U16 Men Group A

by Dan Casey

Alberto Martin and Spain made it two wins in a row by finishing off Greece in style in their last Preliminary Round game.

With both sides already guaranteed to enter the Qualifying Round, Spain got an important victory over Greece, 64-46.

The Greek team began well but after the first quarter, the Spanish defense closed down Greece, and Spain were able to move away for a comfortable win.

Coach Diego Ocampo commented afterwards, "It was important for us to get a win for the next stage of the tournament. They had good big players, but our guys defended well."

Georgios Diamantakos started well for the Greek team, scoring six early points and ending with a game-high 15. But overall Greece shot just 34%, and were pressured into 21 turnovers.

Ilimane Diop stopped the Greek players coming inside with four blocked shots, and led the Spanish scoring alongside Agusti Sans with 12 points. Point-guard Alberto Martin ran the team well and ended with 8 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists.

Coach Ocampo said, "We are looking for more control in the future games. We rebounded well today, but sometimes we are pushing too fast for fast-break points."

Greece's Anastasios Spyropoulos scored on a nice post move early in the second half to make the score 27-28, but Spain then went on a 11-0 run as their defensive pressure shut down the Greek team.

Greece pushed again in the final quarter, but Ferran Ventura scored an and-1 lay-up and Sans hit a three-pointer to establish a 54-39 lead and secure the victory for Spain.