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FIBA: Greece upsets favoured USA
SAITAMA, Japan (AP) - Vassilis Spanoulis scored 22 points Friday as Greece used a sizzling stretch of shooting across the middle two quarters to turn a 12-point deficit into a 14-point lead and beat the United States 101-95 in the semifinals of the world basketball championship.
The Greeks (8-0) can add a world title to the European championship they won in 2005 with a victory over Spain, who narrowly defeated Argentina in the second semifinal 75-74. The gold medal game will be played Sunday.
"They played like a champion plays," American forward Shane Battier said of Greece.
Mihalis Kakiouzis added 15 for Greece and six-foot-10 Sofoklis Schortsianitis - nicknamed "Baby Shaq" - added 14, shooting 6-of-7. The Greeks shot 63 per cent (35-of-56) from the field and made 31 of 44 shots across the final three periods.
"Basketball is not just about dribbling and shooting," said Greek coach Panagiotis Yannakis, who took a congratulatory call from Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis after the game. "You can come off the bench with a clear mind and give the best of your talent and that's what our players did today."
The Greeks - with no current NBA players on their roster - danced in a circle at halfcourt after their victory over an American team put together after a series of recent failures.
"Big players play big games," said guard Theodoros Papaloukas, the MVP of the European final who had 12 assists Friday. "And today I think we played very good."
Done in again by their inept three-point shooting - and they weren't much better from the foul line - the Americans will fall short of a championship in a major international tournament for the third straight time.
The United States (7-1) will return to the court Saturday against the loser of the Argentina-Spain game, hoping to match the bronze medal it left Athens with in 2004.
"Those guys are hurting," said USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo, who was put in charge of the program after a sixth-place finish in the 2002 worlds preceded the disappointment in Athens. "It's probably a better thing we have to come back tomorrow and play again instead of sitting on this for two days."
Carmelo Anthony scored 27 points for the Americans, who couldn't overcome their 32 percent shooting from 3-point range or 59 per cent from the foul line. Dwyane Wade added 19 and LeBron James had 17, but the three U.S. captains were unable to avenge their disappointment from Athens.
"To lose any game is a shock to us," Anthony said. "We came in with the mentality to win the game and the gold medal."
The United States hasn't even played for a world championship since winning the last of its three titles in Toronto in 1994. Mike Krzyzewski - who was looking for gold after winning bronze with the 1990 team - and a few American players walked to midcourt to congratulate the Greeks, while most of their teammates quickly headed to the locker-room.
The Americans, who put together a national team program this year for the first time after their recent failures, now will be forced to qualify for the 2008 Olympics next summer in the FIBA Americas tournament in Venezuela.
