Xargay finished with a team-high 15 points, and her teammate Anna Cruz scored 13 points and added 11 rebounds for Spain. Don’t miss the big game with a live stream right here!
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The world and European champions may have scraped through the group phase but since the tournament switched venues from Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre to the Olympic Aquatics Stadium they have been back to their formidable best.
These eight surviving teams will hit the court again on Wednesday, as all four quarterfinal matchups will take place on the same day in an exciting quadruple-header from Rio.
With a 110-64 win over France, the USA remained undefeated in the tournament and registered their 48th consecutive victory in Olympic play.
“It’s going to be a different game Saturday”, US forward Angel McCoughtry said.
They meet again: Spain knocked France out in the quarterfinals of the 2012 Olympics, but France exacted some revenge in 2014, beating Spain in the World Cup – in Spain.
Tony Parker, 34, confirmed after the loss that he had played his final game for France. Torrens said this team’s accomplishments are shared with everyone over the past few years who worked so hard to return to the games.
The first two have taken care of business on the track and in the pool in emphatic style and, on Friday night, team US took another step towards achieving the inevitable by booking its passage into the gold medal game after accounting for Spain in the semi-final.
The team seemed to get the message, going on a 14-5 run to start the period, including two 3-pointers by Taurasi that gave the Americans some breathing room.
“They have played together for a while, so they have some experience”. The team has followed suit, scoring 88.8 points a game, second only to the Americans. The goalkeeper Marko Bijač was ideal once more at the goal, saving impossible shots and making Montenegrin players desperate in some moments of the game.
Nikic scored the only goal of a tight third quarter as Italy continued to struggle in front of the net.
The U.S. have not looked this vulnerable since 12 years ago.
The U.S. will play Spain on Saturday for a shot at their sixth straight Olympic title.
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Silvia Dominguez added 10 points for Spain, which will win its first-ever Olympic medal in women’s basketball, while Serbia got 12 points apiece from Cado and Sonja Petrovic. It evoked memories of American Greco-Roman wrestler Rulon Gardner’s victory over three-time gold medalist Aleksandr Karelin at the 2000 Olympics. What’s more, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic has been a force that has been able to showcase his game overall.
