Spain finally shows up in Rio, blows out previously undefeated Lithuania
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It took Spain’s men’s basketball team four games in the Rio de Janeiro Olympics to display the form that won them silver medals in both Beijing and London. However, they didn’t just show up for Saturday’s matchup with the previously undefeated, Group B-leading Lithuania. They absolutely throttled the competition.
Spain opened the contest on a 10-2 run and finished the first quarter up 26-11, setting the stage for a thorough victory. Lithuania cut the margin to 10 with several minutes remaining in the first half, but a late Spain run turned it back into a blowout that only grew larger during a 36-16 third quarter.
After three games in which Spain had looked either offensively inept or defensively frail (and sometimes both), Pau Gasol and his teammates put everything together for a staggering 109-59 win. For comparison, the United States took its Olympic opener against China, a team that still doesn’t have a win, 119-62.
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Spain’s victory was so complete that it’s hard to single out any one aspect, but Gasol was the clear leader of the effort. The 36-year-old big man scored a game-high 23 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field and 5-of-5 from the shorter international 3-point line. Gasol also added five rebounds, five assists, two blocks and two steals. Five others scored in double figures, including every starter, but there was no special drop-off when subs took the court. Spain shot 57.4 percent from the field and 16-of-33 on 3s, grabbed 10 steals as part of 15 total Lithuania turnovers and never let up.
In fact, it was such a thorough victory that NBC Sports Network commentator Fran Fraschilla openly wondered if Lithuania had decided to throw the game. Such plans are not rare in Olympic play, where avoiding the United States until the gold-medal game can be a greater reward than finishing second in the group. It does not make much sense that an undefeated team with a key tiebreaker advantage over second-place Argentina would want to lose, especially given the scenarios at play for Monday’s Group B finales. Nevertheless, Lithuania was poor enough versus Spain to inspire the thought. The team will have to show up for its final preliminary game against Croatia or risk an opening-round matchup with the United States.
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Meanwhile, Spain still has not clinched a spot in the elimination round. It can do so with a win against Argentina on Monday or a Brazil loss to already eliminated Nigeria. Argentina has been a mixed bag in the tournament so far and would find itself in the same situation as Spain if a few bounces had gone the other way in Saturday’s double-overtime thriller over rivals Brazil. However, Argentina is nearly as decorated and experienced as Spain and should be prepared for such a big contest.
Then again, it might not matter if Spain matches its performance from Saturday. No team has looked as steady or capable in any one game this tournament.
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Eric Freeman is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at efreeman_ysports@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
