Interbasket

You don’t have to be an international basketball guru to recognize names like Dirk Nowitzki, Yao Ming, Manu Ginobili, Pau Gasol, Sarunas Jasikevicius, and Luis Scola. And to know that these players are going to play a significant role in their team’s success and most likely leaders in several statistical categories.

If you know names like David Andersen, Wang Zhizhi, Robertas Javtokas, Brad Newley, Pablo Prigioni, and Carlos Jimenez, congratulations, that means you’re moderately-knowledgeable about basketball outside of your country.

However, international tournaments always have a handful of little-known players that come in with much less fanfare and reputation, only to use that tournament as a springboard into national and international headlines.

About a week after the Olympics have officially ended, Interbasket will be profiling several of these players, over the next month.  Players that made names for themselves during the 2008 Olympics or furthered their reputation with their play.

Standing Tall amongst and against Giants
Patrick Mills was definitely one of the players that exploded during the 2008 Olympics. “Patty” as he is known down under, is one of the very few indigineous Australian basketball players ever to make a significant impact in professional basketball

As a 19-year old, Mills actually led a huge, veteran Aussie squad in scoring during the Beijing Olympics. With 7-0 NBA player Andrew Bogut, 6-11 Euroleague star David Andersen, and other more high-profile names on the roster such as the 7-0 Chris Anstey, 6-11 Matt Nielsen, Brad Newley, and Glen Saville, it was the 5-11, 175lb Mills that led the team with a 14.2 average and he scored with efficiency, shooting 52% from the field and 83% from the line.  Patty Mills was also second to veteran CJ Bruton in assists, and tied Bruton with 1.6 steals a game.

His play during the entire tournament was eye-opening for sure, but really put him on the radar was his play during one of the pre-Olympic games against the United States.  Mills wove and drove through the US defense with ease, hitting foronly 13 points, but it was his understanding and speed that made his performance noteworthy.

Mill’s appearance in the Olympics was also significant, he was only NCAA player in the Beijing Olympics, and is just the third Aborigine to play for the Boomers, ever. And that includes the 21-year old, 6-9 Aborigine Nathan Jawai, whom was just drafted in the 2008 NBA draft.“From day one, growing up as a kid, playing for your country was the biggest thing for an Australian youngster” said Mills when asked about being on the Boomers.

Links and Resources: Odds and Ends with Patrick Mills (SLAM ONLINE)

The Olympic basketball’s final four has been determined, and there are no surprises as Argentina, Lithuania, Spain, and the USA, the top four seeds going into the round have advanced.

The four teams have a combined record of 21-3 with the United States the only undefeated team left in the field.  Argentina, Lithuania and Spain are each 5-1.

To watch the games live, you’ll have to determine whom is your local official Olympic partner.

August 22, 2008 Game Times
20:00: Spain vs Lithuania (discuss the game)
Watch Live in Argentina, Lithuania, Spain, USA

22:15: Argentina vs. USA (discuss the game)
Watch Live in Argentina, Lithuania, Spain, USA

If the above providers don’t work, click here to find your specific local partner in your region or country.

Olympic Basketball Quarterfinal Recaps:
Spain defeated Croatia 72-59 behind 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 blocked shots from Pau Gasol.  As with their two other losses previous to this game, the Croatians couldn’t find the mark from three, shooting only 5-17.  Marko Banic led the Croatians with 15 points.   Felipe Reyes chipped in 13 and Jose Calderon added 10 for the Spanish team.

Lithuania put away host China in the second match of the day 94-68.  The game was only a two point difference after one, and from there the Lithuanians pulled away with each subsequent quarter, outscoring the Chinese team by 9, 6, and 9.  Sarunas Jasikevicius hit 5-6 threes, scored 23 points, and dished out 6 assists.  Linas Kleiza and Ramaunas Siskauskas added 15 each.  Team China was led by Yao Ming 19 points and 7 rebounds, while Yi Jianlian added 11 points and 9 rebounds.

The Aussies kept up with the Americans, keeping tight after one, and only down 12 at half.  That was until Team USA used a 14-point run to start the third that opened up the game.  Kobe Bryant scored 25 points for the Americans in his first game of the tournament in which he shot better than 50% from the field.  Lebron James added 16 points and 9 rebounds, and Carmelo Anthony scored 15 for the USA.  Patrick Mills was amazing again against the Americans, the speedy 5-11 guard scored 20 points with 3 steals.  Glen Saville socred 13, and Joe Ingles added 11 hitting all four of his shots.

Everyone expected the Argentina-Greece match to be the most competitive, and they were right.  Behind Carlos Delfino’s 15 fourth quarter points, great individual defense by Pablo Prigioni, and Manu Ginobili scoring Argentina’s final seven points, the defending Olympic Champions held off Greece 80-78.  Greece had a stretch in which they threw the ball away three consecutive possessions, allowing the Argentinians to build a lead before riding some hot three-point shooting back into the game.  Ginobili’s layup put Argentina up 5 with 46 seconds left, Greece’s Panagiotis Vasilopoulos banked in a three.  And after a missed three by Ginobili on the other end, Vasileios Spanoulis dribbled up-court, shot a straight-away three that was just short to make the final margin.

Manu Ginobili led Argentina with 24 points, hitting 6-13 threes.  Carlos Delfino scored 23, Luis Scola had 11 points and 8 rebounds and Pablo Prigioni added 7 points, 6 rebounds, 5 steals and 3 assists.  For Team Hellas, Antonis Fotsis led the Greeks with a double-double (17 points and 10 rebounds) and received some surprise offensive contribution from Konstatinos Tsartsaris with 13 points.  Tsartsaris had scored only 9 points total in the five games previous.  Ioannis Bouroussis remained solid again with 12 and 3 rebounds.

Links and Resources: Watch Olympic Basketball Live Online (interbasket), NBC Olympics Live Basketball Coverage (NBC Olympics),

The Olympic basketball quarterfinals are less than a day away with the four best teams from each group advancing onto the next round.  The four quarterfinal games are Spain vs. Croatia in the first game,  Lithuania vs China, Argentina vs. Greece, and the United States vs. Australia.

Are you searching the internet to watch the USA vs. Australia game live?  Look no further, if you are in the USA, click here to access NBC Olympics, in Australia, go to au.sports.yahoo.com.  If you are in Europe, you’ll likely find what you want on EuroVisionSports.tv.  If you live outside these regions, click here.

August 20, 2008 Game Times
14:30: Spain vs. Croatia Live Online
16:45: Lithuania vs. China Live Online
20:00: Argentina vs. Greece Live Online
22:15: USA vs. Australia Live Online

In the first game of the quarterfinals pits Spain against Croatia.  Spain (4-1).  In their pool play, Croatia has lived and died by the three thus far.  In their three wins, they’ve shot 62.5% from three (30-48), and only 25% in their two losses (8-32).

The second game features Lithuania, the Group A winner, taking on host China, whom are coached by a Lithuanian, Jonas Kazlauskas.

In probably what will be the toughest matchup in the quarterfinals, Argentina squares off against Greece.  Both teams are excellent defensive teams, as Argentina is second in points against and Greece is third.

After losing to Lithuania, Argentina (4-1) ended the tournament with four straight wins defeating their opponents by an average of 17 points per win.  Manu led Olympic pool play in scoring at19.6 per, while Luis Scola was third in scoring with 19.2 points per game.  As a team, Argentina turned the ball over the least in the tournament.

Greece doesn’t have any players in the top-10 in scoring, as they take a combined approach on both the offensive and defensive side.  They managed three wins in a up-and-down tournament with a couple disappointing losses to Spain and the United States.  Ioannis Bouroussis has been solidly efficient in the middle for Hellas, Vassilis Spanoulis leads them in scoring with 15.4, with solid contributions from Antonis Fotsis, Theodoros Papaloukas, and Nikos Zisis.

Outside of Argentina, the hottest teams in the tournament will be playing against each other.  The United States and Australia will duel in the last game of the Olympic quarterfinals.  The US hasn’t lost a game (5-0), and are the only team to get out of pool play undefeated.  Australia (3-2) lost their first two games, got their act together won their final three games, as they throttled Iran, Russia, and Lithuania, by an average of 28 points.  Bogut has really come alive in the last two, averaging 22.5 points and has shot 5-6 from three.  The Aussies are shooting 52% from downtown and have hit 41 threes in their wins.

Some of you may remember that the Boomers were the ones that gave the Americans their closest game in nearly two years during their final preliminary game on August 6th.  Bogut sat out that game and he watched Patrick Mills, Chris Anstey, and David Barlow challenge the United States before finally falling 87-76.

“What (the USA has) done and where you see them can intimidate a lot of people,” Anstey said. “I think to come into a game intimidated you’ve given up before you start…”

What to say about Team USA?  They’ve steamrolled the competition even with their chief competitors in the same bracket, winning all five pool games by an average of 32.2 points, including a 37-point blowout of Spain and a 49-point destruction of Germany.  They lead the competition in points scored, but not one player has scored more than 22 points in a game.

“I think (the USA is) unbeatable,” said German coach Dirk Bauermann. “I don’t even think it’s going to be close. I would be surprised if anyone can even give them a game.”

Don’t tell that to Chris Anstey and Australia.

Links and Resources: NBC Olympics Live Basketball Coverage (NBC Olympics), Quarter-finals: Argentina vs Greece (Interbasket), Quarter-finals: USA vs Australia (Interbasket), Quarter-finals: Lithuania vs China (Interbasket), Quarter-finals: Spain vs Croatia (Interbasket), German Basketball Coach Says Americans Are Unbeatable (New York Times)

Searching for replays of the 2008 Beijing Olympics Basketball games in their entirety?

If you are in the United States then you’ve come to the right place.  You can go to NBC Olympics.com coverage or click here to go directly to the page.

NBC Olympics.com offers replays of most all the Olympic Basketball games.

On their site, you’ll find the Olympic basketball schedule for both Mens and Womens.  Expand the date in which the game was played.  For example, if you are looking for the USA-Spain replay, expand August 16th by clicking on the + sign next to the date.  From there, click on “Rewind” and you should be able to enjoy the entire replay.

I’ve directly linked replays of some Olympic basketball games available on NBC Olympics below:

August 10: USA vs. China Replay (Replay Now)
August 10: Australia vs. Croatia Replay (Replay Now)

August 12: Croatia vs. Russia Replay (Replay Now)
August 12: Greece vs. Germany Replay (Replay Now)
August 12: Angola vs. USA Replay (Replay Now)
August 12: Argentina vs. Australia Replay (Replay Now)

August 14: Germany vs. Spain Replay (Replay Now)
August 16: Australia vs. Iran Replay (Replay Now)
August 14: Angola vs. China Replay (Replay Now)

August 16: Australia vs. Russia Replay (Replay Now)
August 16: Croatia vs. Lithuania Replay (Replay Now)
August 16: Argentina vs. Iran Replay (Replay Now)
August 16: China vs. Germany Replay (Replay Now)
August 16: USA vs. Spain Replay (Replay Now)

If you are in Europe and looking for replays, you’ll likely find the replays you want on EuroVisionSports.tv.  If you live outside these two regions, click here.

Links and Resources: NBC Olympics Basketball Coverage (NBC Olympics), USA vs Spain Replay (NBC Olympics) China vs. Germany Replay (NBC Olympics), 2008 Beijing Olympics (Official Site)

Looking to watch USA vs. Germany Olympic Basketball game live or the Australia Lithuania online match?   Or are you just looking for a replay?  Look no further, if you are in the USA, click here.  If you are in Europe, you’ll likely find what you want on EuroVisionSports.tv.  If you live outside these regions, click here.

The fifth and final day of pool play starts August 18th, 09:00am local Beijing time.  You can watch the games live online, find out which official sites are streaming the Greece-China game here.  You’ll find the Olympic basketball day five schedule below, with a link to our forum next to each game.  The link leads to a  message board that previews, predicts the score, and play by play action with fans from around the globe.

August 18, 2008 Game Times
09:00 : Iran vs. Croatia Live Online
11:15 : Australia vs. Lithuania Live Online
14:30 : Greece vs. China Live Online
16:45 : Angola vs. Spain Live Online
20:00 : USA vs. Germany Live Online
22:15 : Argentina vs. Russia Live Online

None of today’s games have any qualification implications as the four teams from each group have essentially been determined.  With the two top teams in both groups already decided, only the seeding of the teams in 3rd and 4th place is yet to be determined. Without getting too much into if-thens, the eight teams going on the next round will look like this:

Group A: Lithuania (4-0), Argentina (3-1), Croatia (2-2), Australia (2-2)   Out: Russia (1-3), Iran (0-4)
In group A, Lithuania and Argentina advance on their overall record.  Croatia and the Aussies are also in, even though the chance that the two teams and Russia could all end up 2-3.  Even if Russia wins their game tomorrow against Argentina and Australia and Croatia both lose, the three-way tie would still have Russia being eliminated because they lost both head to head games against the Boomers and Croatia.

Group B: USA (4-0), Spain (3-1), Greece (2-2), China (2-2)    Out: Germany (1-3), Angola (0-4)
In Group B, the United States and Spain move forward with their overall records.  Greece and China will both move.  Despite the unlikely chance that the Germans will beat the USA in their final game.  And even with the two teams that Germany is chasing, China and Greece, playing each other tomorrow, both teams have the tiebreaker over Deutschland.

The Basketball Quarterfinals will look like this:
August 20th: Spain vs. A3
August 20th: Lithuania vs. B4
August 20th: Argentina vs. B3
August 20th: USA vs. A4

With all that said, the most interesting match will be the Boomers taking on Lithuania in the second match of the day.  Lithuania has the chance to go into the quarterfinals unbeaten, while the Aussies can continue their momentum by unseating a less-motivated Lith team, whom has sewn up the #1 spot.

Another interesting game will pit hosts China against Greece.  Though the Chinese have already advanced, their goal is to improve (and not to be embarrassed at home), so look for them to try to make a statement.  Not to mention the winner of the game receives the third seed, which will be either Lithuania or Argentina.

Links and Resources: Group A, day 5: Argentina vs Russia (Game Thread), Group B, day 5: USA vs Germany (Game Live), Group B, day 5: Angola vs Spain (Interbasket), Group B, day 5: Greece vs China (Interbasket Game Thread), Group A, day 5: Australia vs Lithuania (Interbasket)

Australia 95: Russia 80 -  in a small upset, Australia rolled over favored-Russia 95-80.

The Boomers used a 10-2 spurt in the final two minutes of the first quarter to take an eleven-point lead after one period, and built it to a 16-point distance at halftime.

The Aussies were bolstered throughout the game by their  three-point shooting, especially  from their frontcourt players - their 7-0 NBA center Andrew Bogut was 2-3 from beyond the arc, as was the 6-11 Chris Anstey while 6-11 David Andersen was 1-1, and 6-10 Matt Nielsen shot 1-2. Together the Australian foursome scored 52 of the Boomers’ 95 points.

As we mentioned yesterday, this was a crucial game for both teams.

The outcome all but guaranteed that Russia would be joining Iran in not  advancing to the next round.  With one game remaining, Russia has one win, while Australia and Croatia have two wins. Both the Aussies and Croatians won their matches against Russia, so in case of a two or three team tie, Russia lose out in the head to head.

The Aussies on the other hand have seen their fortunes changed.  They started the Olympics with two straight bad losses against Croatia and Argentina.  From there they renewed themselves by handing Iran their largest loss to date, 38 points, and now convincingly putting down the defending European Champions Russia by 15, the Boomers have done an about face and are confident.

After hearing some criticism about his statistical performances in Australia’s first three games, Andrew Bogut finished strong against Russia with his best offering; 22 points and 8 rebounds in 28 minutes.  Included in Bogut’s point total was a moster slam dunk around three Russian defenders (see image).   CJ Bruton matched Bogut with 22 points, shooting 4-8 from three and 8-8 from the free-throw line.

Viktor Khryapa led the 2007 European champions with 22 points on 8-9 shooting and added 9 rebounds, but the Russians needed better performances from their two main players Andrei Kirilenko and J.R. Holden.  Holden scored 20 points, but missed 11 of 18 shots from the field.  The naturalized Russian player also had 6 turnovers and 6 assists.  The Eurobasket MVP Kirilenko had a rough game from the field, shooting 1-10 to the tune of only 6 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 turnovers.  Center Aleksey Savrasenko added 16 points for the Russians.

Russia will play Argentina in their final match, while Australia’s next game will be against Lithuania, the only undefeated team in Group A.

Links and Resources: Australia - Russia Boxscore (NBC Olympics), Goorjian tells Bogut bashers to back off (FIBA), Olympic Basketball Preview: Day Four (Interbasket)

** This is the pool play game post between USA and Spain, looking for the Gold Medal Game?  Click here. ***

Looking to watch USA vs. Spain Olympic Basketball game?   Or if you’re just waking up, looking for the USA-Spain replay?  Look no further, if you are in the USA, click here for the entire day’s schedule.  If you live outside the USA, click here.

The fourth day of Olympic Basketball starts August 16th local Beijing time. You can watch the games live online, find out which official sites is streaming the USA-Spain game here.  You can find a Olympic basketball day four schedule below, with a link to our forum which provides a message board, preview, prediction and play by play action with fans from around the globe.

August 16, 2008 Game times
09:00 : Angola vs. Greece >> Comment Online >> (Watch Replay)
11:15 : Russia vs. Australia >> Comment Online >> (Watch Replay)
14:30 : Croatia vs. Lithuania >> Comment Online >> (Watch Replay)
16:45 : Argentina vs. Iran >> Discuss Online >> (Watch Replay)
20:00 : Germany vs. China >> Discuss Online >> (Watch Replay)
22:15 : Spain vs. USA >> Discuss Online >> (Watch Replay)

In Group A, the most significant games are Russia vs. Australia and Croatia taking on Lithuania.  In the second game of the day, we have the Russians (1-2) and Aussies (1-2) each with only one win, and the only two teams with this record in Group A.  This game could play critical in deciding which team will advance to the next round.

In the third game of day four, Croatia (2-1) takes on Lithuania (3-0).  Lithuania has a chance to solidify first place in group A with a win, and with a Croatia win, they’ll likely cause a three way tie for first by giving Lithuania their first loss, and with the likely outcome of Argentina (2-1) defeating Iran.

The last two games of the day are the two biggest of the day. Germany vs. China in game five and Spain vs. USA in the last game of day four.  With China (1-2) and Germany (1-2) each defeating Angola for their sole win in the tournament, this will be a key game for both in moving on to the quarterfinals.  Germany’s remaning game comes against the US, China’s comes vs. Greece.

The final game of the day is Spain versus USA, which pits the undisputed two favorites against each other.  The Redeem Team has been rolling through the Olympics, while the Spanish are unbeaten, they’ve had their share of bumps in the road (being down 15 to China, controversial advertisement).  Still, this promises to be a great game that features 19 former and current NBA players.

The key will be how effective and focused the USA comes out on defense.  The Americans will find it much harder to fluster the likes of Jose Calderon, Raul Lopez, and Juan Carlos Navarro, and the Spanish will find that the USA recovers a lot quicker on defense when and if they’re not gambling for steals.   If the US starts reverts to playing the passing lanes, it could spell trouble as the Americans won’t find a better-prepared backcourt in the OIympics.  This one is the one to watch.

Links and Resources: Watch Spain vs. USA Live (NBC OLympics), Group B, day 4: Spain vs USA (Olympic Basketball Message Board), Group B, day 4:China vs Germany (Basketball Forum), Group A, day 4: Iran vs Argentina (Olympic Forum), Group A, day 4: Croatia vs Lithuania (Interbasket), Group A, day 4: Russia vs Australia (International Basketball Forum), Group B, day 4: Greece vs Angola (Interbasket)

Are you following the Olympic basketball games live and would like to comment on the games with fans from around the world?  If yes, check out the Olympic basketball day two schedule below and click on the appropriate game to follow along with basketball fans from around the globe.  Or are you just looking to watch the Olympic matches live on your computer?  If so, click here.

August 12, 2008 Game Times:
09:00 : Group A, day 2: Iran vs Lithuania Live Online
11:15 : Group A, day 2: Croatia vs Russia Live Online
14:30 : Group B, day 2: Greece vs Germany Live Online
16:45 : Group B, day 2: China vs Spain Live Online
20:00 : Group B, day 2: Angola vs USA Live Online
22:15 : Group A, day 2: Argentina vs Australia (Live Online)

Lithuania looks to get their second win over Iran (0-1) in the first game of day two.  The second match will pit two undefeated Group A teams in Croatia and Russia, while Greece hopes to notch their first win against Germans, whom handily defeated an Angolan squad two days ago.  Host team China looks for a better showing against Spain, as does Angola vs. the United States, though neither is likely to get their first wins.  Argentina and Australia are both coming off tough losses and are searching for answers in the last match of day two, unfortunately, only one will come up with more answers than questions.

Links and Resources: Where to watch Olympic Basketball Online? (interbasket), Olympic Basketball Day One (interbasket), Day one recaps: USA, Spain, Lithuania win (Interbasket), Official Beijing Olympics Basketball Schedule (Beijing2008), Group A, day 2: Argentina vs Australia (Olympic Basketball Message Board), Group B, day 2: Angola vs USA (Basketball Forum), Group B, day 2: China vs Spain (Interbasket), Group B, day 2: Greece vs Germany (Interbasket Game Thread), Group A, day 2: Croatia vs Russia (Game Thread), Group A, day 2: Iran vs Lithuania (Fiba Game Discussion)