FIBA World Cup 2014 Results: Scores, Updated Bracket and Day 7 Highlights
With the round of 16 kicking off and the United States opening play against rival Mexico, all eyes were on the FIBA World Cup on Saturday.
From the heavyweights like the United States and Spain in action to France looking to stay alive and perhaps stare down the Spaniards in a quarterfinal clash, there was plenty of fantastic action on Saturday. Below, we'll recap all of the results and update the bracket picture.
Results
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| United States | 86-63 | Mexico |
| France | 69-64 | Croatia |
| Dominican Republic | 61-71 | Slovenia |
| Spain | 89-56 | Senegal |
Bracket Update
Barcelona Bracket
United States vs. Slovenia
New Zealand / Lithuania winner vs. Turkey / Australia winner
Madrid Bracket
France vs. Spain
Serbia / Greece winner vs. Brazil / Argentina winner
Recaps
Spain Cruises Past Senegal, 89-56
The host nation continues to show why it is a top contender to bring home a gold medal at the FIBA World Cup.
Pau Gasol led the way with 17 points, five rebounds and three blocked shots as Spain easily defeated Senegal by a score of 89-56 to move into the quarterfinals.
Spain was able to get an early lead in this matchup, although the African opponent ended up being a tougher draw than originally anticipated. John Schuhmann of NBA.com breaks down the issue in the first half:
Mouhammad Faye, Gorgui Dieng and Abdou Badji each had strong efforts to hold their own against elite NBA talents like Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka. In the end, though, a few big shots by Jose Calderon and other contributors helped the favorites pull away.
Zach Harper of CBS Sports is already penciling this team into the tournament finals:
At the same time, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle explains that the expected final is almost certain to occur:
Based on the way the United States and Spain have played to this point, it would certainly be an exciting matchup to watch.
Before it can go to the finals, however, Spain will have to first defeat France in the quarterfinals. The hosts defeated France 88-64 in group-stage play earlier in the week and will be the heavy favorites this time around, but anything is possible in a single-elimination format.
Based on how the bracket is shaping up, it also would not be surprising to face Brazil a second time in a possible rematch in the semifinals.
Slovenia Beats Dominican Republic, 71-61
For Slovenia, the victory over the Dominican Republic was a brotherly affair.
Goran and Zoran Dragic stole the show, with the Phoenix Suns star leading the way with 18 points and four steals while his younger brother, Zoran, chipped in with 12 points and six assists. They led a balanced Slovenian attack that saw seven players score at least five points and five players score eight or more.
James Feldeine was a beast for the Dominican Republic, scoring 18 points, pulling down eight boards, dishing three assists and adding two steals. Jack Michael Martinez added a double-double off the bench, going for 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Slovenia's prize for advancing to the quarterfinals is a date with the deadly United States, however. It's hard to imagine the Dragic brothers and company pulling off that upset.
France Survives Croatia, 69-64
Croatia came so close to pulling off the upset. Oh so close.
Bojan Bogdanovic did everything he could to pull off the feat, stealing the ball late in the fourth quarter and sinking a three with 54 seconds remaining. That cut France's lead to 66-64 and all but erased the 12-point deficit Croatia had faced to open the fourth quarter.
And with 27 seconds remaining Bogdanovic had a chance to give his team the lead, raising up for a three-point shot. But it wasn't to be for Croatia on this day, as Boris Diaw rebounded the Bogdanovic miss and France hit several free throws down the stretch to survive the rally.
Bogdanovic was certainly a man on a mission, scoring 27 points and adding six rebounds for good measure. Suffice to say, the Brooklyn Nets landed themselves a pretty nice player this summer. Ante Tomic did his part as well, notching 17 points and snaring six rebounds of his own, but the rest of the Croatian team was unable to chip in enough to upset the French.
Nicolas Batum paced France, scoring 14 points and adding four steals, while Evan Fournier (13 points, four rebounds), Mickael Gelabale (11 points, six rebounds) and Thomas Heurtel (10 points, four assists) offered the French more balance than Croatia was able to rely on.
Their next test will be far more demanding, however as they'll face the winner of the Spain vs. Senegal contest. Barring a shocking upset, France is going to be staring down the extremely talented Spanish side. They'll need to play far better against Spain than they did against Croatia if they are to survive that quarterfinal contest.
United States Rolls Past Mexico, 86-63
Led by the Golden State Warriors duo of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, the United States handled its business without much issue against Mexico, advancing to the quarterfinals of the FIBA World Cup.
Curry (20 points, four assists, two steals, 6-of-9 from beyond the arc) and Thompson (15 points, six rebounds, two assists) were firing on all cylinders in this contest while James Harden added to the backcourt blitz with 12 points of his own. In all, the United States killed Mexico from three, hitting 13 of 29 shots from downtown—an important improvement from the 34.4 percent it was shooting from beyond the arc coming into the game.
The United States certainly needed a big night from the perimeter, as Anthony Davis was quiet for once at the tournament, finishing with just four points, six rebounds and three blocks. For a player who has left his mark on the proceedings thus far, it was a muted performance.
However, Kenneth Faried (eight points, eight rebounds) and DeMarcus Cousins (11 points, seven rebounds) were beasts down low for the United States.
Curry was the story in this one, though. At one point in the second half, it appeared he was basically going to beat Mexico by himself, as Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated tweeted:
Indeed, Curry opened the third quarter by dishing an assist to Kyrie Irving before scoring 11 straight points for the United States. By the time that barrage was over, the United States had stretched its 42-27 lead at the half to a 55-30 advantage.
It was Curry at his finest, and it prompted the NBA's Twitter account to pass along the following Vine of Curry doing his work in slow motion:
That, ladies and gentlemen, is as smooth a stroke as you'll see.
For Mexico, Gustavo Ayon did everything he possibly could to keep his country in the tournament, scoring 25 points and snaring seven rebounds, but it simply wasn't enough against the superior Americans. Jorge Gutierrez and Ramon Martinez each scored seven points for Mexico while Marco Ramos snared seven rebounds.
The United States now awaits the winner of the Dominican Republic vs. Slovenia matchup, another game it will be expected to win comfortably—especially since the team gets to rest until Tuesday. Frankly, the United States shouldn't have any nervy games until what looks like the inevitable final against Spain.
If Curry and company continue bombing from the perimeter like they did against Mexico—and Davis continues his excellent play, too—the results until then should be mere formalities.
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