US crushes Iran; Angola shocks Germany

ISTANBUL -- World championship favorite US made it four wins out of four with an 88-51 victory over Iran yesterday while Angola booked a place in the last 16 with a stunning 92-88 overtime defeat of Germany.
Hamed Ehadadi (C) of Iran jumps for the ball with Lamar Odom (L) during the preliminary round group B match between Iran and USA at the FIBA World Basketball Championships at the Abdi Ipekci Arena in Istanbul on Sept. 1. -- <i>AFP</i>
Hamed Ehadadi (C) of Iran jumps for the ball with Lamar Odom (L) during the preliminary round group B match between Iran and USA at the FIBA World Basketball Championships at the Abdi Ipekci Arena in Istanbul on Sept. 1. -- AFP

Serbia also reached the knockout rounds with a match to spare after a 94-79 victory over Australia and holder Spain avoided an early exit, overcoming a poor start to demolish Lebanon, 91-57.

The eagerly awaited Group B clash between the US and Iran was played in sporting fashion, with pockets of rival fans watching in a half-empty Abdi Ikpeci Arena.

Iran held its own in the first half and trailed by 14 points at the interval but the gulf in class was all too obvious after the break, with all 12 players on the US roster getting on the scoresheet.

"We held our opponents for a long period and it was only in the last seven minutes we ran out of steam," Iran’s Serbian coach Veselin Matic said.

"This is our first world championship and all this entertainment was good for us, it helped motivate my players to be at their best."

The teams applauded the fans and embraced each other after the match and Matic’s US counterpart Mike Krzyzewski praised Iran, whose center Hamad Ehadadi finished as the game’s top scorer with 19 points and five rebounds.

"The Iran team played really hard and had a really good game plan," he said.

Center Tyson Chandler added: "It was a very good game and we had a lot of respect for each other."

Center Kevin Love led the United States with 13 points, forward Kevin Durant added 12, guard Derrick Rose chipped in with 11 and Danny Granger scored 10 in a balanced team effort.

Germany out

Germany’s earlier win over Serbia turned out to be a flash in the pan as it lost to Group A rival Angola, defeat sending it out of the 24-team event.

The African champion led throughout and although Germany somehow forced five additional minutes, it was undone by superb long-range shooting in overtime.

Olimpo Cipriano poured in 30 points and fellow forward Joaquim Gomez added 16 to go with 14 rebounds as Angola sank an impressive 18 three-pointers from 40 attempts.

Serbia welcomed captain Nenad Krstic back from suspension and playmaker Milos Teodosic and they were instrumental in the win over Australia that sealed a berth in the last 16.

Teodosic hit one three-pointer after another to keep Serbia ahead when the Australians closed in, finishing with a game-high 19 points while Krstic had 14 and 10 rebounds.

"We committed too many turnovers but dominated the offensive boards and Thursday’s final Group A match against Argentina should be a feast," Serbia’s trophy-laden coach Dusan Ivkovic said.

Still reeling from two defeats in its opening three Group D games, Spain trailed Lebanon 22-21 after the first quarter but eventually ran out a comfortable winner on the back of 25 points and eight rebounds from center Marc Gasol.

Lithuania stormed back from a 24-11 first-quarter deficit to beat France 69-55 in Group D.

In Group C, host Turkey rallied to maintain its perfect record with a 79-77 triumph over Puerto Rico and in Group B Slovenia beat Brazil, 80-77.