, Hungary
Group D - Italy, Netherlands, Croatia, Romania
Group E - Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belgium, France, Russia
Group F - Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Iceland, Finland
Group G - Germany, Austria, Serbia, Georgia
Group H - Israel, Britain, Greece, Estonia

 

[lilphildub]

Finland - Russia last night. Finland lose the game but Timothey Mozgov got bullied by Lauri Markkanen. Markkanen was way too much for Mozgov and he didn't find any kind of answer how to defend Lauri. On the other side of the court, Markkanen was our best defender against Russian bigs. He was always contesting the shots and made very solid job as a defender. Markkanen made huge dunks in the game, he made huge traffic dunk trying to posterize Mozgov and some other Russian player. They foul him, but referee didn't notice that one. Tell me more about how soft he is? Soft players doesn't even try to posterize Mozgov and his teammate.

Any highlights of the game? I need some sort of hope as a Bulls fan lol

 

[Asiantuntija]

Any highlights of the game? I need some sort of hope as a Bulls fan lol

https://twitter.com/Mike_Schmitz/status/901399542192537601

That was the only one i found. There isn't even half of his plays, but still something. You should have much hope about Lauri, because there's a chance he was best player from this draft.

 

[lilphildub]

https://twitter.com/Mike_Schmitz/status/901399542192537601

That was the only one i found. There isn't even half of his plays, but still something. You should have much hope about Lauri, because there's a chance he was best player from this draft.

Thanks for the link!

I have seen your love for him but still not a believer. I guess time will tell

 

[Jussi]

Finland beat France after OT 86-84 in the Eurobasket 2017 opener in Helsinki Finland. Markkanen hit a couple of crucial 3s at the end.

 

[ChicagoBullsFan]

Finland beat France after OT 86-84 in the Eurobasket 2017 opener in Helsinki Finland. Markkanen hit a couple of crucial 3s at the end.

Markkanen was awesome he clearly proved that why he went 7th overall in 2017 NBA draft. Chicago Bulls is getting great player of him.
As a Finnish Chicago Bulls fan i'm excited for that Markkanen is a Bulls prospect.

 

[Asiantuntija]

Markkanen was awesome he clearly proved that why he went 7th overall in 2017 NBA draft. Chicago Bulls is getting great player of him.
As a Finnish Chicago Bulls fan i'm excited for that Markkanen is a Bulls prospect.

Yes he was very solid, leading us for huge win. Those contested 3 pointers at the end was huge factor for the win. It was amazing and entertaining game. Also much credit for Salin, Kotti and Wilson. I was very impressed about our attitude and defense.

 

[Asiantuntija]

 

[DoyleG]

2017 FIBA AmeriCup

Group B
28 August
Canada 86-92 Argentina (OT)
Venezuela 86-84 USVI

29 August
Venezuela 66-75 Canada
USVI 58-104 Argentina

Standings
Argentina 6pts (x)
USVI 4pts (H2H) (x)
Canada 4pts
Venezuela 4pts

Argentina goes into the next round as the top team while the USVI get the 2nd spot on H2H (Argentina was already advancing due to hosting the Final Round.

Group C

28 August
United States 97-56 Panama
Dominican Republic 57-66 Uruguay

29 August
Panama 64-86 Dominican Republic
Uruguay 66-74 United States

30 August
Dominican Republic 56-72 United States
Panama 68-79 Uruguay

Standings
United States 6pts
Uruguay 5pts
Dominican Republic 4pts
Panama 3pts

No surprise in this group though the Uruguayans gave the Americans a scare

Semi-finals (Cordoba)
2 September
United States v. USVI
Argentina v. Mexico

 

[Finnpin]

22 pts in 24 minutes. Somehow coaching kept him on the bench in the beginning but that paid off because he was on fire on the 4th and OT.

Edit. Highlights with Jamar Wilson's game winner! (btw Wilson isn't these paid muricans that you can see in some other euro teams, he has Finnish wife and have lived off seasons for years in Finland)