FIBA World Cup 2019 Results: Wednesday Group Scores, Highlights and Reaction

Spain and Marc Gasol qualified as Group C winners on Wednesday at the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup after a 73-65 victory over Iran.

Venezuela booked a place in the second round after defeating China 72-59, forcing the elimination of the host nation.

Serbia completed a perfect record in Group D with a 92-77 win over Italy, with Sacramento Kings guard Bogdan Bogdanovic scoring 31 points for the Eagles. The Italians qualified in second.

Puerto Rico also advanced to the next phase of the competition after beating Tunisia 67-64.

Argentina beat Russia 69-61, but both teams secured the qualification spots in Group B. 

Wednesday's Results

Group A

Ivory Coast 63-80 Poland

Venezuela 72-59 China

Group B

South Korea 66-108 Nigeria

Russia 61-69 Argentina

Group C

Puerto Rico 67-64 Tunisia

Spain 73-65 Iran

Group D

Angola 84-81 Philippines

Italy 77-92 Serbia

To see the full results, standings and schedule, visit the tournament's official website.

Recap

Marc Gasol scored 16 points for Spain against Iran, and the Toronto Raptors centre continued to provide vital leadership for his team during their group success.

The 34-year-old has averaged 15 points per games in a perfect run in Group C, and they are joined in the next round by Puerto Rico, who finished runners-up in the group.

Denver Nuggets forward Juan Hernangomez also made a telling contribution for Spain. The 23-year-old recorded a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds.

There was disappointment for the host nation in Group A, with China crashing out of the tournament after suffering a second loss.

Mark Schiefelbein/Associated Press

Venezuela had too much in the tank for their opponents, and La Vinotinto De Las Alturas were the superior team on the Beijing court.

Heissler Guillent, Gregory Vargas and Dwight Lewis were all hugely influentially, recording double-digit points returns, and the Chinese lacked the intensity needed to stay in the game.

Guillent top-scored for his nation with 15 points, and Lewis sunk 13 points, with both players hitting 50 per cent from the field.

The competition's official Twitter account highlighted Lewis' first-half contribution:

Venezuela join group winners Poland in the next round. The Polish skipped past the Ivory Coast by 17 points during their group game in capital.

Polish guard Adam Waczynski drained 16 points from six-of-seven shooting during the 80-63 win.

Bogdanovic led the Serbs to victory against the Italians, with the guard going off for 31 points in an impressive display of scoring.

Serbia won all three of their group games to cruise through, and they should be a threat to the United States' hopes of retaining the title.

Per Reuters, Serbia coach Aleksandar Djordjevic said he was pleased with his team after they recorded a third successive victory over the Italians in quick succession, with the Serbs also beating Italy twice in their World Cup preparations: 

"It's not easy to win three times against any team even if people say we're much better than them. They have pride and quality, a great shooting team. We just struggled a bit to get into our flow but we never stopped defending. I'm not happy about some of our reactions to some physical fouls because that's not what we want. It's important our young players understand that."

The Eagles dominated the glass with 35 rebounds, and their defensive work kept the Azzurri at bay. Italy qualified in second after winning their opening pair of group matches.