2010 FIBA World Championship Group B

Group B of the 2010 FIBA World Championship commenced on August 28 and ended on September 2. The group played all of its games at Abdi İpekçi Arena in Istanbul, Turkey.

The group was composed of Brazil, Croatia, Iran, Slovenia, Tunisia and the United States. Their average FIBA World Ranking at the start of the tournament was 19; excluding Tunisia, the lowest in the rankings, it was 14.4. Tunisia, which finished third at the FIBA Africa Championship 2009, and the Asian champion Iran, both made their tournament debuts, while Croatia returned for the first time since 1994. The four teams with the best records in group play USA, Slovenia, Brazil, and Croatia advanced to the knockout stage.

Standings

Team
Pld W L PF PA PD Pts
United States 5 5 0 455 331+124 10
 Slovenia 5 4 1 393 376+17 9
 Brazil 5 3 2 398 354+44 8
 Croatia 5 2 3 395 40712 7
 Iran 5 1 4 301 36766 6
 Tunisia 5 0 5 300 407107 5

All times local (UTC+3)

August 28

Group B began play on August 28 with three consecutive blowouts. Slovenia scored the first seven points of the game and never trailed in an 8056 victory over Tunisia. Goran Dragić scored 16 points and dished out eight assists for Slovenia in the victory.[1]

In the second game of the day, the United States handled Croatia in a 28-point victory. The Croatians hung with the United States for the first quarter before the Americans outscored them 266 in the second quarter.[2] Eric Gordon scored 16 points to lead the Americans; all twelve players scored, including five in double figures for the United States.

Asian champions Iran made their World Championship debut in the final game of the day against Brazil. The Iranians never seriously mounted a challenge in a 16-point loss. Four players scored in double digits for the Brazilians, led by Leandro Barbosa's 21.[3]

Tunisia vs. Slovenia

August 28
16:30
Tunisia  5680  Slovenia
Scoring by quarter: 14–22, 14–17, 12–24, 16–17
Pts: Slimane 11
Rebs: Mejri 6
Asts: Slimane, Kechrid 2
Pts: Dragić 16
Rebs: Vidmar 7
Asts: Dragić 8
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: Romualdas Brazauskas (LTU), Jose Hernan Melgarejo Pinto (COL), Stephen Seibel (CAN)

USA vs. Croatia

August 28
19:00
United States 10678  Croatia
Scoring by quarter: 22–20, 26–6, 30–22, 28–30
Pts: Gordon 16
Rebs: Love 10
Asts: Billups, Curry, Westbrook 4
Pts: Bogdanović 17
Rebs: Tomić 8
Asts: Ukić 4
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: Reynaldo Antonio Mercedes Sanchez (DOM), Yuji Hirahara (JPN), Christos Christodoulou (GRE)

Iran vs. Brazil

August 28
21:30
Iran  6581  Brazil
Scoring by quarter: 12–22, 17–17, 17–22, 19–20
Pts: Haddadi 16
Rebs: Haddadi 9
Asts: Kamrani 4
Pts: Giovannoni 17
Rebs: Marquinhos 8
Asts: Huertas 9
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: Recep Ankarali (TUR), José Martín (ESP), David Chambon (FRA)

August 29

Day 2 in Group B play featured another three straight blowouts. In the first game, the United States jumped out to a 102 lead and never looked back in a 22-point victory over Slovenia. After Slovenia had cut the lead to five late in the first half, the Americans went on a 319 run stretching into the third quarter to blow the game open.[4] Kevin Durant led the United States with 22 points, while five Americans reached double figures for the second consecutive game.

Croatia rebounded from a Day One loss to the United States by beating winless Iran 7554. The Croatians opened up a 22-point first half lead and were never seriously challenged, despite Hamed Haddadi's game-high 27 points and 9 rebounds.[5] Roko Ukić and Bojan Bogdanović each had 13 points for Croatia in the victory.

Brazil remained undefeated by beating Tunisia 8065 in the day's final game. Leandro Barbosa scored 21 points 16 in the first quarter alone and grabbed 6 rebounds while Tiago Splitter added 16 points.[6]

Slovenia vs. USA

August 29
16:30
Slovenia  7799 United States
Scoring by quarter: 11–23, 17–19, 18–25, 31–32
Pts: Nachbar 13
Rebs: Nachbar 4
Asts: Dragić, Bečirović 4
Pts: Durant 22
Rebs: Love 11
Asts: Rose, Billups 5
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: José Martín (ESP), Christos Christodoulou (GRE), Stephen Seibel (CAN)

Croatia vs. Iran

August 29
19:00
Croatia  7554  Iran
Scoring by quarter: 22–13, 22–11, 9–16, 22–14
Pts: Ukić, Bogdanović 13
Rebs: Tomić, Banić 7
Asts: Ukić 4
Pts: Haddadi 27
Rebs: Haddadi 9
Asts: Davari 4
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: Romualdas Brazauskas (LTU), Recep Ankarali (TUR), Carlos José Julio (ANG)

Brazil vs. Tunisia

August 29
21:30
Brazil  8065  Tunisia
Scoring by quarter: 26–16, 17–14, 16–18, 21–17
Pts: Barbosa 21
Rebs: Barbosa 6
Asts: Huertas, Giovannoni 3
Pts: Kechrid 15
Rebs: Slimane 8
Asts: Kechrid 3
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: Yuji Hirahara (JPN), David Chambon (FRA), Reynaldo Antonio Mercedes Sanchez (DOM)

August 30

Day 3 of Group B action finally brought three competitive games. The two former Yugoslav republics faced off in the day's first game in a rematch of the Eurobasket 2009 quarterfinal. Like the Eurobasket quarterfinal, Slovenia again prevailed, this time with a 9184 victory over the Croatians. Slovenia quickly erased a five-point halftime deficit, taking the lead for good on Miha Zupan's three-pointer with 6:33 remaining in the game.[7] Poor free-throw shooting proved to be Croatia's undoing, as they shot only 15 of 26 from the foul line. Uroš Slokar and Jaka Lakovič each scored 15 points for the Slovenians, while Roko Ukić scored a game-high 20 points for Croatia in the losing effort.

Tournament debutants Iran and Tunisia faced off in the second game of the day, each looking for their first ever World Championship victory. The Iranians came away with the victory after Hamed Haddadi turned in another strong performance (23 points, 13 rebounds).[8] Iran opened up a 24-point second half lead as Tunisia struggled to shoot the ball, scoring only 36 points in the first three quarters. The Tunisians used a furious 212 run to pull to within three with five minutes left before Iran pulled away for the victory.

Unbeaten Brazil and United States met in the day's final game in a match that would determine the group winner, in all likelihood. Brazil was again without the services of Anderson Varejão, who rested with a sprained right ankle after expecting to be ready for the game.[9] Brazil led for much of the first three quarters in a tight game before Derrick Rose made a shot that gave the USA a 5250 lead that they would not relinquish until the fourth quarter. After Brazil tied the game in the fourth, Lamar Odom's dunk with 7:13 left that gave the Americans a 6462 lead that they would not relinquish. Brazil had two chances to send the game to overtime in the final seconds, but Marcelo Huertas missed two free throws and Leandro Barbosa's shot clanged off the rim as time expired. Kevin Durant led the Americans with 27 points and 10 rebounds as most of the Americans struggled in their first real challenge of the tournament.

Slovenia vs. Croatia

August 30
16:30
Slovenia  9184  Croatia
Scoring by quarter: 16–18, 23–26, 26–15, 26–25
Pts: Slokar, Lakovič 15
Rebs: Brezec 8
Asts: Dragić, Lakovič 4
Pts: Ukić 20
Rebs: Žorić 9
Asts: Ukić 7
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: Reynaldo Antonio Mercedes Sanchez (DOM), Yuji Hirahara (JPN), David Chambon (FRA)

Tunisia vs. Iran

August 30
19:00
Tunisia  5871  Iran
Scoring by quarter: 11–23, 12–10, 13–22, 22–16
Pts: Romdhane, Mejri 10
Rebs: Mejri 9
Asts: Slimane, Hdidane 3
Pts: Haddadi 23
Rebs: Haddadi 13
Asts: Kamrani 3
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: José Martín (ESP), Jose Hernan Melgarejo Pinto (COL), Carlos José Julio (ANG)

USA vs. Brazil

August 30
21:30
United States 7068  Brazil
Scoring by quarter: 22–28, 21–18, 18–13, 9–9
Pts: Durant 27
Rebs: Durant 10
Asts: Billups 3
Pts: Marquinhos 16
Rebs: Splitter 10
Asts: Huertas 5
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: Romualdas Brazauskas (LTU), Christos Christodoulou (GRE), Stephen Seibel (CAN)

August 31

Rest day.

September 1

Group B was back in action on September 1 following a rest day. In the first game of the day, Tunisia continued to struggle as Croatia jumped out to a 20-point halftime lead en route to an 8464 victory.[10] Bojan Bogdanović led the Croatians with 19 points while Makrem Ben Romdhane was the only Tunisian in double figures, with a game-high 23 points. The victory, coupled with Iran's loss, clinched a spot in the knockout round for Croatia. Tunisia, meanwhile, was eliminated with the loss.

The Americans clinched first place in the group with an 8851 victory over Iran in the day's second game. Iran provided some resistance for the lethargic Americans, trailing by single digits for much of the first half before being outscored by 23 in the second half.[11] Kevin Love led the Americans with 13 points in only 11 minutes of action, while Hamed Haddadi again led the Iranians with 19 points.

In the battle for second place in the group, Slovenia beat Brazil 8077 despite Anderson Varejão making his tournament debut for the Brazilians. Primož Brezec hit his first seven shots to help Slovenia take a 14-point halftime lead.[12] Brazil cut the lead to two with 4 minutes remaining but could come no closer as Slovenia clinched second place in the group. Slovenia's loss also eliminated Iran from contention, sending Croatia and Brazil to the knockout round.

Croatia vs. Tunisia

September 1
16:30
Croatia  8464  Tunisia
Scoring by quarter: 23–12, 20–11, 22–17, 19–24
Pts: Bogdanović 19
Rebs: Tomić 9
Asts: Planinić, Popović 5
Pts: Romdhane 23
Rebs: Slimane 9
Asts: Knioua 4
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: Romualdas Brazauskas (LTU), Stephen Seibel (CAN), Carlos José Julio (ANG)

Iran vs. USA

September 1
19:00
Iran  5188 United States
Scoring by quarter: 13–19, 15–23, 11–20, 12–26
Pts: Haddadi 19
Rebs: Kazemi, Haddadi 5
Asts: Davoudi 2
Pts: Love 13
Rebs: Love, Chandler 6
Asts: Curry 5
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: David Chambon (FRA), Yuji Hirahara (JPN), Jose Hernan Melgarejo Pinto (COL)

Brazil vs. Slovenia

September 1
21:30
Brazil  7780  Slovenia
Scoring by quarter: 18–20, 12–24, 21–23, 26–13
Pts: Machado 20
Rebs: Varejão, Splitter 4
Asts: Huertas 10
Pts: Lakovič 20
Rebs: Bečirovič 9
Asts: Bečirovič 4
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: José Martín (ESP), Recep Ankarali (TUR), Reynaldo Antonio Mercedes Sanchez (DOM)

September 2

There was little to play for on Day 5 of Group B play, as only Brazil and Croatia had positions to play for. The United States sleepwalked to a six-point halftime lead before taking over in the second half in a 9257 victory over Tunisia.[13] Eric Gordon scored 21 points as the United States finished group play undefeated for the second consecutive World Championship. Tunisia ended their first World Championship appearance without a win.

In the day's second game, Slovenia held off a late charge by Iran in a 6560 victory.[14] Hamed Haddadi scored 15 points to conclude a strong tournament for the Iranian team.

The only game of the day with implication in the standings had little drama as Brazil rebounded from two straight losses dominated Croatia in a 9274 victory.[15] With the victory, Brazil clinched third place in the group to set up a quarterfinal match with rivals and Group A runner-up Argentina.

USA vs. Tunisia

September 2
16:30
United States 9257  Tunisia
Scoring by quarter: 19–13, 20–20, 24–13, 29–13
Pts: Gordon 21
Rebs: Iguodala 6
Asts: 6 tied with 2
Pts: Kechrid 15
Rebs: Mejri 8
Asts: Dhifallah 2
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: Recep Ankarali (TUR), Carlos José Julio (ANG), Jose Hernan Melgarejo Pinto (COL)

Slovenia vs. Iran

September 2
19:00
Slovenia  6560  Iran
Scoring by quarter: 19–6, 9–17, 24–11, 13–26
Pts: Dragić 18
Rebs: Dragić 6
Asts: Bečirovič 3
Pts: Haddadi 15
Rebs: Kazemi 14
Asts: Davari 4
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: Yuji Hirahara (JPN), Christos Christodoulou (GRE), Reynaldo Antonio Mercedes Sanchez (DOM)

Brazil vs. Croatia

September 2
21:30
Brazil  9274  Croatia
Scoring by quarter: 22–19, 26–16, 24–15, 20–24
Pts: Machado 18
Rebs: Varejão 12
Asts: Huertas 6
Pts: Popović 15
Rebs: Bogdanović, Lončar 6
Asts: Tomas 3
Abdi İpekçi Arena, Istanbul
Attendance: 12,500
Referees: Romualdas Brazauskas (LTU), Stephen Seibel (CAN), David Chambon (FRA)

References

  1. "Dragic leads Slovenia to 80-56 victory over Tunisia in opener at Worlds". google.com. AP. 28 August 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  2. "Fast Breaks: USA-Croatia". Sports Illustrated. SI.com. 28 August 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  3. "Iran loses to Brazil inWorld Championship debut". NBA.com. AP. 28 August 2010. Archived from the original on 2 September 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  4. "USA Defense Shuts Down Slovenia". USA Basketball. USABasketball.com. 29 August 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-09-02. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  5. "Croatia withstands Haddadi, easily beats Iran". Yahoo.com. AP. 29 August 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  6. "Brazil stays unbeaten at worlds, faces US next". Times Union.com. TimesUnion.com. 29 August 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  7. "Slovenia beats Croatia 91-84 at world tourney". The Star. thestar.com. 30 August 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  8. "Iran evades Tunisia, sweats out inaugural worlds victory". NBA.com. AP. 30 August 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  9. "Team USA survives Brazil, leaps to 3-0 at basketball worlds". USAToday.com. AP. 30 August 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  10. "Croatia defeats Tunisia at basketball worlds". World Bulletin. worldbulletin.net. 2 September 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-09-04. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  11. "USA sleepwalks past Iran 88-51 at World Championships". NBCSports. NBCSports.com. 1 September 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  12. "Slovenia hangs on to edge Brazil at worlds". NBCSports. NBCSports.com. 1 September 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  13. "USA Basketball remains unimpressive, undefeated with 92-57 win over Tunisia". NBCSports.com. NBCSports.com. 2 September 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  14. "Slovenia tops Iran, meets Australia in round of 16". Yahoo.com. AP. 2 September 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  15. "Brazil beats Croatia to take 3rd in Group B". Yahoo.com. AP. 2 September 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
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