Eurobasket Daily News Report: 7/31/2007

EUROBASKET NEWS REPORT - 7/31/2007

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Men News

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ABA

Latest Signings -by Surujh Roopnarine
The Georgia Gwizzlies have signed 7'2" center Charlie Ludwig (7'0''-C-78, college: ORU).
The Corning Bulldogs signed former NCAA D-3 All-American Ray Bryant (6'5''-G/F) out of Utica College.

Texas Tycoons Brandon Lee Looks to Take Next Step with NBA D-League -by Chris Terrell

Lee to take part in NBA D-League Pre-Draft Camp

01:51 AM CDT on Saturday, July 28, 2007
By BRANDON GEORGE / The Dallas Morning News
bgeorge@dallasnews.com

Mesquite Poteet graduate Brandon Lee (6'3''-G, agency: ProSportsCareers, college: Tarleton St.) has spent the last three years playing basketball in Mexico and Texas trying to grab the attention of NBA personnel.

Lee's best chance at one day becoming an NBA player, however, will come today and Sunday in Arlington.

Lee, a 6-2, 185-pound point guard, was among 30 players from across the nation chosen as finalists for the Miller Lite Go Pro Challenge. That is a promotion that gives players an opportunity to showcase their skills at the NBA Development League Pre-Draft Camp that is from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. today and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday at UT-Arlington's Activities Building. The camp won't be open to the public.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me," said the 25-year-old Lee, who graduated from Poteet in 2000 and from Tarleton State in 2004. "I'm trying to get my name out there, and I just want to showcase my talent."

Coaches from the 12 NBA D-League teams will be on hand both days to evaluate the players, said Chris Alpert, vice president of basketball operations and player personnel for the league.

"What we'll be looking for is, first, their athleticism, their size, their quickness, their speed and their physical attributes to play professional basketball," Alpert said. "We'll also look at their basketball skills. We're looking for a potential diamond in the rough or a guy who has been overlooked."

After the camp, a select group of players will be offered a contract to enter the D-League draft, which will be in early November.

"Those players who are offered a contract will have the opportunity to be selected to go to one of our team training camps," Alpert said. "Our league is a league of opportunity. We feel like this platform offers these players an opportunity to get exposure."

Brandon Lee averaged 16 points per game in his two-year career at Tarleton State. Lee spent last season helping lead the Texas Tycoons to the American Basketball Association championship game. In 30 games for the Tycoons, he averaged 18.3 points, 3.2 assists and 2.2 rebounds per game. He shot 46.4 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from 3-point range.

"This is a real big deal for me," Lee said. "I've had a personal trainer working out with me on a daily basis. I feel like I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

The Texas Tycoons will be looking to add the final pieces to the puzzle in their hunt for this year's ABA Championship at their Free Agent and Rookie Tryout Camp on August 18th at the DeSoto Town Center in DeSoto, Texas. Tryout forms can be downloaded online by visiting www.txtycoons.com or by contacting Tycoons Headquarters at 214-749-0134

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ASIAN CHAMPS

Al-Khatib Leads Lebanon to 2nd Round -by Sadik Abdullah
TOKUSHIMA (FIBA Asia Championship) - Fadi El Khatib (197-F-79, agency: Pro Management Agency) led last years runner ups, Lebanon, into the 2nd round in style. Lebanon defeated UAE 106-64. Fadi led Lebanon with 37 points and 14 rebounds, probably the best all around game in the tournament this far. Joe Vogel (211-C-73, agency: Pro Management Agency, college: Colorado St.), Fadi's running mate, had an 'off' game (if you want to call it that) with 14 points and 6 boards. UAE were led by none other than their leader, Jasim Abdulredha (188-G-81), with 15 points. Talal Salem (185-G-88) finished with 13 points for UAE.

After a great fight, UAE finishes 3rd in Group B and heads home. Lebanons victory allows UAE to head home, finishing the tournament 1-2. Kuwait will also be heading back, finishing the tournament 0-3. That would mean that the very strong Lebanese team and the determined Japanese team will be headed to the 2nd round.

With the way Fadi Al Khatib is playing, every team should be very concerned that he does not blow up for another game like this again or else the championship is coming to Lebanon.

Lebanon, Taiwan and Jordan advance -by Santhosh Kumar
Lebanon, Taiwan and Jordan on Monday advanced to the second round of the Asian men's basketball championship, keeping their Olympic dreams alive for 2008. Lebanon overwhelmed the United Arab Emirates 106-64, with Fadi Elkhatib pouring on 37 points, as the team finished second in Group B. In Group D, Taiwan beat Hong Kong 98-81, while Jordan defeated the Philippines in Group A with both taking the second place.
The three squads join South Korea, Japan, Kazakhstan, Qatar and Iran, who secured their places in the second round on Sunday.
The biggest surprise came from four-time defending champions China, who have not missed a medal since 1975 winning 14 times. They lost to Iran 77-68 to finish with three straight defeats at the bottom in Group A.
In Group C, India gained their first win 72-66 over Indonesia, but it came too late with Qatar and Kazakhstan, who play each other later Monday, already assured of the top two places.
Sixteen countries were divided into four groups for the preliminary round and the top two from each group advanced to the second stage.
The tournament winners qualify for the Beijing Olympics next year. The two best finishers, other than Olympic hosts China and the winners, will be eligible for the final Olympic qualifying round next July.

RESULTS
Group A
Iran 77 China 68
Jordan 84 Philippines 76
Group B
Lebanon 106 UAE 64
Group C
India 72 Indonesia 66
Qatar 76 Kazakhstan 69
Group D
Taiwan 98 Hong Kong 81
South Korea 89 Syria 79

Standings (played, win, lose, points)
Group A
1. Iran 3 3 0 6
2. Jordan 3 2 1 5
3. Philippines 3 1 2 4
4. China 3 0 3 3

Group B
1. Libya 3 2 1 5
2. Japan 2 2 0 4
3. UAE 3 1 2 4
4. Kuwait 2 0 2 2

Group C
1. Qatar 3 3 0 6
2. Kazakhstan 3 2 1 5
3. India 3 1 2 4
4. Indonesia 3 0 3 3

Group D
1. South Korea 3 3 0 6
2. Taiwan 3 2 1 5
3. Hong Kong 3 1 2 4
4. Syria 3 0 3 3

Day 3 report.... -by Mohammed Malas
- Group A:

Jordan - Philippines

Jordan adapted the wait-and-watch policy to almost perfection as they outthought, outwitted and eventually outscored a charged up, but error-prone, Philippines 84-76 in the make-or-break Group 'A' encounter on Monday.

"I think we defended rather well in the third and final quarter," said Jordan coach Mario Palma.

"Also I think we were helped by some of their wayward shooting. I was a little shocked to see those shots, but I'm not complaining," the Portuguese added.

Philippines began rather confidently, with the speedy Mark Anthony Caguioa and the tall Pauliasi Taulava controlling the proceedings. The scoreboard was ticking at regular intervals, the defense seemed to hold itself and much to the joy of their fans Philippines seemed to be on a roll.

All that changed like the cliched bolt from the blue, as Jordan, slowly but surely took charge. Rasheim Wright, who had been pushed into the oblivion by the Filipino rampage, started to call the shots. Sam Daghles and Zaid Alkhas moved, and succeeded, with customary cohesion and Jordan were truly back, and in style.

Where Jordan kept improving, Philippines' graph went on a nose-dive. A couple of fortuituous long rangers - some of them by Jim Alapag from almost near the center-line raised Philippines' hopes, but by then Jordan had wrapped the game under their control.

"I think we lost it when we went ahead 18-13 at the end of the first quarter. Better off to trail and bounce back than go ahead and get complacent," said Philippines coach Vincent 'Chot' Reyes.

Scores
Jordan 84 (Rasheim Wright 24, Sam Daghles 22, Zaid Alkhas 16) bt Philippines 76 (Pauliasi Talava 14, Jim Alapag 10). Quarterwise: 13-18, 35-33, 54-51.

Iran - China

Hamed Ehadadi's powerplay in the second half made all the difference as Iran propelled their way to top of Group 'A' with a 77-68 win over China on Monday.

Having warmed the bench for the first two quarters, Ehadadi took to the court only at the start of the third.

And immediately got into the act, powering his way with a drive-in following it up with a silken sink from just inside the three-pointer line. He continued his influence, totaling 18 points, but more importantly collected eight rebounds despite his curtailed stay.

Those rebounds - four each defensive and offensive - along with keeping the pressure under the rival post, restricted the second shot opportunities for the Chinese.

As a result, Iran played a lot more fluently than they had earlier to canter through.

"He (Ehadadi) made a huge difference," said Iran coach Toroman Rajko.

"We went in to the match with a three-point agenda," the Serbian said.

"First, we wanted to win. Second, we wanted to give a rest to our key players, considering we had played two tight games and we have many more. Thirdly, we wanted to give our bench strength a serious try," he elaborated.

"And I think we achieved all of that."

Scores
Iran 77 (Aidin Nekkah 19, Hamed Ehadadi 18) bt China 68 (Bian Qiang 15, Chen Chen 13). Quarterwise: 17-12, 33-33, 59-46.

- Group B:

Lebanon - UAE

Last edition's runners-up Lebanon exorcized the ghosts of Sunday's shock defeat, with a rather perfunctory 106-64 win against the United Arab Emirates to wrap up their Group 'B' engagements on Monday.

"We had to get back into our rhythm. When you lose a tight game, it's not always easy to get your focus back in less than a day," said Lebanon coach Dragan Raca.

"That way I'm glad we didn't make too many mistakes," the Greek-Cypriot added.

Asked if he had set any specific margin of victory, Raca replied: "This is a Championship. And they are not some pushovers. I was worried if my players would get carried away. Luckily, they didn't."

"So there was no question of setting any targets. The only target was to play properly and win the match. I think we achieved that," the 44-year-old said.

"Matches will definitely get tougher, and we need to play them in quick succession. There's going to be no time to breathe even," he said.

Raca's counterpart, and a very close friend, Zoran Zupcevic, said: "Like I said earlier, our real challenge begins tomorrow." UAE are aiming to finish higher their previous best 10th place ranking -- at Fukuoka 1999 and Shanghai 2001.

"Any experience can only help us in our development," the Bosnian added.

Scores
Lebanon 106 (Fadi El-Khatib 37, Joseph Vogel 14, Omar El-Turk 13) bt UAE 64 (Jassim Haji 15, Talal Alnuaimi 13). Quarterwise: 34-3, 57-31, 88-50.

Japan - Kuwait

Hosts Japan brought the curtain down on the preliminary league of the Championship, beating Kuwait 101-48, on Monday.

"We are happy we could keep the momentum going into the quarterfinals," said Japan coach Kimikazu Suzuki.

"It was also a good opportunity to get all the players a feel of the court," he added.

Scores

Japan 101 (Joji Takeuchi 22, Takuya Nawamura 18) bt Kuwait 48 (Sulaiman Altabakh 8). Quarterwise: 18-14, 47-17, 75-32.

- Group C:

Qatar - Kazakhstan & India - Indonesia

Ali Saad dazzled with his shooting and Qatar topped Group 'C' with a 76-69 win over Kazakhstan on Monday. The 22-year-old point guard top scored the match with 25 points, converting all the four free-throws he earned along with sinking all the seven three-point attempts he made, as Qatar capitalized and powered ahead.

"Of course that kind of a performance doesn't happen every day," beamed Qatar coach Edward Andrist. "We knew we were up against the toughest opponents so far, in all sense, but when someone comes up with that kind of a shooting record, it makes it easy," the American added.

"Kazakhstan posed a lot of problems, which we had expected. Given their size, speed and skills we were not surprised at all. But we had worked out our plan, and it worked. We were quick on their screens and the shooters. We also defended our post rather well. That was the key," he said.

Kazakhstan kept themselves in the race, but once their mainstay Anton Ponomarev was fouled out and the other key Yevgeniy Issakov ran into foul trouble, their task got that much tougher.

"It was a part of our strategy," Andrist said. "To keep our players on the court and theirs off it, was a part of our plan."

Kazakh coach Vitaliy Strebkov too observed that the foul factor played a crucial role. "Our team did struggle once Ponomarev went out and Issakov gathered four."

"Nevertheless, we have qualified. Now we are looking ahead."

India win

In another match in the same group, with no implication on the qualification race, India posted their maiden win, rallying to beat Indonesia 72-66.

Scores
Qatar 76 (Ali Saad 25, Yasseen Musa 15) bt Kazakhstan 69 (Yevgeniy Issakov 15, Anton Ponomarev 14). Quarterwise: 17-17, 40-30, 56-49.

India 72 (Riyazuddin 17, Jagdeep Singh 16, Trideep Rai 15) bt Indonesia 66 (Youbel Sondakh 14, Welly Situmorang 13). Quarterwise: 21-18, 36-41, 52-55.

- Group D:

South Korea - Syria

Korea carved out a clinical victory against Syria at the Municipal Gym to keep their slate clean.

Spearhead Ha Seung-Jin was used only sparsely, but in the time he was on the court, the Milwaukee Bucks center wreaked enough havoc, scoring 16 points and collecting a staggering 12 rebounds, to dent the rivals' morale.

Kim Joo-Sung looked stylish, while top scoring the game, to provide the necessary support to Ha.

Scores
Korea 89 (Kim Joo-Sung 17, Ha Seung-Jin 16, Daniel Robert Sandrin 12) bt Syria 79 (Mohamad Alsaman 20, Micheal Madanly 16). Quarterwise: 27-17, 47-34, 75-52.

Chinese Tipei - Hong Kong

East Asian powerhouse Chinese Taipei posted a business-like 98-81 win against Hong Kong to book their place in the Quarterfinal round, even as Korea remained as one of the unbeaten teams, with an 89-win triumph over Syria, on Monday.

Taipei didn't waste much time in getting into the top gear. Wu Tai-Ho - who top scored with 24 points along with five assists and four rebounds - and Lin Chih-Chieh who matched him in almost every move put Taipei on the road to their destination, the latter adding some precise perimeter shooting to the cohesive inside successes.

"We were far better in getting our balance today," said Taipei coach Chung Kwak-Suk said.

"I was not impressed with our inside shooting yesterday. But I think we got a real good mix of both. That should give us confidence going into the next rounds," said the coach of Korean origin.

Scores
Taipei 98 (Wu Tai-Ho 24, Lin Chih-Chieh 23, Chen Hsin-An 17) bt Hong Kong 81 (Li Kim Wong 18, Lo Yi Ting 12). Quarterwise: 29-15, 56-35, 76-56.

S Mageshwaran
Courtesy of FIBA Asia

Iran, Japan, Qatar, Korea Win Groups -- Jordan, Lebanon, Kazakhstan, Taipei Also Advance -by Arthur Volbert

Iran, Japan, Qatar and Korea were undefeated in winning group titles and Jordan, Lebanon, Kazakhstan and Taipei also advanced to the quarterfinals. Links to box scores appear below. Defending champion China, playing its inept B squad, lost its third straight game, falling to Iran 77-68.

India 72 Indonesia 66
Lebanon 106 United Arab Emirates 64
Korea 89 Syria 79
Taipei 98 Hong Kong 81
Qatar 76 Kazakhstan 69
Iran 77 China 68
Jordan 84 Philippines 76
Japan 101 Kuwait 48
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China Can't Handle Iran Inside in 77-68 Loss -by Arthur Volbert
Completely losing concentration in the third quarter, being outscored 26-13, China's B team lost to Iran 77-68 in the Asian Championship. This was China's third straight lost and it finished an ignominious last in Group A. It will face Hong Kong tomorrow in the relegation round.

Iran outrebounded China 38-21 as this team could not handle the physicality of international basketball. This shows how far the CBA must go to improve its style of play and the conditioning of its second-tier players. China had only 19 turnovers to 22 for Iran but its inability to handle Iran's inside physicality showed in its rebounding disadvantage and its 40.7 percent two-point shooting percentage compared to a 63.6 percent two-point shooting percentage for Iran.

Bian Qiang (192-G-79) led China with 15 points on 4 of 8 shooting. Chen Chen (197-F-86) had 13 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 4 turnovers. Yang Ming (194-G-87), at point guard, has 11 points on 3 of 9 shooting, 1 assist and 2 turnovers in 24 minutes. Han Shuo (198-G-89) (198-G-89) had 5 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 turnovers in 16 minutes. 211 cm Zhang Kai (211-C-82) had 8 points on 1 of 3 shooting in 32 minutes. He had 3 rebounds, all on the offensive end. He had no defensive rebounds in 32 minutes.

BoxScore:
http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/07/fibaAsia/men/scheResu/p/eventid/3969/gamename/5/groupname/A/langlc/en/roundid/5806/fe_scheStat_boxScor.html

Iran-- 17 16 26 18 77
China 12 21 13 22 68

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AUSTRALIA

Perth Wildcats sign Mike Homik -by Eurobasket
Perth Wildcats added to their roster 29-year old New Zealand forward Mike Homik (203-F-78, college: Albertson, agency: Promotex). Homik played most recently at Waikato Titans (New Zealand).

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BELGIUM

Various News -by Peter Buyse

Antwerp Giants has a new head sponsor, the Antwerp World Diamond Centre will as of now be the major sponor for the Antwerp Giants who will as of today be known as the Antwerp Diamond Giants.

Dexia Mons-Hainaut will be Belgian's only participant in this season's Fiba EuroCup.

The draw will take place on Aug 5th.

Other teams participating are

Bosnia & H.: KK Igokea Aleksandrovac
Bulgaria: BC Spartak Pleven
Croatia: KK Zagreb, Cedevita Zagreb
Cyprus: DTL EKA AEL Limassol, Keravnos Cyprus College, Deltalcon APOEL Nicosia
Czech R.: BK Prostejov
Denmark: Skovbakken Bears
Estonia: Tartu Ülikool/Rock
Finland: Lappeenranta NMKY
France: Cholet Basket, BCM Gravelines Dunkerque Grand Littoral
FYROM: Strumica 2005
Georgia: BC Energy Invest
Greece: AEP Olimpiada Patron, Olimpia GE Larissa, PAOK Marfin Thessaloniki, Maroussi Athens, AEK Athens
Holland: Demon Astronauts Amsterdam
Iceland: KR Reykjavik
Israel: Hapoel Ironi Nahariya
Latvia: Barons/LMT Riga
Romania: Univ Mobitelco Cluj Napoca, ELBA Timisoara
Russia: Lokomotiv Rostov na Donu, CSK VVS Samara, Spartak Primorie Vladivostok, Spartak St.Petersburg, Ural Great Perm
Slovenia: Zlatorog Lasko
Sweden: Plannja Basket Lulea
Turkey: Banvit Basketbol Kulubu
Ukraine: Khimik-OPZ Yuzny, SK Cherkassy Monkeys, Dnipro Dnepropetrovsk, MBC Odessa

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BOSNIA

BIH wins against Turkeys University team despite taking 46pts in a half!! -by Nedzad Kladusak
BIH is still undefeated in his practice games but the latest result must be considered to be a step back in its efforts to build a team that can qualify for the EC in Spain.
This time Nenad Markovic experimented by using Bajramovic and Bavcic under the rims. Bajramovic emphasized that he will be the key player in the next stage of qualifications.
However it became also clear that Bavcic feels not comfortable playing under the boards.

University team Turkey - BIH 86:91 (20-20,26-22,17-24,23-25)
TUR: Oguzhan Yazgan 2, Ogun Sevinc 5, Sinan Guler 2, Murat Kaya 17, Cem Coskun 9, Serhat Cetin 8, Berent Kavaklıoglu 18, Cihad Sahin 5, Ismail Esmeray 5, Deniz Tunca 8, Caner Senturk 7
BIH: Sasa Vasiljevic 7, Feliks Kojadinovic 3, Jasmin Hukic 25, Ermin Jazvin 3, Elmedin Kikanovic 4, Mirza Teletovic 13, Edin Bavcic 3, Kenan Bajramovic (206-F-81, agency: Beo Basket) 33,

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BRAZIL

Brazil prevails at the home PanAmerican Games -by Eurobasket News
Brazil - Puerto Rico 86:65
Brazil dominated the PanAmerican Games this year and clinched the top spot defeating Puerto Rico in the Final yesterday. Brazil went through the tournament unbeaten and never endangered their perfect record in the title decider.
The hosts were overwhelming from the start of the encounter and gained a 17:5 lead five minutes into the game. The gap kept growing mercilessly for Puerto Rico and reached a 32:15 mark after the opening frame. Brazil maintained the lead throughout the second frame and drove to a 50:34 advantage at halftime. Puerto Rico obviously struggled to withstand Brazilian aggressive offense and trailed all the way in the game. Brazil entered the final stanza enjoying a 20-point lead and cruised to an overall victory and the PanAmerican Games gold medals.
J.P. Batista (206-F/C-81, college: Gonzaga) topscored for Brazil with 20 points and 7 rebounds. Marcelinho Machado (200-F/G-75, agency: Interperformances) secured another 17 points for the winners. Angelo Reyes (205-F/C-81) produced 14 points and 6 rebounds for Puerto Rico. Joel Jones (196-G/F-81, agency: Paris Global Sports, college: Sacramento St.) added 12 points in alosing effort.
Brazil outrebounded their opponents 39:30. They converted 47% from the field including impressive 53% from outside. Puerto Rico hit just 18% of their three point attempts. Puerto Rico though committed only 9 turnovers and outscored Brazil 34:30 in the paint.

Brazil: J.P. Batista 20, Marcelinho Machado 17
Puerto Rico: Angelo Reyes 14, Joel Jones 12

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CANADA

Canada gains first win, finishes at the 7th place -by Eurobasket News
Canada - Virgin Islands 69:60
Canadian National team finally enjoyed the taste of victory at PanAmerican Games. They edged Virgin Islands in the game for the 7th-8th spots 69:60. Leading by just one point at halftime 41:40 Canada managed to imrove to 57:46 advantage at the end of the third. Virgin Islands cut the deficit to 4 points midway through the fourth frame but Canadian players survived the late threat and posted their only victory in the competition.
Five Canadian players scored in double figures. Jermaine Jackson (189-G-77) recorded 13 points to pace North Americans. Jesse Young had 11 points in winning effort. Virgin Islands replied with 14 points from Carl Krauser (188-G-81, college: Pittsburgh). Jason Edwin (196-G/F-81, agency: Scorers 1st Sportmanagement, college: Kent St.) and Frank Elegar (206-C-86) secured 10 points apiece in a loss.

Canada: Jermaine Jackson 13, Jesse Young 11
Virgin Islands: Carl Krauser 14, Jason Edwin 10, Frank Elegar 10

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CHINA

China Loses to USA 4 Team in Nike Global Challenge -by Arthur Volbert
With one game of international experience, China improved its overall performance against United States competition in the Nike Global Challenge in Portland, Oregon. But it had a lapse of concentration in the third quarter, where it was outscored 29-10, which led to its 95-69 loss to the USA 4 team.

The USA squad only led 19-15 after the first quarter and 42-39 at the half. But the third quarter collapse led to a 71-49 deficit for China. Liu Shunan, who had such a good game yesterday, shot 3 of 16 today as he faced more concentration from the USA defense. He had 12 points and only 1 rebound.

He Zhongmian, another 6-6 perimeter player who was a candidate for the U-19 team, was China's best player today. He had 15 points on 7 of 13 shooting. He had 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 1 steal and 2 turnovers. But he only hit 1 of 4 3-pointers and missed all 3 of his foul shots.

6-9 Dong Honglin had 6 points and 8 rebounds in 20 minutes. He had 2 assists and 4 turnovers. China and the USA team each had 47 rebounds. China had 25 turnovers to 18 by the USA. Wang Junjie, a 6-7 forward, had 10 points on 5 of 9 shooting and 8 rebounds. But he had no assists and 7 turnovers.

Wang Yingliang of Liaoning is doing a good job at point guard. Playing 35 minutes, he had 6 points on 2 of 5 shooting. He had 4 assists, 2 steals and 4 turnovers. Yu Chen had 6 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 turnovers. China plays the USA 1 team later today.

USA4.......................... 19 23 29 24 - 95
CHINA......................... 15 24 10 20 - 69

BoxScore:
http://www.primetimepdx.com/ngc/ngc07_teams/scores/game07.htm

China Can't Handle Iran Inside in 77-68 Loss -by Arthur Volbert
Completely losing concentration in the third quarter, being outscored 26-13, China's B team lost to Iran 77-68 in the Asian Championship. This was China's third straight lost and it finished an ignominious last in Group A. It will face Hong Kong tomorrow in the relegation round.

Iran outrebounded China 38-21 as this team could not handle the physicality of international basketball. This shows how far the CBA must go to improve its style of play and the conditioning of its second-tier players. China had only 19 turnovers to 22 for Iran but its inability to handle Iran's inside physicality showed in its rebounding disadvantage and its 40.7 percent two-point shooting percentage compared to a 63.6 percent two-point shooting percentage for Iran.

Bian Qiang (192-G-79) led China with 15 points on 4 of 8 shooting. Chen Chen (197-F-86) had 13 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 4 turnovers. Yang Ming (194-G-87), at point guard, has 11 points on 3 of 9 shooting, 1 assist and 2 turnovers in 24 minutes. Han Shuo (198-G-89) (198-G-89) had 5 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 turnovers in 16 minutes. 211 cm Zhang Kai (211-C-82) had 8 points on 1 of 3 shooting in 32 minutes. He had 3 rebounds, all on the offensive end. He had no defensive rebounds in 32 minutes.

BoxScore:
http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/07/fibaAsia/men/scheResu/p/eventid/3969/gamename/5/groupname/A/langlc/en/roundid/5806/fe_scheStat_boxScor.html

Iran-- 17 16 26 18 77
China 12 21 13 22 68

Iran, Japan, Qatar, Korea Win Groups -- Jordan, Lebanon, Kazakhstan, Taipei Also Advance -by Arthur Volbert

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CROATIA

KK Zadar sign Jere Macura -by Eurobasket
KK Zadar added to their roster 27-year old domestic power forward Jere Macura (204-F/C-80, college: Notre Dame). Macura played most recently at Kvarner Resort Novi Rijeka (A1).

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CYPRUS

Woodward in AEL! -by Chris Mammides

The Croat Forward Sasa Cuic (208-F-83, college Oregon State University) and the American star Duane Woodward (191-G-76, agency: Passing Lane, college: Boston Coll.) agreed terms with AEL. The talented Croat signed an one year contract and the same goes for Duane , who will be wearing his favorite yellow jersey once more after nearly three years
Proteas EKA AEL (the new name of AEL Limassol) has now a new sponsor and according to some valid information Proteas group (Russian entrepreneurs) already gave 700,000 euros for the team so very soon the Limassol management will add some more players in their roster.

In regards to some rumors now, AEL is very close to sign Panagiotis Trisokkas, the Cypriot star was voted as the top player in the league 2006-2007 and will be a bid success for the Limassol club.

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D-LEAGUE

D-Leaguers at 2007 Pan American Games -by Surujh Roopnarine
Gold Medal winning Brazil received strong play from Marcus Vinicius (6'10''-F-84) of the Tulsa 66ers. The lanky forward finished fourth on Brazil in scoring at 13.8 per game and third in rebounding at 5.4
Jose Juan Barea (5'11''-G-84, agency: KMG Sports Management, college: Northeastern) concluded a whirlwind last month and a half, competing in the Vegas and Rocky Mountain Summer Leagues before leading Puerto Rico to an unexpected Silver Medal at these Pan Am Games. The Dallas Mavericks guard spent time with Ft. Worth this season and made an immediate impact with back-to-back 40 point games. In five games Barea averaged 16.4 points (5th Overall), 5.4 assists (2nd Overall) and 3.6 rebounds in just under 30 minutes per. National Team teammate and D-League veteran Peter John Ramos (7'4''-C-85) averaged 8.0 points and 5.0 rebounds while shooting 17-32 (53.1%) from the field.
Danilo "JR" Pinnock (6'5''-G-83, college: George Washington) finished strong for Panama after an up and down beginning to the tournament. The former RimRocker spent 21 games in the D-League this past season averaging 11 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists. Pinnock led all tournament scorers with 17.2 per game and added 3.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists.

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DOMINICAN REP.

Eddy Elisma Is Facing Conflict -by Kerwin Abreu

Santo Domingo: Eddie Elisma (205-F/C-75, college: Georgia Tech) signed a contract to play for las Panteras in the Lidoba´s Basketball, he played a game with 5 points and 12 rebounds but the big issue is that supposedly he was also in contract with Los Reales de la Vega incurring him in a violation that could mean a suspension for him. By the time nothing is confirmed but he is not with the team. Another thing that has been running around is that he is not earning the top salary $4,000 Dollars wich is a violation to the Lidoba´s Salary Rules.

Last year Eddie Elisma played for Los Marineros De Pueto Plata in 2005 and for los Caneros De la Romana in 2006. Now he is not playing but things will come out about this soon. Just Lets wait.

Contracts like Franklin Western (200-F-72, college: Providence) (Constituyentes) and another players will be revised in the next days cause of the League Salary Cap.

Reales de La Vega: We´ve never made an offer to Eddie Elisma. -by Jaime Gomez
Fausto Warden, President of Reales de La Vega, is shocked that the team is being mentioned in the Eddie Elisma (205-F/C-75, college: Georgia Tech) issue. " We talked to Mr. Elisma over the phone, asking him if he would be interested in playing for Reales, and he said that i had to talk to his agent, but we could not contact him. We´ve never made an offer to Mr. Elisma ". "Reales de La Vega has no reason whatsover to prevent Mr. Elisma from playing in LIDOBA".

Rumor says the conflict involves Panteras del Distrito Nacional, Caneros de La Romana and Constituyentes de San Cristobal.

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E.CHAMPS U16

Division B: Poland gets the trophy! -by Eurobasket News
Final

Poland U16 - Hungary U16 80:73
Poland revenged for the loss in the qualifying round and overcame Hungary in the title clash of the U16 European championship in Division B. The title means Poland will play in Division A next year.
Polnad never hesitated en route to the championship Gold as they took control of the game early on. Poland capped the first frame with a 5:0 run to establish a 28:17 lead. Sebastian Szymanski (182-G-91) dropped 4 straight points in the second quarter to ensure a 38:21 advantage for Polish team. Hungary however responded with 10:0 run of their own to stay in race. Patryk Scigala (197-F-91) completed the first half with a trey to give Poland a 46:34 lead at halftime.
Polish players maintained the gap throughout the third frame and Hungary only managed to cut it to 57:64 on Janos Eilingsfeld (198-F/C-91)'s three pointer at the end of the quarter. Hungarian forward added two more points to open the final stanza and brought Hungary as close as 5 points. Eilingsfeld later nailed another jumper to cut the deficit to just 3 points 63:66 3 minutes into the quarter. However Poland never allowed Hungary to come closer. Patryk Scigala waas perfect from free throw line and Hubert Wierzbicki knocked down a jump shot to ensure a winning outcome for Poland at the dying stage.
Poland were paced by Sebastian Szymanski with 24 points. Patryk Scigala and Wojciech Fras (202-F-91) provided 16 points apiece and combined 18 rebounds for the winners. Janos Eilingsfeld shone for Hungary with 30 points and 14 rebounds. Zsolt Lakosa (186-G-91) chipped in 14 points in defeat.

Poland U16: Sebastian Szymanski 24, Patryk Scigala 16, Wojciech Fras 16
Hungary U16: Janos Eilingsfeld 30+14 boards, Zsolt Lakosa 14

3rd-4th spots

Sweden U16 - England U16 66:65 (OT)
Sweden won the Bronze medlas of the U16 European championship in Macedonia. They overcame England in a dramatic battle yesterday's night to step at the podium.
The game was a bunch of nerves and drama as the teams kept it tight throughout the whole regulation and overtime. England enjoyed an early lead as they rolled to a 15:13 distance after the opening frame. Levi Noel (194-G-91) drained 3 points and Raheem May-Thompson added two more to give England necessary boost at the start of the second quarter and they cleared off to a 20:13 distance. However Sweden quickly closed the gap and tied the scoreline on Andreas Person (187-G-91)'s three pointer with 2 minutes left in the frame. The teams drove to a halftime break all square at 30.
Sweden surged ahead midway through the third quarter when they nailed a couple of straight jumpers and enusred a 44:38 gap enetering the final quarter. Christopher Czerapowicz (192-G-91) connected from outside early in the fourth frame to out Sweden up by 7 points 47:40. They held on to the lead throughout the bigger part of the stanza before Ryan Richards (205-F-91) tapped ball in and secured a 54:53 lead for England with just over 2 minutes remaining. Czerapowicz immediatelly responded with a long jumper to regain the lead for Sweden. However Ryan Richards was there again and his jump shot tied the game with 1 minute and 9 seconds on the clock. Andreas Person got fouled and converted both free throws but Levi Noel managed to score two points to force overtime.
Ryan Richards' one more jumper allowed England to stay ahead by 5 points midway through overtime 65:60. But Olof Jagbeck first connected from beyond the arc and Alexander Lindqvist (202-G-91) nailed one of two free throws to come within a single point from England. Adam Thoseby missed his shot while Christopher Czerapowicz was perfect from the charity stripe to see Sweden spurring ahead with 9 seconds left. Joshua Houghton tried to save England but his buzzer beater missed the target.
Alexander Lindqvist led Sweden to the win with 18 points and 6 rebounds. Andreas Person contributed 12 points, while Christopher Czerapowicz netted 10 for the winners. Ryan Richards topscored for England with game-high 30 points and 14 rebounds. Levi Noel added 16 points and 6 rebounds in a defeat.

Sweden U16: Alexander Lindqvist 18, Andreas Person 12, Christopher Czerapowicz 10
England U16: Ryan Richards 30+14 boards, Levi Noel 16

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EL SALVADOR

First playoff results -by Jaime Arevalo
Game 1 of the quarterfinals supplied two surprises, as lower-ranked Santa Ana and La Jugada clearly defeated Denver and Felinos, respectively, and now can advance to the semis, winning Game 2 at home. No problems, instead, for the two Groups winners, Cosmos and Universidad Francisco Gavidia.
Cosmos - UTEC 65-63 aggregate 1-0
Felinos - La Jugada 46-76 aggregate 0-1
Denver - Santa Ana 53-66 aggregate 0-1
UFG - Santa Tecla 116-71 aggregate 1-0
with the help of Julia Salazar (FESABAL)

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EURO CHAMPS

France: news - Parker injured, without causing warries , though -by Kostas Papadopoulos
San Antonio Spurs point guard Tony Parker (183-G-80) will be rested as a precaution from France's two internationals with Switzerland and Belgium after feeling pain in his right ankle. A scan has revealed no more than bruising, but Parker has not featured France at Saturday's friendly with the Swiss in Geneva and he will not take part even on the August 4's game with the Belgians.
A statement on the www.basketfrance.com read: "The player will follow appropriate treatment for about eight days. As a precaution the leader of the Tricolores (France) will not take part in the matches with Switzerland (July 28) and Belgium (August 4)". Parker, who recently married Desperate Housewives star Eva Longoria, remains with France at their training camp in Divonne-les-Bains.
In the Saturday's friendly with the Swiss in Geneva, now, France easily won Switzerland 74-56 with Tariq Kirksay (199-F-79, college: Iona) scoring 12 points and grabbing seven boards and Ronny Turiaf (208-C/F-83, college: Gonzaga) contributing with his 14 points. He also had seven rebounds.
France coach Claude Bergeaud used the game to give Michel Morandais (198-G/F-79, college: Colorado) and Cedric Ferchaud (195-F-80) run-outs. The game was a part of the celebrations for the 75th anniversary of FIBA.
After the game, Claude Bergeaud reckoned that Tariq Kirksay could force his way into the starting five for Eurobasket. Bergeaud was impressed by what he saw of the 27-year-old from the Bronx: "I was expecting nothing else but he is fantastic. He is funny, laughs and jokes with everyone. I am grateful to have a creative player like him. In training he is always concentrating and almost too efficient. At present he is better than the others in all domains - interception, offensive rebounds, shooting - everything". Bergeaud then hinted that he could break into the first team if Boris Diaw (203-F/C-82) continues to have injury problems: "His status can change and if Boris is not there that is even more likely”.

Another withdrawal for Slovenia: Zagorac -by Kostas Papadopoulos
Slovenia was forced to leave behind one of its star players, while travelling to China to continue its preparations for Eurobasket. Zeljko Zagorac (204-F-81, agency: World Sport Agency) announced his withdrawal from the tournament in Spain, preferring to concentrate on his domestic career as he finalises a move to Lokomotiva Rostov.
Team's coach Ales Pipan said: "He has been advised not to play for the national team if he wants to join the Russian club. Before he called me, the night before our departure to China, it did not seem like this could happen. In fact, he seemed happy to be a part of the team and determined to help us to succeed in Spain".
Slovenia is in China, participating in the Stankovic Cup, alongside with Angola, New Zealand, China, Venezuela and an NBA Development League Ambassadors' team. The tournament, which began on Saturday, is crucial to Slovenia's preparations ahead of September's Eurobasket. Ales Pipan has excluded four senior players from the tour, Radoslav Nesterovic (212-C-76), Matjaz Smodis (205-F-79), Erazem Lorbek (210-F/C-84, college: Michigan St.) and Jaka Lakovic (186-G-78) leaving them behind to continue their training independently.
Ales Pipan admitted that the team's performance at the forthcoming event in Guangzhou is more important than the results: “The result is not our main objective, we will train hard and try to develop as a team as much as possible. I will divide the playing time among all 10 players that have travelled here. Hopefully we will play better every match".

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FRANCE

ProA&B : Last market news -by Aurelien Hipp

*Le Havre signed Jahsha Bluntt (198-G-84) and Marcellus Sommerville (201-F-82, college: Bradley). Sommerville already was in France last season ( a season with Angers, and good playoffs with Chalon in ProA), while Blutt has left Delaware State with a 15.5ppg 4.9rpg 1.6apg statistic line for his senior season.

*Pape-Philippe Amagou (185-G-85, agency: Octagon) signed for Nancy and leaves Le Mans after 6 professional seasons.He posted 6.4ppg 1.7rpg 1.9apg in Pro A last season.

*Kendall Dartez (208-C/F-80, agency: Hart Sports Mngm, college: Louisville) signs for Roanne. The US Center posted 9.6ppg 5.7ppg in Selcuk and was a high-school star, considered as country's second best center behind Zach Randolph.

* Cyril Apkomedah (202-F-79)signs for Paris. The french PF left France to play in Belgium (2 seasons at Charleroi), but didn't end the second one, leaving to Bosnia.

*Francois Renaux (194-G-82) has extended his contract and will stay at Limoges next season.

*Mario Boggan (200-F/C-83) has signed for Dijon for next season. The US forward posted 19.0ppg 7.6rpg as a senior in Oklahoma State.

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GERMANY

POM baskets Jena add Blake Shelton -by Moritz Korff
Bundesliga-newcomer POM baskets Jena signed Blake Shelton (198-G/F-80) for the upcoming season. The 26-year-old Shooting Guard graduated from Linfield College, a school from the NCAA Division 3, in 2005. Then made his first steps as a pro in the IBL, before moving abroad, joining the Sheffield Sharks in England. During the 2006-2007 season, his second year in the BBL, he averaged 17.1 points, 5.7 boards, 3.7 assists and 2 steals over 36 games.

Young big man to Stahnsdorf -by Moritz Korff
Leon Rothenbacher (208-F/C-87) has been added to the roster of RSV Eintracht Stahnsdorf (2. Bundesliga Pro B). The center-prospect is going to be a member of the Pro B-squad and will come to play for the clubs' second team (2. Regionalliga) as well. Rothenbacher averaged 10.7 ppg in 21 games for TK Hannover (2. Regionalliga) during this past season.

EnBW Ludwigsburg sign Frank Young -by Eurobasket
EnBW Ludwigsburg agreed terms with American forward Frank Young (196-F, college: W.Virginia). Young played most recently at West Virginia University (NCAA) in the U.S.

Willie Jenkins to Goettingen -by Moritz Korff
Willie Jenkins (198-F-81, college: Tennessee Tech) is the new Forward of BG 74 Goettingen (1. Bundesliga). The native from Memphis, Tennessee, who is 25 years of age, signed a contract for one year. Jenkins played in France during this past season and averaged 14.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists in 33 games for Division Two-club Aix-Maurienne Savoie Basket. The 2005 All-OVC Player of the Year is described as a "natural scorer". He can play the 3 and 4-spot.

Two imports for BG Dorsten -by Moritz Korff
BG Dorsten (2. Regionalliga) signed two US-players for the upcoming season. The club that used to shelter one of the finest programs in Womens' basketball in Germany, will focus on the Men's team in the future, trying to get back to Regionalliga as a first step and making the 2. Bundesliga in a medium-term perspective.
The two players who shall help reaching the first goal are Dalun Smith (175-G-81, college: Philander Smith) and Carlos Cogsdell (202-F/C, college: Pittsburg-Johnstown).
Smith spent two years at Lyon College (NAIA) and played at Philander-Smith College (NAIA) as a senior, averaging 17 points and 4 assists per contest. Big man Cogsdell, a graduate of D2-school Pittsburgh-Johnstown, had a stint at Pittsburgh Xplosion in the ABA during the 2005-2006 season.

Bremerhaven signs Power Forward -by Moritz Korff
1. Bundesliga-team Eisbaeren Bremerhaven has added Alan Wiggins (206-F-84, college: USF) to the roster. The 23-year-old Power Forward put his name under a contract for one year. Wiggins spent his entire college-career at the University of San Francisco (NCAA1) and scored in double figures on average during the past two seasons. As a senior he poured in 14.3 points per game plus 7.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.5 blocked shots.

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GREECE

Monday's transfer news -by Chris Mammides
A1
Aris agreed terms with the American Bracey Wright (191-G-84, college: Indiana) for one year. At the same time two players which have been targeted from the Canadian Head Coach Herbert are history, Ellis will continue his career in the Spanish league while Padious will remain in the Russian league (Uniks Kazan)
Panionios announced Giannis Giannoulis (207-C-76) for the next two years.
AEL 1964 agreed terms with Panagiotis Karavanas (213-C/F-84), Aris's ex player while it is very close to sign the American player Tim Pickett (193-G-81, college: Florida St.)
A2
Nikos Katsares (188-G-83) has been announced officially by Trikalla 2000
Ionikos Lamias agreed terms with the veteran player Costas Patavoukas (189-G-66) to be the new Team manager of the team.
Rethymno agreed terms with the veteran player Michalis Romanidis to be the new team manager of the team. At the same time the islanders agreed terms with the young coach Giorgos Vovoros to the new assistant coach of Stergios Koufos replacing Stefanos Dedas .
B' Division
ASE Doukas announced the signing of the experienced center Artemis Kouvaris (217-C-75).
The experienced center Vassilis Papadopoulos (204-F/C-74) and Keravnos Aigiou split ways; the skilled center will be upgrading divisions as ICBS will be the next stop in his career. Papadopoulos had 11.4ppg, 6.3rpg and 1.2bspg in 25 games with Keravnos Aigiou jersey.
Giorgos Bellis (207-C-82) will be announced within the next couple of days in Keravnos Aigiou.

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HOLLAND

Francisco Elson return in the Dutch National Team. -by Fred Roggen
Francisco Elson (212-C-76, agency: Court Side, college: California), who became last season champion of the NBA with the San Antonio Spurs, play this summer in the Dutch national team. On 7 augusts the center joins the selection of coach Marco van den Berg for the qualifications to the EC 2007.

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HUNGARY

ASE: two american guards signed! -by Tamas Deri
The management of the team just agreeded with the two american guards for the season 2007/08!
The point guard will Johnny Gray (186-G-83, college: Pacific, agency: Pensack Sports), who played last season 14 games for Tuebingen in Germany, averaged 3.5 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. He left in January and went to Angola to play for Desportivo 1. De Agosto Luanda. He graduated in 2006 in Pacific University, where he had really great senior season: 33 games: 14.9ppg, 2.7rpg, 3.2apg, FG: 48.7%, 3PT: 42.9%, FT: 87.7%!

The new shooting guard will be Nile Murry (193-G-83, college: TCU, agency: Basketball Beyond Borders) who also graduated in 2006 in Texas Christian University! He played 31 games in his senior season and averaged 16.7ppg, 4.2rpg, 2.6apg, 1.7spg, FG: 37.2%, 3PT: 36.6%, FT: 82.4%! After his college carreer he decided to play in Japan, where he played for Toyama Grouses (JPN-BJ League,1T) and averaged 19.5 ppg! In May 2007 he played 5 games in Puerto Rico, for Maratonistas de Coamo (PUR-BSN,1T), and showed also his scoring ability with 13.5 points per game!

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INDIA

India post maiden win -by Santhosh Kumar
Chennai, July 30: With no implication on the qualification race, India posted their maiden victory at the Fiba Asian basketball championship on Monday. With Riyazuddin (17) and skipper Trideep Rai (16) finding the hoop with aplomb, India rallied to down Indonesia 72-66 in their final league encounter, according to information received here. Now India will play classification play-off for 9th to 16th place. Meanwhile, Lebanon, Taiwan and Jordan reached the second round of the championship, keeping their Olympic dreams alive for 2008.
Result: India 72 (Riyazuddin 17, Jagdeep Singh 16, Trideep Rai 15) bt Indonesia 66 (Youbel Sondakh 14, Welly Situmorang 13). Quarterwise: 21-18, 36-41, 52-55.

Indian Senior Men Basketball team -by Santhosh Kumar

Kadam

Shivkumar

Trideep

Riyaz

Jagdeep

4 Sambhaji Kadam (176-G-80) of Services
5 Dilawar Singh (180-G-78) of Punjab Police Jalandhar
6 Mukkanniyil Anoop (198-C-86) of ONGC
7 Rajanna Raj (201-F/C-84) of Young Cagers
8 Ravi Kumar (199-F-87) of IOB
9 Shiv Kumar (187-F/G-85) of ONGC
10 Roshan Padavettiyil (192-G) of Vijaya Bank
11 Yadav Lokesh (181-G) of North Western Railway Jaipur
12 Trideep Rai (190-F-83) of ONGC
13 Riyaz Uddin (186-G-81) of ONGC
14 R. Murlikrishna (203-F-79) of ONGC
15 Jagdeet Singh (202-C-86) of Punjab Police Jalandhar
Coach: Aleksandar Bucan , Mahender Rathor
Manager: K. Govindaraj
FIBA Referee : Amarjot Singh
FIBA Commissioner: Naresh Aneja

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ISRAEL

Green is moving to Russia -by Elad Zeevi
Yaniv Green (206-F-80), who played in Maccabi Tel-Aviv in the last three seasons, will play in the Russian league next year, after he agreed terms with CSK VVS Samara. Green, who finished his 3-year contract with Maccabi this summer, perfered to sign abroad over staying in Maccabi or moving to Hapoel Jerusalem, who was interested in his services.
the 27-years-old forward didn't get a lot of playing time in his years at Maccabi, and is expected to get a significant role in his new team. Green finished lat year with 7.1 PPG and 3 RPG in the Israeli league, but was reduced to 3 PPG and 2 RPG in the euroleague.

Doron Sheffer Makes a come back - signs with Galil Elion -by Tamar Goldman

After three retirements Doron Sheffer (196-G-72, college: Connecticut) is making one more come back. The 35 year old guard quit playing basketball (the 3rd time) two years ago and started and many didn't think he'll be back again. But Sheffer surprised everyone and signed with Galil Elion on a one year contract. Sheffer was one of the Galil players when the team won the Israeli championship in 1993. After that season Sheffer left to the US to play for Connecticut University and he was drafted in 1996 by LAC in the 36th place. he choose to give up the NBA and came back to Israel, and played for Maccabi Tel Aviv until the year 2000, then he announced for the first time that he's retiring. In 2003 he made a come back to Maccabi. The following year he signed for two years in Hapoel Jerusalem and won the Ulebcup with the club in 2004. After the second year in Jerusalem he retired again, made another come back in the middle of 2005 to Hapoel Tel Aviv, where he played only 5 games before deciding to retire again.
The last two year Sheffer was concentrated in learning the Torah and played a couple of games in special occasions.

Hall stayes In Gilboa/Afula -by Tamar Goldman

The American forward Jermaine Hall (196-F-80, agency: Baseline Sports, college: Wagner) signed with Hapoel Gilboa/Afula and will start he's third year in the club. Hall came to Gilboa/Afula when the team was still playing in the secon Div. (after leaving Portugal) and was one of the palyers that led the team to the playoff finales. Eventhough Gilboa/Afula lost that series, the club found it self in the first Div. last year. Some where skeptical about Hall ability to proove himself in that league, but the forward showed everyone what he was made of and had a significant part in the team's achievement - finishing in 6th place.

In the 27 games that he pLyed last season Hall averaged 18.0ppg, 5.0rpg, and 1.3spg.

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ITALY

Last market news and rumors -by Gianni Pascucci
Virtus VidiVici Bologna inked Federico Lestini (203-F-83) with a four-year contract and Delonte Holland (201-F-82, college: De Paul) for the next three seasons. Armani Jeans Milano should announce soon the agreement with Ansu Sesay (206-C/F-76, college: Mississippi). Lottomatica Roma agreed to loan Daniele Cinciarini (194-G-83, agency: Interperformances) to Angelico Biella for a season. Scavolini-Spar Pesaro hasn' t yet signed Bootsy Thornton (194-G-77, college: St.John's), but the negotiations are on. Pesaro is also talking with the agent of Pasco Pervis (206-F/C-81, college: Kansas St.).

Rieti sign Morris Finley -by Eurobasket

Solsonica Rieti (newcomer in Serie A) strengthened their roster with addition of 26-year old American guard Morris Finley (180-G-81, college: UAB). Finley played most recently at Belgacom Liege Basket (Belgium), where he was 3rd leading scorer in the league with 17.0ppg.

Lega2 - Market news -by Gabriele Fioretti
Caserta is close to end the building of its team: Chris Owens (204-F-79, college: Texas) could be the bigman that will play with Alessandro Frosini (208-C-72) in the front-court. More, Sergio Plumari (198-F-86) could be the last sign for the team coached by Andrea Trinchieri . Fabriano announced to have signed German Sciutto (190-F-78, agency: Interperformances) and some rumours talk about Alessandro Piazza (174-G-87). Jermaine Boyette (189-G-78, agency: SportsTalent, college: Weber St.) and Lorenzo D'Ercole (190-G-88) seems close to be inked for Livorno, while Veroli after solving internal problems between coach and club, announced its first signs: the renewal of Pietro Bianchi (203-C/F-73) and the sign of Sotiris Gioulekas (202-F-79).

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JORDAN

Jordan...You did it!! South Korea is next!! -by Mohammed Malas
Jordan waited for that big winning time from a long time ago, Last pressure was so huge for the two side's of the game Jordan and Philippines to know the qualifier to 2nd round, But Jordan was the better to win at the end 84-76 to be 2nd of Group A in FIBA-Asia Championsip (Japan) after iran who made 3-0 series.

Mario Palma said after the game: "I think we defended rather well in the third and final quarter," "Also I think we were helped by some of their wayward shooting. I was a little shocked to see those shots, but I'm not complaining,"

Philippines were in the better side at the beginning of the game until the 2nd quarter, With good work from Mark Caguioa and Pauliasi Taulava and that helped to show some control in the game at the beginning to lead at the break by 2 points 35-33.

All that changed from the 3rd quarter from Jordan who started slowly, Sam Daghlas, Zaid Al Khas and Rasheim Wright knew how to find the good way to find the points from adding to the solid defense who gave the team the needed system to be the leaders in the quarter which ended 63-60 for Nashama.

Jordan kept improving in the last session and that made philippines be out of concentration despite some individual efforts from Jim Alapag, Jordan wrapped the game under their shoulders to finish leading by 8.

Jordan 84 - Philippines 76 (Q's: 13-18, 33-35, 63-60 & 84-76)

- Best Scorers:
Rasheim Wright (JOR) 24
Sam Daghlas (JOR) 22
Zaid Al Khas (JOR) 16
Pauliasi Taulava (PHI) 14
Jim Alapag (PHI) 10

- Best Rebounders:
Islam Abbas (JOR) 9
Ayman Dies (JOR) 8
Rasheim Wright (JOR) 8
Zaid Al Khas (JOR) 7
Kelly Williams (PHI) 7

- Best Assist:
Sam Daghlas (JOR) 5
Enver Soobzokov (JOR) 5
Jim Alapag (PHI) 3

The 2nd round of FIBA-Asia Championship will begin tomorrow, The 8 qualified teams were divided into two groups.

- Group E:
Iran (1st of A)
Lebanon (2nd of B)
Qatar (1st of C)
Chinese Tipei (2nd of D)

- Group F:
Jordan (2nd of A)
Japan (1st of B)
Kazakhstan (2nd of C)
South Korea (1st of D)

Jordan will begin tomorrow against South Korea, on Wednesday Kazakhstan and Thursday the last game of 2nd round will be gainst hosts Japan, 2 teams from each group will qualify to semis.

To Jordan NT players....I was sure of your win today, Hope for you the best in next rounds, You can to it......God be with you.....

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KUWAIT

Kuwait Leaves Asian Championship Winless -by Sadik Abdullah
TOKUSHIMA (FIBA Asia Championship) - Hosts Japan certainly finished group B in style by ending with a convincing 101-48 victory over the young and unexperienced Kuwaiti team. Japan finish the group with a perfect 3-0 mark and advance to the second round, along with Lebanon, who finished with a 2-1 record.

Japan were led by Joji Takeuchi (204-C-85), who finished the game with 22 points and 10 rebounds in only 23 minutes. Also, the 21 year old Takuya Kawamura (191-G-86) finished with 13 points for the host team. Kuwat, however, played 12 guys and none of them scored in double digits. They were led by Sulaiman Al Tubaikh (-79), who scoerd 8 points for the team.

Kuwait were 1 of 4 teams to go winless in the tournament. Syria, China and Indonesia were the other 3.

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MEXICO

Texas Tycoons Brandon Lee Looks to Take Next Step with NBA D-League -by Chris Terrell

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NAIA

Azusa to Clash with UCLA -by Brandon Woudstra
Azusa Pacific's 2007-08 men's basketball schedule features a 32-game slate that highlightstwo contests that won't even count on the Cougars' record. Nonetheless, they may be the most noteworthy back-to-back games in the program's 43-year history.

For the first time ever Azusa Pacific will play UCLA, visiting the Bruins' and famed Pauley Pavilion for an exhibition contest Friday, Nov. 2. Tip-off time is yet to be determined, but the game matches California's 2 winningest programs over the past 15 years

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NBA

Boston Celtics sign Kevin Garnett -by Eurobasket

Boston Celtics strengthened their roster with addition of 31-year old all-star forward Kevin Garnett (208-F-76) in a mulitplayer trade with Minnesota Timberwolves (NBA). Among the players who could be headed to Minnesota are forward Al Jefferson, guard Sebastian Telfair, swingman Gerald Green and centre Theo Ratliff, said the official, who requested anonymity. The official also said the Timberwolves would get at least one draft choice.

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NCAA2

Johnson Adds DeRay Carger To Men's Basketball Roster -by Sanjey Noriega
FAIRBANKS, AK - Alaska Nanooks men's basketball head coach Clem Johnson announced the addition of 6-foot-2, 180-pound shooting guard (LaMarkus) DeRay Carger (CAR-jer) of Baytown, Texas.

"I'm excited about coming up there to play," said Carger. "It caught me off guard (when Johnson made contact) and it was a tough decision to make; but I had a good feeling about it because my conscience told me it was the right thing to do and my family was excited for me."

A well rounded multi-sport student-athlete, Carger prepped at Channelview High School in Texas. He was a four-year letterman for the Falcons' basketball team and a three-year letterman and wide receiver for the football team.

A co-captain as a senior, he averaged 21 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals per game and was named to the Division 5A All-District First Team. Carger was a member of two Falcons' District Championship teams from 2004-05 and was also named to the All-District Second Team in 2006.

Described as a silky-smooth shooter, Carger had some outstanding performances in his young career, including a 27 ppg average with his AAU team in 2006 and a 41-point performance at the 2006 AAU Nationals.

He has also tasted high-level competition and met success as a member of the Falcons' 5A State Championship team, who went 15-0 to capture the 2003 title his freshman year.

Carger was looking at several programs when Johnson contacted him initially, including Division I programs like Northwestern, Tulane and Xavier and Division II St. Edwards, but in the end Carger liked what Johnson had to say.

"He seems like a good, down to earth coach whose going to look out for me and I took his word."

Johnson had seen Carger's highlight recruiting tape and made contact with the recent graduate of Channelview High School.

"This student-athlete will be able to play several positions for the Nanooks," said Johnson. "This is the type of student-athlete we are seeking; athletic, versatile, goal oriented on and off the court and a good citizen."

A devoted student off the court, Carger was a Who's Who Among High School Students all four years of high school as well as a member of the National Society of High School Scholars and the National Honors Convocation from 2005-07.

He will enroll at the University of Alaska Fairbanks this fall with four years of eligibility remaining. He plans to major in Justice and pursue a career in the legal profession.

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NEW ZEALAND

Tall Blacks stumble again -by Eurobasket News
New Zealand - NBDL Ambassadors 84:87
New Zealand Tall Blacks suffered their second defeat at the Borislav Stankovic Cup in China. They were beaten by USA NBDL Ambassadors team in a closely matched game. Tall Blacks entered the game without services of Paora Winitana who missed the game due some religious reasons. Dillon Boucher was still unavailable because of an injury.
Tall Blacks once again got to a better start as they poured American defence from beyond the arc and rolled to a confident 28:19 lead after the opening frame. The scoreline just kept growing worce for NBDL stars as Kiwis found their touch and remained deadly from outside. The lead reached a 51:38 mark at halftime. However New Zealand once again simply stopped in the third quarter. Kirk Penney (194-G-80, college: Wisconsin), Phill Jones (196-G-74) and Craig Bradshaw (207-F/C-83, agency: Court Side, college: Winthrop) went cold from the field and the Ambassadors used it. They recorded 14 unanswered points to bump Kiwis and surge ahead 66:62 at the end of the third quarter. New Zealand twice tied the score at the dying stages when Phill Jones and Kirk Penney connected from afar. But Kevin Lyde's offensive rebound and two point attempt with 42 seconds left proved winning for the NBDL team.
Clay Tucker (194-G-80, college: Wisc.-Milwaukee) led NBDL Ambassadors with 17 points. Pooh Jeter provided 15 points in a win. Kirk Penney paced Kiwis with game-high 22 points, while Phill Jones secured 21 points in defeat. Craig Bradshaw scored 10 points in the first half but was limited to just 2 in the second.
New Zealand will now play against Slovenia tomorrow.

New Zealand: Kirk Penney 22, Phill Jones 21, Craig Bradshaw 12
NBDL Ambassadors: Clay Tucker 17, Pooh Jeter 15

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NORWAY

One Eagle landing - and one leaving? -by Kaare Vangen
Ulriken Eagles have signed Arne Danielsen (198-F-83, college: NC-Pembroke) for two years. Danielsen played for Kristiansand Pirates before he left for four years of college hoops in North Carolina where he played for UNC Pembroke. He is a big and strong player who also can go to the perimeter and shoot threes so he will be a nice addition to the Eagles' roster. Danielsen is going to study economy two years in Bergen to get his degree.

At the same time there is a possibility that point guard Audun Eskeland (176-G-85) will leave Eagles for BLNO rival and neighbour Gimle. Gimle has given him an offer to work 100% with basketball and with a nice renovated gym that can be used 24/7 no other club can match the training facilities. And Eskeland wants to concentrate 100 % on hoops.

Gimle want to go local -by Kaare Vangen
Gimle has added more young, local talent before their debut in BLNO. Kristian Osland (200-F-80) from Hop and Nikolas Skouen (186-F-90) from Frøya will take two spots in a roster with many local players. Three of the veterans are not sure whether they will play or not: Martin Brusewitz (203-F-83) (job), Martin Austgulen (188-G-83) (studies) and Nima Nima Taheri (175-G-79, college: Cabrillo CC) (wants to practise less) all have not made up their minds. Brusewitz and Taheri are the only players in the roster who have not been raised in Bergen. Gimle also wanted to add Marco Elsafadi but he chose Ulriken Eagles.

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PANAMA

Panama takes 6th place after good showing in Pan am Games -by Miguel Sanchiz

Led by Washington State Unversity's Derrick Low's 16 points, the United States captured fifth place in the men's basketball competition at the Pan American Games with a 77-74 victory over Panama in the Men's Classification 5-6 Match, Sunday.

The win was the third-straight for the USA (3-2) as it redeemed its 75-67 loss to Panama (2-3) in Thursday's Group B Play. After just over a minute of playing time in the United State's previous meeting with Panama, Low started his third-straight game and scored a team-high 16 points. His WSU teammate, Kyle Weaver, did not play in the game.

Fellow Americans Shane Foster and D.J. White added 14 points apiece, while Maarten Leunen put up 12 points.

Danilo Pinnock, who scored 23 in the first meeting, and Dionisio Gomez tied for game-high honors with 17 points apiece for Panama. Panama was able to shut down the USA's Roy Hibbert who exploded for 19 points and nine rebounds in the first meeting, holding the center to just four points Sunday.

The back-and-forth battle saw 12 lead changes and four ties. The two teams remained tied at 20 after the first period, before a 9-0 run in the middle of the second quarter boosted Panama to an 11-point, 43-32, halftime advantage.

Trailing 56-45 with just under five minutes remaining in the third quarter, the USA went on a 15-0 run, capped off by the final six points from Low, to take a 60-56 lead with 7:40 to play in the game.

Panama regained the lead at 67-66 off a three-pointer by Pinnock with three minutes to play. Low answered with a two-point bucket on the USA's next possession to give his team the one-point lead back. With 1:30 remaining in the game, Panama took the lead back, but once again, Low answered with two-straight buckets to give the United States a three-point, 74-71, advantage with 30 seconds on the clock.

A free throw by White extended the USA's lead to four points, but a quick three by Jair Jamel Peralta, cut the lead to one at 75-74 at the 11-second mark.

After a timeout by the USA, Leunen hit two-straight free throws and the United States defense held Panama in the final seconds as it went on for the 77-74 victory.

The Americans' fifth-place finish marks just the third time in 15 Pan American Games that the United States did not medal, the last time coming with a fourth-place showing in 2003. The lowest finish by the Americans came in 1971 with seventh place.Brazil captured the 2007 Gold Medal with an 86-65 victory over Puerto Rico, while Uruguay took home the bronze with a 99-93 deafeat of Argentina.

Led by Washington State Unversity's Derrick Low's 16 points, the United States captured fifth place in the men's basketball competition at the Pan American Games with a 77-74 victory over Panama in the Men's Classification 5-6 Match, Sunday.

The win was the third-straight for the USA (3-2) as it redeemed its 75-67 loss to Panama (2-3) in Thursday's Group B Play. After just over a minute of playing time in the United State's previous meeting with Panama, Low started his third-straight game and scored a team-high 16 points. His WSU teammate, Kyle Weaver, did not play in the game.

Fellow Americans Shane Foster and D.J. White added 14 points apiece, while Maarten Leunen put up 12 points.

Danilo Pinnock, who scored 23 in the first meeting, and Dionisio Gomez tied for game-high honors with 17 points apiece for Panama. Panama was able to shut down the USA's Roy Hibbert who exploded for 19 points and nine rebounds in the first meeting, holding the center to just four points Sunday.

The back-and-forth battle saw 12 lead changes and four ties. The two teams remained tied at 20 after the first period, before a 9-0 run in the middle of the second quarter boosted Panama to an 11-point, 43-32, halftime advantage.

Trailing 56-45 with just under five minutes remaining in the third quarter, the USA went on a 15-0 run, capped off by the final six points from Low, to take a 60-56 lead with 7:40 to play in the game.

Panama regained the lead at 67-66 off a three-pointer by Pinnock with three minutes to play. Low answered with a two-point bucket on the USA's next possession to give his team the one-point lead back. With 1:30 remaining in the game, Panama took the lead back, but once again, Low answered with two-straight buckets to give the United States a three-point, 74-71, advantage with 30 seconds on the clock.

A free throw by White extended the USA's lead to four points, but a quick three by Jair Jamel Peralta, cut the lead to one at 75-74 at the 11-second mark.

After a timeout by the USA, Leunen hit two-straight free throws and the United States defense held Panama in the final seconds as it went on for the 77-74 victory.

The Americans' fifth-place finish marks just the third time in 15 Pan American Games that the United States did not medal, the last time coming with a fourth-place showing in 2003. The lowest finish by the Americans came in 1971 with seventh place.Brazil captured the 2007 Gold Medal with an 86-65 victory over Puerto Rico, while Uruguay took home the bronze with a 99-93 deafeat of Argentina.

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PHILIPPINES

Chin up Filipino! -by May Arevalo

Perhaps that 2-year suspension proved fatal for the Philippine Team's campaign in Tokushima. The stinking roots of that suspension lie within the headquarters of the country's basketball governing body. A friend and I have this standing joke regarding cockroaches. The cockroach species was there with the dinosaurs, it is still with us, and long after the human species goes, long live the cockroach. What pests! Anyway, five months of preparation to produce champions is expected of mutants but not of humans. Team Pilipinas deserves the country's respect upon their arrival as the fans saw nothing but heart in that Group of Death matches. Our players, though no spring chickens, are rookies in the international arena, compared to the opponents, yet they have accounted well for themselves. The players of Jordan and Iran and even Chinese Taipei were once part of their National Youth squads. They are the products of a sound basketball program from a sound basketball leadership. The players of Team Pilipinas were plucked out of their lucrative pro careers to represent a country that has forgotten what it is like to believe because some of its leaders were nothing but nay-sayers, just wanting to preserve status quo, and some, according to legend, were just purely evil. The players were asking if they could play for flag but the evil infants just refused to let them. All the adults present at that time were helpless against the very powerful spawns of the unknown. But that's all monsters under the bridge now, hopefully.

When Team Pilipinas embarked on the FIBA journey it was not just basketball that it was trying to win but something bigger. When Team Pilipinas lost, finally to Jordan, hopefully it was just a basketball game that it had lost. Not the faith of the people and not the hope of a nation that is struggling for form, identity, respect, and the ever elusive unity. I would wait for the team to come back and say its piece before I state my own regarding the defeat. In the meantime, I salute everybody who believed, nothing beats the feeling of giving your heart and soul and tears for the honor of your motherland. The dream is still alive! Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!

Jordan Coach Palma calls the FIBA grouping "a big joke" -by May Arevalo

Team Pilipinas may have kissed its Summer Olympics dream goodbye, for now, but the country's top basketball analysts agree that it was the most competitive team that the country has ever sent. If it was respect that the Philippines was after then respect was what it got. If it is within my power to interview Lebanon Coach Dragan Raca I would ask him if the Team Pilipinas that his team faced was just a bunch of day dream believers or a real contender. No need to ask Jordan Coach Mario Palma for he called the Group A or Group of Death "a big joke" just before the knockout game between Jordan and the Philippines.

In an article written by Mister Nelson Beltran, Coach Palma was quoted saying:

"So what you see is the four teams in this group playing with so much pressure while top seeded teams in the other brackets winning by more than 50 points,
Because of the pressure, players in our group are getting hurt. The top two teams in the other group easily advanced to the quarterfinals with the luxury of keeping their top players fresh.

Now Jordan and the Philippines are playing in a knockout game. But the loser in this game is capable of winning the championship.China topped the Doha Asia Games with Iran coming in third and Jordan fourth. Yet, they found themselves in one group with Philippines in the elimination round of the FIBA-Asia men's championship here. "It's a joke. But I can't do anything. I'm just a coach, I'm not a politician."

No need to ask Coach Palma if he respects the three stars and a sun, blue, white, and red flag.

Countrymen, stand tall! If you see a cockroach, you know what to do, get your slippers and flat it dead. No offense to our Buddhist friends.

Fans Speak -by May Arevalo
Hi to everyone whose reading this!

I just wanna congratulate the rp team for doing a job well done! this guys deserve a heroes welcome! can please someone contact anyone who can settle a heroes welcome for them! winning is not easy! people don't know that this is just the beginning of the rise of philippine basketball! i salute the rp team guys for entertaining us and of course giving the opponent a hard fight! i knew this from the start that we won't win in the fiba asia championship but we won something, THE RESPECT THAT PHILIPPINE BASKETBALL NEEDS!!
well i have to wait again for maybe 3 or 4 years to show again extreme support! there is a reason why we lost, god planned this. thank u to all the die hard fans of rp team who prayed for them! I PROMISE THAT I WILL STILL BELIEVE IN THE RP TEAM CAN RETRIEVE BACK OUR LOST CROWN, "THE POWERHOUSE OF ASIA"

it's not end of the world for the rp team, in fact it's just the beginning of the rise of philippine basketball!!! more cool players are coming, gabe norwood, japeth aguilar, etc. or maybe someday we can get a pinoy player from the NBA!

CONGRATULATIONS AGAIN TO THE RP TEAM!!! WHOOOO! YOU ROCK!!!

-RaLpH-

hi, i am a very avid fans of our pilipinas national team, and even thou they didn't make it to the quarterfinal round im still believing and congratulating them for there effort, but in reality i feel so sad with the lost to team jordan. i have nothing to say with the performance of the team or the individual players, they gave all what they had, the effort, sweat, time with thier family and almost all factors just to gave pilipinas a bert to olympics, they are all good, great and im looking for much better future performance from them. but as far as i go, i felt that there is some adjustment or things that needs to be fix or enhance, i think from my own opinion we dont lack of a good players we have them all around but i think we have to had a more international game apperance, and also i see a one weak point, its the coaching, we have a bit weaker coaching system for international games, i think we must first enhance the coaching before the players that would be the biggest foundation a team can have, i am not saying that coach reyes isn't good, it's just that our coaches need to have a more international exposure and a good scouting job.
i hope i never offended anybody else with my opinion.

for team pilipinas, its not the end of everything its just the start, go for gold next time around, and just believe in ur self. thank you...

--riann

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POLAND

KK Politechnika Poznanska sign Joe McNaull -by Eurobasket
KK Politechnika Poznanska (1Liga) added to their roster 35-year old American center Joe McNaull (208-C-72, college: Long Beach St., agency: SportsTalent). McNaull played most recently at Plus Pujol Lleida (Spain), but he cannot include last year as his best one, while he was released during the season. McNaull has also Polish nationality.

Sportino Inowroclaw sign Wojciech Majchrzak -by Eurobasket
Sportino Inowroclaw (1Liga) agreed terms with 33-year old domestic swingman Wojciech Majchrzak (194-G/F-74). Majchrzak played most recently at Gipsar Stal Ostrow Wielkopolski (DBE), where he averaged in 10 games: 3.3ppg. He started last season at DGP Azoty Unia Tarnow (DBL) with stats in 15 games: 8.4ppg, 2.3rpg, 1.3apg.

Poland edges Hungary to become European champions -by Eurobasket News
Poland U16 - Hungary U16 80:73
Poland revenged for the loss in the qualifying round and overcame Hungary in the title clash of the U16 European championship in Division B. The title means Poland will play in Division A next year.
Polnad never hesitated en route to the championship Gold as they took control of the game early on. Poland capped the first frame with a 5:0 run to establish a 28:17 lead. Sebastian Szymanski (182-G-91) dropped 4 straight points in the second quarter to ensure a 38:21 advantage for Polish team. Hungary however responded with 10:0 run of their own to stay in race. Patryk Scigala (197-F-91) completed the first half with a trey to give Poland a 46:34 lead at halftime.
Polish players maintained the gap throughout the third frame and Hungary only managed to cut it to 57:64 on Janos Eilingsfeld (198-F/C-91)'s three pointer at the end of the quarter. Hungarian forward added two more points to open the final stanza and brought Hungary as close as 5 points. Eilingsfeld later nailed another jumper to cut the deficit to just 3 points 63:66 3 minutes into the quarter. However Poland never allowed Hungary to come closer. Patryk Scigala waas perfect from free throw line and Hubert Wierzbicki knocked down a jump shot to ensure a winning outcome for Poland at the dying stage.
Poland were paced by Sebastian Szymanski with 24 points. Patryk Scigala and Wojciech Fras (202-F-91) provided 16 points apiece and combined 18 rebounds for the winners. Janos Eilingsfeld shone for Hungary with 30 points and 14 rebounds. Zsolt Lakosa (186-G-91) chipped in 14 points in defeat.

Poland U16: Sebastian Szymanski 24, Patryk Scigala 16, Wojciech Fras 16
Hungary U16: Janos Eilingsfeld 30+14 boards, Zsolt Lakosa 14

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PORTUGAL

Ginasio close some gaps -by Luis Rocha
Ginasio signs Nuno Sousa (188-G-84) (ex Lusitania) and Mario Goncalves (203-F-80) (ex Galitos Webber), in order to replace the going out of Jose Costa and Bruno Costa. The two portuguese players that are going in the roster, are hard working players who can bring to Ginasio a very good work ethic. Nuno plays point guard and Mario can either play as a center or as a power forward, both had already played in Liga, so they know exactly what to do to be helpfull.

Portugal says goodbye to division A ,says hi to division B in U-16 -by Bruno Baltazar
In the last game in the tournament Portugal says goodbye in the european under 16 in Greece with a loss against Russia 39-72.
Portugal finish the group G with 3 loses in division A and is now relegated to division B.

Federation answer to portuguese teams about selection players -by Bruno Baltazar
´´This only happened once ´´ this is the reaction of Mario Saldanha the portuguese federation president about the threatenings portuguese teams with players in selection gave about the subjects of their players be in selection without previous information latters.
But Saldanha didn´t only said that ,he critisized the teams ´´It was our fault we didn´t comunicated teams ,thats a true fact...I can´t believe in this tipe of atitudes...the portuguese selection made a historical act in the international level with the Eurobasket achieve and now with the league problems that aren´t for now ,they old problems they are offuscating our achieve´´.

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PUERTO RICO

Santurce Crabbers one win away from Championship -by Luis Ramirez
The Crabber took the lead of the series as they defeated the Arecibo Captains 83-75 last night. The Crabbers playing in their home court played a good defensive game against Captains import player Marcus Fizer although Fizer scored 23 points which lead all Arecibo scorers in the game. Arecibo was able to take the initial period 18-12, but in the second quarter Santurce went on an offensive run to overtake the Captains and end the 1st half with a 12 point lead 43-31. Arecibo did not throw in the towel and in the 3rd quarter had an offensive run of their own to tie the game at 59 points. In the 4th and final quarter the Crabbers once again held the Captains with good defensive plays to finally take the game. The series now moves to Arecibo tonight and a win for Santurce would give them the Championship. The Captains will be playing before their home crowd and will try to extend the series to a 7th game. For Santurce, Larry Ayuso (190-G-77, agency: Edge Sports, college: USC) scored 27 points followed by Robert Traylor (204-F/C-77, college: Michigan) with 13 points and 12 rebounds. For Arecibo, it was Angel Figueroa (191-G-81, agency: Paris Global Sports, college: Dowling) who followed Fizer with 17 points and 12 rebounds.

Brazil prevails at the home PanAmerican Games -by Eurobasket News
Brazil - Puerto Rico 86:65
Brazil dominated the PanAmerican Games this year and clinched the top spot defeating Puerto Rico in the Final yesterday. Brazil went through the tournament unbeaten and never endangered their perfect record in the title decider.
The hosts were overwhelming from the start of the encounter and gained a 17:5 lead five minutes into the game. The gap kept growing mercilessly for Puerto Rico and reached a 32:15 mark after the opening frame. Brazil maintained the lead throughout the second frame and drove to a 50:34 advantage at halftime. Puerto Rico obviously struggled to withstand Brazilian aggressive offense and trailed all the way in the game. Brazil entered the final stanza enjoying a 20-point lead and cruised to an overall victory and the PanAmerican Games gold medals.
J.P. Batista (206-F/C-81, college: Gonzaga) topscored for Brazil with 20 points and 7 rebounds. Marcelinho Machado (200-F/G-75, agency: Interperformances) secured another 17 points for the winners. Angelo Reyes (205-F/C-81) produced 14 points and 6 rebounds for Puerto Rico. Joel Jones (196-G/F-81, agency: Paris Global Sports, college: Sacramento St.) added 12 points in alosing effort.
Brazil outrebounded their opponents 39:30. They converted 47% from the field including impressive 53% from outside. Puerto Rico hit just 18% of their three point attempts. Puerto Rico though committed only 9 turnovers and outscored Brazil 34:30 in the paint.

Brazil: J.P. Batista 20, Marcelinho Machado 17
Puerto Rico: Angelo Reyes 14, Joel Jones 12

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SENEGAL

Alaior signs young Senegalese -by Kristian Santiago
Abdul Aziz Thiandoum (2,07m 20 years-old) joined Spanish LEB Bronze-team Alaior Opel Jovent for the upcoming season.
The Senegalese center comes from Qatar where he played for Qatar Club and Al Wakrah in the national championship.
Before playing professionally in Qatar , he played in the capital of Senegal for AS Douanes Dakar and won the national championship and the St.Michel Cup.

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SERBIA

Couple of new signings -by Dragan Jankovski
Power forward Milko Bjelica (207-C-84, agency: Beo Basket) signed contract with German team Koln 99ers. Bjelica had very good season in New Yorker Phantoms Braunschweig averaging 12.0ppg and 5.2rpg for 33 games in German Bundesleague. In the past he played 4 years in Crvena Zvezda and with them won two National Cups (2004 and 2006). He also was a member of Serbian U21 NT and participated on Global Games in Dallas 2004.

Center Dragan Ceranic (212-C-76, agency: Beo Basket) returned to Greek team AEL Larissa where he successfully played two years ago. Ceranic changed three teams last season: Panelinios Athens, AEL Limassol and Barons Riga. He played 17 games for Barons in Latvian league averaging 12.5 ppg and 7.0 rpg. Barons took bronze medal in Latvian top division.

Participant of Serbian A1 league BC Mega Aqua Monta got a new head coach. It is Dragisa Saric who won Serbian A1 league last season with BC Vizura Belgrade promoting them to A1. Before Vizura Saric used to work as an assistant coach in Vojvodina Srbijagas. He also had nice career like a player. Like a member of Partizan Belgrade he became the Euroleague champion on 1991.

BC Radnicki 034 Group signed 2-years deal with point guard Perica Mitic (184-G-85) from Sloga Kraljevo.

Serbia is the new European Champion U16 !! -by Dragan Jankovski
Serbian U16 National Team won the European Championship on Crete beating Spain in the final 56:55 and it is the third gold medal for Serbia for just one month (European Championship U20 and FIBA World Championship U19). They finished competition on Crete undefeated. In the final Spain started the game much better and took control on Serbia early in the first quarter but, thanks to very good third period, Serbia had plus one before the last ten minutes. Two minutes before the end score was equalized 53:53 after what Djekic mad lay-up and Musli added one free throw for 56:53. Spain had a chance to equalize but Lopez Laz scored 2 of 3 free throws for 56:55 just 31 seconds before the end. In the last Serbia's offense Musli and Djekic missed but each of them grabbed an offensive rebound and Serbia became the new European Champion U16 !

Like usually Serbia got the most from Dejan Musli (213-C-91) who collected 19 points, 12 rebounds and 5 blocks while Danilo Andjusic (190-G-91) finished the game with 10 points and 6 rebounds. Josep De Pablo (190-G-91) added 13 points including 8 rebounds for Spain. Dejan Musli was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.

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SLOVENIA

Olimpija signs Bakic and Bailey! -by Matej Bergant
Union Olimpija today officially announced the signing of Bojan Bakic (197-G-83, agency: Beo Basket) and Maurice Bailey (183-G-81, college: Sacred Heart). Bojan Bakic signed one year contract with Union Olimpija, while Maurice Bailey inked for two years. Bojan Bakic, who started his career in Buducnost Podgorica spent last season with Serbian Hemofarm Vrsac averaging 4.6ppg in Adriatic League, 3.5ppg, 1.5rpg in ULEB Cup and 10.4ppg in Serbian League. Maurice Bailey was last season playing in Russian Lokomotiv Rostov where he was averaging 8.5ppg, 2.5rpg, 1.9apg in 11 games of FIBA EuroCup and 12.0ppg, 2.2rpg, 2.2apg, 1.7spg in 31 games of Russian League. His previous European teams were Nancy Sluc (France) and Etendard de Brest (France).

Olimpija inks Mirza Begic -by Matej Bergant
Union Olimpija officially announced the signing of Mirza Begic (216-C-85) for next two seasons. Last season Begic played for Geoplin Slovan Ljubljana and averaged 9.3ppg, 5.7rpg, 1.5bpg in Slovenian League and 9.8ppg, 6.0rpg, 1.0spg, 1.9bpg in Adriatic League.

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SPAIN

Alaior signs young Senegalese -by Kristian Santiago
Abdul Aziz Thiandoum (2,07m 20 years-old) joined Spanish LEB Bronze-team Alaior Opel Jovent for the upcoming season.
The Senegalese center comes from Qatar where he played for Qatar Club and Al Wakrah in the national championship.
Before playing professionally in Qatar , he played in the capital of Senegal for AS Douanes Dakar and won the national championship and the St.Michel Cup.

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ST.KITTS

Marvin signs with Santa Fe College -by Jay
Basseterre, St.Kitts (July 30th 2007):-St.Kitts national basketball league 2005 and 2006 scoring champion Marvin Davis (196-F-84) “Skywalker” has just signed with Santa Fe Community College in Gainesville Florida. The 6'5” national team forward has been one of the most exciting young players in the St.Kitts Anateur Basketball Association league ever since his emergence in the Junior division back in 2000. He led the national Junior team along with Spoon River Community College Center Kemo “Shasta” Duncan to two Leeward Island youth championship titles. Davis was the leading scorer for the St.Kitts-Nevis national team in the CBC tournament held in Jamiaca during the summer of 2006. The 23 year old averaged 25 ppg to take the SKABA scoring title in 2005 and 2006.
The popular young basketball star the second player is as many years leaving the island for the junior college ranks Joining 6'9” center Jerran “Yow” Morris who recently signed with a 4 year school also in Florida, Barry University.
Marvin will be playing for the Santa Fe Saints in the Mid-Florida Conference of the National the NJCAA (National Junior College Athletics Association).
Santa Fe Community College is a 2 year Junior Community state college that is part of Florida's system of higher education. Santa Fe is accredited by Florida's Department of Education and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Located in North Central Florida, its main campus is in Gainesville, Florida. The college offers associate degrees in over 25 programmes inclduing Dental Assisting, Air Conditioning Repair, Automotive Technology, Child Development, Construction, Public Safety, Zoo Animal Technology, Information Technology, Business and Nursing.
Marvin will join a fairly long list of Kittitian basketballers who have earned themselves college scholarships inclduing Glen “Ghost” Phillip, Lincoln “Kimbe” Glasford, Graeme Huggins, Otis “Sexman” Daniel, Tregenza Henry, Jason Noland, Vance Clarke, Jeffery Bramble, Hamil Bassue, Arcilla Jeffers and Geneice Bassue among many others.
Davis is expected to leave the island shortly to begin his college basketball career.

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SWEDEN

Sweden needs overtime to celebrate Bronze medals -by Eurobasket News
Sweden U16 - England U16 66:65 (OT)
Sweden won the Bronze medlas of the U16 European championship in Macedonia. They overcame England in a dramatic battle yesterday's night to step at the podium.
The game was a bunch of nerves and drama as the teams kept it tight throughout the whole regulation and overtime. England enjoyed an early lead as they rolled to a 15:13 distance after the opening frame. Levi Noel (194-G-91) drained 3 points and Raheem May-Thompson added two more to give England necessary boost at the start of the second quarter and they cleared off to a 20:13 distance. However Sweden quickly closed the gap and tied the scoreline on Andreas Person (187-G-91)'s three pointer with 2 minutes left in the frame. The teams drove to a halftime break all square at 30.
Sweden surged ahead midway through the third quarter when they nailed a couple of straight jumpers and enusred a 44:38 gap enetering the final quarter. Christopher Czerapowicz (192-G-91) connected from outside early in the fourth frame to out Sweden up by 7 points 47:40. They held on to the lead throughout the bigger part of the stanza before Ryan Richards (205-F-91) tapped ball in and secured a 54:53 lead for England with just over 2 minutes remaining. Czerapowicz immediatelly responded with a long jumper to regain the lead for Sweden. However Ryan Richards was there again and his jump shot tied the game with 1 minute and 9 seconds on the clock. Andreas Person got fouled and converted both free throws but Levi Noel managed to score two points to force overtime.
Ryan Richards' one more jumper allowed England to stay ahead by 5 points midway through overtime 65:60. But Olof Jagbeck first connected from beyond the arc and Alexander Lindqvist (202-G-91) nailed one of two free throws to come within a single point from England. Adam Thoseby missed his shot while Christopher Czerapowicz was perfect from the charity stripe to see Sweden spurring ahead with 9 seconds left. Joshua Houghton tried to save England but his buzzer beater missed the target.
Alexander Lindqvist led Sweden to the win with 18 points and 6 rebounds. Andreas Person contributed 12 points, while Christopher Czerapowicz netted 10 for the winners. Ryan Richards topscored for England with game-high 30 points and 14 rebounds. Levi Noel added 16 points and 6 rebounds in a defeat.

Sweden U16: Alexander Lindqvist 18, Andreas Person 12, Christopher Czerapowicz 10
England U16: Ryan Richards 30+14 boards, Levi Noel 16

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TURKEY

Dalmau At Besiktas Cola Turka -by Sinan Kocak
Besiktas Cola Turka added Christian Dalmau (194-G-77, agency: Paris Global Sports, college: Daytona Beach CC), who played for Prokolm Trefl Sopot in Poland last season, averaging 10.2 points, 1.9 rebounds 2.1 assists and 1.3 steals in 23 minutes in 20 Euroleague games.

TED signed with Terrell -by Sinan Can

CASA Ted Kolejliler signed with their first import player as Ankara club announced the agreement with US big man Julian Terrell (206-C/F-84, agency: Hart Sports Mngm, college: Vanderbilt). Ankara club's Coach Hasan Ozmeric said, "Terrell is a kind of a role player. We had the chance to see him in the USA. Our one to one meeting was very positive. He will help us more on defensive side of the game and rebounds." Terrell averaged 10.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.2 blocks in his senior year at Vanderbilt as he spent some time at German Bundesliga and US D-League.

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U.KINGDOM

Sweden needs overtime to celebrate Bronze medals -by Eurobasket News
Sweden U16 - England U16 66:65 (OT)
Sweden won the Bronze medlas of the U16 European championship in Macedonia. They overcame England in a dramatic battle yesterday's night to step at the podium.
The game was a bunch of nerves and drama as the teams kept it tight throughout the whole regulation and overtime. England enjoyed an early lead as they rolled to a 15:13 distance after the opening frame. Levi Noel (194-G-91) drained 3 points and Raheem May-Thompson added two more to give England necessary boost at the start of the second quarter and they cleared off to a 20:13 distance. However Sweden quickly closed the gap and tied the scoreline on Andreas Person (187-G-91)'s three pointer with 2 minutes left in the frame. The teams drove to a halftime break all square at 30.
Sweden surged ahead midway through the third quarter when they nailed a couple of straight jumpers and enusred a 44:38 gap enetering the final quarter. Christopher Czerapowicz (192-G-91) connected from outside early in the fourth frame to out Sweden up by 7 points 47:40. They held on to the lead throughout the bigger part of the stanza before Ryan Richards (205-F-91) tapped ball in and secured a 54:53 lead for England with just over 2 minutes remaining. Czerapowicz immediatelly responded with a long jumper to regain the lead for Sweden. However Ryan Richards was there again and his jump shot tied the game with 1 minute and 9 seconds on the clock. Andreas Person got fouled and converted both free throws but Levi Noel managed to score two points to force overtime.
Ryan Richards' one more jumper allowed England to stay ahead by 5 points midway through overtime 65:60. But Olof Jagbeck first connected from beyond the arc and Alexander Lindqvist (202-G-91) nailed one of two free throws to come within a single point from England. Adam Thoseby missed his shot while Christopher Czerapowicz was perfect from the charity stripe to see Sweden spurring ahead with 9 seconds left. Joshua Houghton tried to save England but his buzzer beater missed the target.
Alexander Lindqvist led Sweden to the win with 18 points and 6 rebounds. Andreas Person contributed 12 points, while Christopher Czerapowicz netted 10 for the winners. Ryan Richards topscored for England with game-high 30 points and 14 rebounds. Levi Noel added 16 points and 6 rebounds in a defeat.

Sweden U16: Alexander Lindqvist 18, Andreas Person 12, Christopher Czerapowicz 10
England U16: Ryan Richards 30+14 boards, Levi Noel 16

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UKRAINE

NT: Hungary has fallen -by Alexander Muzyka
Ukrainian NT has ended friendly tournament in Estonia as second. Ukrainians were able to win over Hungarian NT in a last game.

Estonian friendly tournament
July 30
Hungary - Ukraine 55:59 (18:11, 13:23, 9:15, 15:10)
H: Kaman 13, Fodor 15 + 4 ast...
U: Koval 15 + 6 rbs, Butskyi 10 + 5 rbs, Podorvannyi 10, Lischuk 9 + 13 rbs, Poltoratskyi 6 + 6 rbs, Kravtsov 6 + 5 rbs, Loktionov 3 + 8 rbs + 6 ast, Shvets 0, Gurtovoi DNP, Boiko DNP

Ukrainian NT in Estonia -by Alexander Muzyka

Ukrainian NT is playing in traditional international friendly tournament in Estonia. Remind, Ukraine was second here last year. Now there is Latvia instead of 2006 winner Israel.
Ukrainians arrived only with 10 players. Artur Drozdov still has problems with his hand. There has Oleksi Onufriev been called instead of Leonid Stefanishyn but he was late to get a visa. Ukrainians have problems even as 10th. Volodymyr Gurtovoi is ready to play but he has an injury. So does Yevhen Podorvannyi who played in a second game at least.

Today Ukrainians are playing vs Hungary.

Estonian friendly tournament

July 28
Estonia - Ukraine 68:70 (21:11, 15:27, 9:19, 23:13)
E: Kangur 16 + 6 rbs, Arbet 12, Talts 8 + 7 rbs, Sokk 8...
U: Lischuk 27 + 12 rbs, Poltoratskyi 15 + 8 rbs, Butskyi 12 + 6 rbs, Shvets 8 + 5 rbs, Boiko 7, Kravtsov 1, Loktionov 0, Koval 0, Podorvannyi DNP, Gurtovoi DNP

July 29
Ukraine - Latvia 69:80 (21:20, 15:19, 18:23, 15:18)
U: Lischuk 30 + 14 rbs + 3 bls, Podorvannyi 13, Butskyi 11 + 4 rbs + 3 ast, Kravtsov 9 + 10 rbs, Poltoratskyi 3 + 6 rbs, Koval 3 + 4 rbs, Shvets 0 + 4 rbs, Loktionov 0, Boiko 0, Gurtovoi DNP
L: Janicenoks 25 + 5 rbs, Blums 14 + 5 ast, Biedrins 10 + 7 rbs, Skele 9 + 4 rbs + 4 ast...

Khyzhniak to Dnipro / Berezhnoi will rule in Hungary -by Alexander Muzyka
- As 'Segodnya' newspaper informed, ex-BC Kyiv player Hryhori Khyzhniak (216-C-74) has been inked by Dnipro. He had some propositions from outside but prefered to stay in Ukraine.

- According to basket.com.ua Viktor Berezhnoi became a Kaposvar's head coach.

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URUGUAY

Uruguay overcomes a huge deficit to claim historic Bronze -by Eurobasket News
Uruguay - Argentina 99:93 (OT)
Uruguay drove from behind to edge Argentina in yesterday's dramatic battle for Bronze medals. Argentina got to a better start in the game and led 15:14 after the starting frame. They found the touch in the second quarter and thrashed their opponents. They outscored Uruguay 25:9 to gain a comfortable 40:23 lead at halftime. Uruguay needed some perfect basketball to save the encounter and they produced it. Fernando Martinez (175-G-79) came off the bench to nail 3 treys and spur Uruguay ahead. They cut the deficit to just a single point 55:56 entering the final frame. Argenina had a momemtum at the beginning of the final quarter when they cleared off to a 67:61 distance but Uruguay was merely unstoppable. They fought back the lead and forced overtime. Esteban Batista (208-F/C-83) led the way and secured winning outcome for Uruguay. This victory became historic for Uruguay as they claimed the first ever medals at PanAmerican Games.
Fernando Martinez nailed 24 points to lead Uruguay. Esteban Batista delivered 16 points and 17 rebounds for the winners. Diego Logrippo answered with 24 points for Argentina. Roman Gonzalez (206-C-78, agency: HM Sports Agency) had 13 points and 7 rebounds in defeat.
Argentina shot more accurately from the field 47% comparing to 36% from Uruguay, but lost the battle under the rims. Uruguay outrebounded them 59:40, including 29 offensive rebounds.

Uruguay: Fernando Martinez 24, Esteban Batista 16+17 boards
Argentina: Diego Logrippo 24, Roman Gonzalez 13

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Women News

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ARGENTINA - Women

Argentina rolls past Cote d'Ivoire for the first win -by Eurobasket News
Argentina U19 - Cote d'Ivoire U19 73:55
Argentina successfully started the classification round at the U19 World championship. They handled Cote d'Ivoire to post their first victory at the tournament. Argentina started strongly and grabbed a 22:17 advantage after the first frame. However Cote d'Ivoire quicly bounced back as they outscored Latin Amercican team 17:11 and gained a 34:33 lead at halftime. But due to impressive performance from Andrea Boquete (-90) and Stephany Thomas (179-F-89) Argentina stepped back and routed Cote d'Ivoire 21:12 in the third frame to spur ahead. Argentina found the touch in the fourth frame and did not allow Cote d'Ivoire to come back into this one. Argentina secured the positive result and recorded their first win at the competition.
Andrea Boquete topscored for Argentina with 24 points and 13 rebounds. Sofia Castillo (175-G-88) nailed 15 points, while Stephany Thomas secured another 13 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. Cote d'Ivoire were paced by Assetou Kolga (-88) with 23 points and 13 rebounds. Kani Kouyate (-90) dropped in 17 points in defeat.
Argentina dominated under the rims outrebounding their opponents 45:38. They also limited Cote d'Ivoire to just 27.9% from the field.
Argentina will now face the winners of Japan versus Mali battle. Cote d'Ivoire will play against the losing side in that one tomorrow.

Argentina U19: Andrea Boquete 24+13 boards, Sofia Castillo 15, Stephany Thomas 13
Cote d'Ivoire U19: Assetou Kolga 23+13 boards, Kani Kouyate 17

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BELGIUM - Women

The defending champions of U16 European Championship outscored Belgium -by Eurobasket News

Belgium U16-Spain U16 60:68 (18-16, 12-28, 12-18, 18-6)

Spain U16 goes straight to the fourth title in the last four years. The next victim of the defending champions was Belgium. In the last game of the Preliminary Round, Spain beat them 68:60 to finish with 3-0 record. Leonor Rodriguez (177-G-91) led the winners with 19 points and 9 rebounds. Cristina Barrios (170-G-91) ended up with 16, while Amaya Ganuza (188-F-91) added 14 points and 7 rebounds. Jana Raman (183-F-91) nailed 14 points for Belgium that qualified with 1-2 record.

Spain got out to a 14-2 advantage but watched Belgium score the next 13 points to snatch the lead. A 28:12 in the second quarter answered for all the questions in the game. Spain won one more quarter and felt relax in the last. Belgium took an opportunity of it winning the quarter 18:6, but nothing more.
In another game of the group Latvia U16 made the crowd happy wining the last game of the Preliminary Round in Group C. Playing in front of their home fans in Valmiera, Latvia beat Turkey 85:75. Turkey dropped to 0-3 and will play in the Classification Round. All the other three teams will start the Qualifying Round tomorrow.

Belgium U16: Jana Raman 14, Miete Celus (175-G/F-91) 12
Spain U16: Leonor Rodriguez 19+9 rebs, Cristina Barrios 16, Amaya Ganuza 14+7 rebs

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BRAZIL - Women

Jelena Milovanovic scores 20 points as Serbia cruises past Brazil -by Eurobasket News
Serbia U19 - Brazil U19 82:57
Serbia remained undefeated as they topple Brazil today. The victory opened the qualifying round in Group F for Serbia. The winners never stumbled en route to a confident victory. They thrashed their opponents 19:6 in the opening quarter and eased to a 40:24 lead at halftime. Brazil managed to outscore Serbia in the third quarter 19:18 but it was a little consolation for Latin American team as Serbia proved the difference with a 24:14 final quarter.
Jelena Milovanovic (191-F/C-89) led all scorers with 20 points. Andja Ivkovic (184-F-88) added 11 points for the winners. Clarissa dos Santos (182-C-88) paced Brazil with 19 points and 15 rebounds. Djane Santos (185-F-88) and Ariani Silva had 9 points piece in defeat.
Serbia will next play against Sweden tomorrow. Brazil faces Canada in their next encounter at the tournament.

Serbia U19: Jelena Milovanovic 20, Andja Ivkovic 11
Brazil U19: Clarissa dos Santos 19+15 boards, Djane Santos 9

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CANADA - Women

Canada predictably falls short to Australia -by Eurobasket News
Canada U19 - Australia U19 55:70
Canada were not able to provided a sensation and had to surrender against Australia today. The gems entered the game undefeated and remained at perfect record after the final buzzer.
Canada stayed in the game throughout the opening frame and finished it all square 13:13. However impressive flexibility of Australian squad allowed them to change the tempo and the threat waas coming from different players. Canada struggled to maintain 100% concentration in defence and started to slip away in the second quarter. Australia used a couple of mini runs to gain necessary advantage as they completed the first half leading 38:29. Canada tried to cut the deficit in the third and they actually managed to outscore Australia to stay at a striking distance but Aussies revived in the fourth to emerge victorious.
Cayla Francis (192-C-89) secured 16 points and 10 boards for Australia. Nicole Hunt (167-G-88) and Abby Bishop (189-C-88) produced 9 points apiece for the winners. Kendel Ross (185-G/F-88) had 10 points and 12 rebounds for Canada. Tara Watts (175-G-88) finished with 9 points in a losing effort.
Australia outrebounded North Americans 44:37 and limited them to 27.3% from the field. Aussies shot 44.8% of field goals, including 4/11 from beyond the arc.
Australia will next face Czech Republic tomorrow. Canada will take on Brazil.

Canada U19: Kendel Ross 10+12 boards, Tara Watts 9
Australia U19: Cayla Francis 16+10 boards, Nicole Hunt 9, Abby Bishop 9

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E.CHAMPS U16 - Women

Division B: The end of the Preliminary Round -by Leslie Anderson

Italy maintained their perfect record to finish top in Group A and take maximum points into the qualifying round after a routine if not spectacular victory against Finland (67-54). Slovenia finished in second place with a mixed performance victory against Montenegro (63-41) with Nika Baric (166-G-92) leading the scoring with 15 points.

In Group B Croatia bounced back from their defeat against Bosnia in overcoming a resilient Portuguese side (73-60). Croatia's head coach was very happy with the performance and hopes that they will continue to play in the same way.

Group C's big match between England and Netherlands lived up to its billing with Netherlands coming out on top (55-53) with Rosanne Guijt 4-of-5 from beyond the arc with 18 points leading all scores in the match.

Rosanne explained after the match that she likes "to play against England and that I wanted to avenge the defeat of last year.

Ireland beat Bulgaria (76-60) to move into the qualifying round.

Germany beat group D rival Israel (61-57) thanks to a first quarter blitz (18-5). Israel spend the whole game chasing after the game but never managed to go in front. Bar Galinski finished with a double -double 25 points and 10 rebound in a losing cause while Julia Gaudermannn top scored for Germany with 13 points.

Comments Comments:

Joe Shields, Ireland: it was good we have adapted to the climate and I think that we have adapted to the conditions and also you know the girls did not really perform very well in the first game against England, I know that England are quite good. We have improved in the last couple of games and today's result was achieved with combination of hard work and effort and the Irish spirit."

Rui Gomis, Portugal: I have mixed feeling, first I am happy because this is the first time at U16 that my country has played such a close game against Croatia and the feeling is that with a little bit more cleverness and experience we could do better than Croatia.

We did not score many 3-points today and we could not stop their transition game that is very good. We noticed that Bosnia had problems with Croatia transition game and we worked on it but our players did not understand it but I am still happy with the girls as they did not give up and fought all through the game. We have to improve in one area for the next round, we are not boxing out enough and losing points on rebounds which makes a difference, otherwise we are okay.

Yvonne Lansink, Holland: I thought the referees were a bit one-sided at the beginning and told the girls at the break to step up and stay more physical and see what the refs would do, they did this and the calls evened out. We played as a team and I can play with 12 players and that is a big advantage. And it does not matter who is standing up, it is such a great team, we have won our 3 games and that is such a great achievement for Holland.

For more information go to www.wbbuzz.com/News/FIBA/U16-European-Championship/

Division A: The best players so far -by Eurobasket News

As the Preliminary Round in the Division A of U16 European Championship is over, Eurobasket introduces the best players so far in three categories. Today is the day-off in the Championship, but it is not the day-off for the correspondents and especially for the readers.

Ukrainian Olesya Malashenko (188-F-91) leads the top-scorers in the Championship. She stays on top with 21.7 points per game. In the first game against Russia Olesya Malashenko ended up with 18 points in a loss for her team. The best game so far she showed over Greece nailing 26 points and grabbing 18 rebounds. In the last game over France Olesya Malashenko posted 20 points.
Sabine Niedola (182-F-91) from Latvia averages with 21.3 points per game. Maryia Filonchyk (187-F-92) from Belarus is third in the list with 21.0 points per game.

After 22 rebounds in the game over Greece Latvian Sabine Niedola leads the rebounding category. She averages 18.7 rebounds per game. Sara Krnjic (194-C-91) and Amanda Bazoukou (189-C-93) are second with 14.0 per game.

Spanish Leonor Rodriguez (177-G-91) is the first in the assists stats. A great game by her team lifts her with 5.3 assists per game. She made 6 assists in the games over Turkey and Latvia and had 4 against Belgium. Cleopatra Forsman (165-G-91) is second with 4.3 per game and Sintija Grinerte (173-G-91) from Latvia has 4.0 assists per game.

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FRANCE - Women

France U16 proved the superiority rolling over Ukraine -by Eurobasket News

Ukraine U16-France U16 70:101 (15-29, 21-27, 21-21, 13-24)

French U16 squad stays undefeated in U16 European Championship for Women. In the last game of the Preliminary Round the team smashed Ukraine 101:70. An easy win gave France 2-0 record from the start in the Qualifying Round. Chloe Westelynck (188-F-91) led the winners with 20 points. Helena Akmouche (173-G-92) posted 17 and Diandra Tchatchouang (186-F/C-91) added 13. Olesya Malashenko (188-F-91) collected 20 points and made 8 rebounds in the losing effort.

A good start by Ukrainian side (4-0) was stopped immediately by the favorites of group D. In the last 4 minutes of the first quarter France scored 17! points and had 29:15 in the end. Zouzouo's two gave France the biggest lead at that time, 53:30. Ukraine trailed 36:56 at the half and looked tired after first part of the game. The favorites did not let up with Ukraine getting closer than 17 points the entire second half.
In another game of the group Russia overcame Greece 75:57 and finished second in the Preliminary Round of Group D. Greece did not win any game in the group and will struggle in the Classification Round.
France will start the Qualifying Round tomorrow against Belgium that is 0-2. Ukraine will face the favorite of Group C, Spain.

Ukraine U16: Olesya Malashenko 20+8 rebs, Olha Maznichenko (186-F-91) 14+11 rebs
France U16: Chloe Westelynck 20, Helena Akmouche 17, Diandra Tchatchouang 13

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GREECE - Women

Russia U16 sent Greece to the Classification Round -by Eurobasket News
Greece U16 -Russia U16 57:75 (10-18, 11-21, 21-22, 15-14)

Russia U16 overcame Greece 75:57 and finished second in the Preliminary Round of Group D. A 18:10 lead in the opening quarter allowed the winners to take a control of the game. Greece won the last quarter, but did not change much on the board. Olga Sokolovskaya (173-G-91) led the winners with 14 points. Alexandra Tarasova (192-C-91) posted 13 and made 11 rebounds, while Yana Matveeva (182-F-92) added 11. Angeliki Nikolopoulou (178-G-91) nailed 21 points in the losing effort.

Georgia Panou (168-G-91)'s three and then a two from Angeliki Nikolopoulou gave Greece a 5-0 run in th eopening quarter. Five stayed on the board for Greece with 4 minutes on the board as Olga Sokolovskaya with a three made 5:9. Russia took control and wo the quarter 18:10. Nothing had changed in the second quarter, however the margin was bigger and bigger. After 21:11 in the second Russia had 39:21 at the half time.
Georgia Panou with a lay-up reduced to 11 points later in the third, but Greece could not take the win from the favorites. Russia celebrated 75:57 win and finished the group with 2-1. Greece did not win any game in the group and will struggle in the Classification Round.

Greece U16: Angeliki Nikolopoulou 21, Anna Kavasila (186-C-91) 13+10 rebs
Russia U16: Olga Sokolovskaya 14, Alexandra Tarasova 13+11 rebs, Yana Matveeva 11

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ITALY - Women

European U16 Division B, the situation after day-3 -by Carlo Grilli
GROUP A
Italy-Montenegro 107-21
Finland-Slovenia 49-67
Slovenia-Italy 50-83
Montenegro-Finland 40-80
Italy-Finland 67-54
Slovenia-Montenegro 63-41

Final Standing
Italy 6 3 0 257 125
Slovenia 4 2 1 180 173
Finland 2 1 2 183 174
Montenegro 0 0 3 102 250

GROUP B
Portugal-Bosnia 62-64
Bosnia-Croatia 73-49
Croatia-Portugal 73-60
Final Standing
Bosnia 4 2 0 137 111
Croatia 2 1 1 122 133
Portugal 0 0 2 122 137

GROUP C
Bulgaria-Netherlands 63-66
Ireland-England 48-66
Netherlands-Ireland 54-52
England-Bulgaria 67-46
Bulgaria-Ireland 60-76
England-Netherlands 53-55

Final Standing
Netherlands 6 3 0 175 168
England 4 2 1 186 139
Ireland 2 1 2 176 180
Bulgaria 0 0 3 169 209

GROUP D
Israel-Romania 60-33
Romania-Germany 28-95
Germany-Israel 61-57

Final Standing
Germany 4 2 0 156 85
Israel 2 1 1 117 94
Romania 0 0 2 61 155

QUALIFICATION ROUND
GROUP E
Initial standings
Italy 4, Bosnia 4, Slovenia 2, Croatia 2, Finland 0, Portugal 0.

GROUP F
Initial standings
Germany 4, Netherlands 4, Israel 2, England 2, Ireland 0, Romania 0.

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IVORY COAST - Women

Argentina rolls past Cote d'Ivoire for the first win -by Eurobasket News
Argentina U19 - Cote d'Ivoire U19 73:55
Argentina successfully started the classification round at the U19 World championship. They handled Cote d'Ivoire to post their first victory at the tournament. Argentina started strongly and grabbed a 22:17 advantage after the first frame. However Cote d'Ivoire quicly bounced back as they outscored Latin Amercican team 17:11 and gained a 34:33 lead at halftime. But due to impressive performance from Andrea Boquete (-90) and Stephany Thomas (179-F-89) Argentina stepped back and routed Cote d'Ivoire 21:12 in the third frame to spur ahead. Argentina found the touch in the fourth frame and did not allow Cote d'Ivoire to come back into this one. Argentina secured the positive result and recorded their first win at the competition.
Andrea Boquete topscored for Argentina with 24 points and 13 rebounds. Sofia Castillo (175-G-88) nailed 15 points, while Stephany Thomas secured another 13 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. Cote d'Ivoire were paced by Assetou Kolga (-88) with 23 points and 13 rebounds. Kani Kouyate (-90) dropped in 17 points in defeat.
Argentina dominated under the rims outrebounding their opponents 45:38. They also limited Cote d'Ivoire to just 27.9% from the field.
Argentina will now face the winners of Japan versus Mali battle. Cote d'Ivoire will play against the losing side in that one tomorrow.

Argentina U19: Andrea Boquete 24+13 boards, Sofia Castillo 15, Stephany Thomas 13
Cote d'Ivoire U19: Assetou Kolga 23+13 boards, Kani Kouyate 17

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JAPAN - Women

Japan beats Mali in classification round -by Eurobasket News
Japan U19 - Mali U19 87:72
Japanese U19 National team gained their first win at the World championship as they handled Mali in classification round. Both teams entered this one winless and tried to improve their records. Mali were first to strike as they outscored their opponents 25:22 in the first quarter. Japan however withstood a blow and emerged strong in the second frame. They held African team to 12 points and drove to a 42:37 advantage at halftime. Japan never looked back from now on. Their aggressive style of game helped them to stay ahead as Mali struggled to maintain Japanese players defensively.
Naomi Hayashi (-88) scored 26 points and dished out 10 assists for Japan. Eri Nakahata (-88) added 14 points for the winners. Nagnouma Coulibaly (192-F-89) secured 25 points and 26 rebounds for Mali. Fanta Toure (-89) had 19 points in a loss.
Nagnouma Coulibaly and Minata Keita combined 42 rebounds to match Japanese team effort. But Mali committed 32 turnovers and shot just 10.5% from beyond the arc. Japanese players were much more accurate converting 32.2% from the field and 84.2% from the charity stripe.
Mali will now play against Cote d'Ivoire tomorrow. Japan faces Argentina for the 13th spot.

Japan U19: Naomi Hayashi 26+10 assists, Eri Nakahata 14
Mali U19: Nagnouma Coulibaly 25+26 boards, Fanta Toure 19

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LATVIA - Women

The hosts of U16 Championship sent Turkey out of top 12 -by Eurobasket News
Latvia U16-Turkey U16 85:75 (25-14, 20-26, 16-18, 24-17)

Latvia U16 made the crowd happy winning the last game of the Preliminary Round in Group C. Playing in front of their home fans in Valmiera, Latvia beat Turkey 85:75. That was the game of two Latvian players who struggled not against Turkey, but probably for the top-scorer in the game. With an excellent performance from two of them the board showed 23 points for each. Sabine Niedola (182-F-91) and Ilze Gotfrida (180-F-91) nailed 23 points for the winners, while Anna Sonka (179-F-91) added 10. Moreover the first two grabbed 32 rebounds together. Safiye Karaman (180-F-91) top-scored with 21 points in defeat.

The hosts ran forward from the first minutes and had 25:14 after the first. Thay also pulled ahead 33:17 midway through the second quarter and did not see the opposition from the visitors. Meanwhile Turkey woke up in the end of the first half. The team created 18-3 run to pull within 36:35.
Latvia again had 1 points deficit with 62:61. A 8-0 spurt gave Latvia the second win and the ticket to the Qualifying Round. Turkey dropped to 0-3 and will play in the Classification Round.

Latvia U16: Sabine Niedola 23+22 rebs, Ilze Gotfrida 23+10 rebs, Anna Sonka 10
Turkey U16: Safiye Karaman 21, Pelin Gulbag (170-G-92) 11

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MALI - Women

Japan beats Mali in classification round -by Eurobasket News
Japan U19 - Mali U19 87:72
Japanese U19 National team gained their first win at the World championship as they handled Mali in classification round. Both teams entered this one winless and tried to improve their records. Mali were first to strike as they outscored their opponents 25:22 in the first quarter. Japan however withstood a blow and emerged strong in the second frame. They held African team to 12 points and drove to a 42:37 advantage at halftime. Japan never looked back from now on. Their aggressive style of game helped them to stay ahead as Mali struggled to maintain Japanese players defensively.
Naomi Hayashi (-88) scored 26 points and dished out 10 assists for Japan. Eri Nakahata (-88) added 14 points for the winners. Nagnouma Coulibaly (192-F-89) secured 25 points and 26 rebounds for Mali. Fanta Toure (-89) had 19 points in a loss.
Nagnouma Coulibaly and Minata Keita combined 42 rebounds to match Japanese team effort. But Mali committed 32 turnovers and shot just 10.5% from beyond the arc. Japanese players were much more accurate converting 32.2% from the field and 84.2% from the charity stripe.
Mali will now play against Cote d'Ivoire tomorrow. Japan faces Argentina for the 13th spot.

Japan U19: Naomi Hayashi 26+10 assists, Eri Nakahata 14
Mali U19: Nagnouma Coulibaly 25+26 boards, Fanta Toure 19

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POLAND - Women

Sweden U16 beat Poland as both teams advance to the Qualifying Round -by Eurobasket News

Sweden U16-Poland U16 63:55 (16-17, 21-11, 7-18, 19-9)

Sweden U16 advanced to the Qualifying Round after a win over Poland. A victory in both second and fourth quarters brought the second win in the Preliminary Round. Cleopatra Forsman (165-G-91) was unstoppable with 20 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists. Amanda Bazoukou (189-C-93) added 14, while Salome Kabengano (176-G-92) posted 13. Iwona Szarzynska (171-G-91) chipped in 16 points in the losing effort. Even though Poland fell at 1-2 they also advanced to the next stage.

Aleksandra Dziwinska (170-G-91) with a three opened the game for Poland and Roze Ratajczak (178-G-91) ended up the first quarter with a jumper. Poland took 17:16 lead in the first and looked forward for the second. After 23:24 Sweden woke up and took over the opponents. They had 37:28 when both teams disappeared for the interims. Poland led 53:47 with six minutes left but Sweden made a 12-0 run for a 59:53. Sweden held the victory as both teams proceeded to the next stage.
Tomorrow Poland will meet Czech Republic that is unbeaten so far. Sweden will face Hungary in the first game of the day.

Sweden U16: Cleopatra Forsman 20+7 rebs+6 ast, Amanda Bazoukou 14, Salome Kabengano 13
Poland U16: Iwona Szarzynska 16, Roze Ratajczak 15

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PORTUGAL - Women

European U-16 -by Bruno Baltazar
The portuguese national U-16 team started their participation in the European Champs with two great exibitions but with two loses aswell.
Against Bosnia it was a great match decided really close in overtime ,final result win for Bosnia 64-62 .
With Croatia,Portugal had bigger dificulties ,they had a really poor start,getting back and recovering some points during others quarters but at the end it was a lost 80-73 .
Portugal its in group E with :
-Italy
-Bosnia
-Croatia
-Slovenia
-Finland

Tomorrow Portugal starts the second phase of the tournament against Italy in a game that everyone expects to be a big game.

Ticha with 2 points in a lost -by Bruno Baltazar
Monarchs lost against the Minnesota Lynx 73-78.
Ticha played 25.02 minutes had 3 rebounds,4 assists,1 steal and 2 points.
The key to the lost was Seimone Augustus that scored a career-high 39 points ,her biggest basket was a long jumper that ended an 8-0 Sacramento run and put the Lynx ahead 75-69 with 1.46 remaining.
Sacramento is now with 14 wins and 10 losts.
Tomorrow the Monarchs play agaisnt the Storm.

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RUSSIA - Women

Russia U16 sent Greece to the Classification Round -by Eurobasket News
Greece U16 -Russia U16 57:75 (10-18, 11-21, 21-22, 15-14)

Russia U16 overcame Greece 75:57 and finished second in the Preliminary Round of Group D. A 18:10 lead in the opening quarter allowed the winners to take a control of the game. Greece won the last quarter, but did not change much on the board. Olga Sokolovskaya (173-G-91) led the winners with 14 points. Alexandra Tarasova (192-C-91) posted 13 and made 11 rebounds, while Yana Matveeva (182-F-92) added 11. Angeliki Nikolopoulou (178-G-91) nailed 21 points in the losing effort.

Georgia Panou (168-G-91)'s three and then a two from Angeliki Nikolopoulou gave Greece a 5-0 run in th eopening quarter. Five stayed on the board for Greece with 4 minutes on the board as Olga Sokolovskaya with a three made 5:9. Russia took control and wo the quarter 18:10. Nothing had changed in the second quarter, however the margin was bigger and bigger. After 21:11 in the second Russia had 39:21 at the half time.
Georgia Panou with a lay-up reduced to 11 points later in the third, but Greece could not take the win from the favorites. Russia celebrated 75:57 win and finished the group with 2-1. Greece did not win any game in the group and will struggle in the Classification Round.

Greece U16: Angeliki Nikolopoulou 21, Anna Kavasila (186-C-91) 13+10 rebs
Russia U16: Olga Sokolovskaya 14, Alexandra Tarasova 13+11 rebs, Yana Matveeva 11

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SERBIA - Women

Jelena Milovanovic scores 20 points as Serbia cruises past Brazil -by Eurobasket News
Serbia U19 - Brazil U19 82:57
Serbia remained undefeated as they topple Brazil today. The victory opened the qualifying round in Group F for Serbia. The winners never stumbled en route to a confident victory. They thrashed their opponents 19:6 in the opening quarter and eased to a 40:24 lead at halftime. Brazil managed to outscore Serbia in the third quarter 19:18 but it was a little consolation for Latin American team as Serbia proved the difference with a 24:14 final quarter.
Jelena Milovanovic (191-F/C-89) led all scorers with 20 points. Andja Ivkovic (184-F-88) added 11 points for the winners. Clarissa dos Santos (182-C-88) paced Brazil with 19 points and 15 rebounds. Djane Santos (185-F-88) and Ariani Silva had 9 points piece in defeat.
Serbia will next play against Sweden tomorrow. Brazil faces Canada in their next encounter at the tournament.

Serbia U19: Jelena Milovanovic 20, Andja Ivkovic 11
Brazil U19: Clarissa dos Santos 19+15 boards, Djane Santos 9

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SPAIN - Women

The defending champions of U16 European Championship outscored Belgium -by Eurobasket News

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SWEDEN - Women

Sweden U16 beat Poland as both teams advance to the Qualifying Round -by Eurobasket News

Sweden U16: Cleopatra Forsman 20+7 rebs+6 ast, Amanda Bazoukou 14, Salome Kabengano 13
Poland U16: Iwona Szarzynska 16, Roze Ratajczak 15

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TURKEY - Women

The hosts of U16 Championship sent Turkey out of top 12 -by Eurobasket News
Latvia U16-Turkey U16 85:75 (25-14, 20-26, 16-18, 24-17)

Latvia U16 made the crowd happy winning the last game of the Preliminary Round in Group C. Playing in front of their home fans in Valmiera, Latvia beat Turkey 85:75. That was the game of two Latvian players who struggled not against Turkey, but probably for the top-scorer in the game. With an excellent performance from two of them the board showed 23 points for each. Sabine Niedola (182-F-91) and Ilze Gotfrida (180-F-91) nailed 23 points for the winners, while Anna Sonka (179-F-91) added 10. Moreover the first two grabbed 32 rebounds together. Safiye Karaman (180-F-91) top-scored with 21 points in defeat.

The hosts ran forward from the first minutes and had 25:14 after the first. Thay also pulled ahead 33:17 midway through the second quarter and did not see the opposition from the visitors. Meanwhile Turkey woke up in the end of the first half. The team created 18-3 run to pull within 36:35.
Latvia again had 1 points deficit with 62:61. A 8-0 spurt gave Latvia the second win and the ticket to the Qualifying Round. Turkey dropped to 0-3 and will play in the Classification Round.

Latvia U16: Sabine Niedola 23+22 rebs, Ilze Gotfrida 23+10 rebs, Anna Sonka 10
Turkey U16: Safiye Karaman 21, Pelin Gulbag (170-G-92) 11

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UKRAINE - Women

France U16 proved the superiority rolling over Ukraine -by Eurobasket News

Ukraine U16: Olesya Malashenko 20+8 rebs, Olha Maznichenko (186-F-91) 14+11 rebs
France U16: Chloe Westelynck 20, Helena Akmouche 17, Diandra Tchatchouang 13

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W.CHAMPS U19 - Women

Serbia and Australia dominate the scene in Slovakia -by Eurobasket News
Classification round 13th-16th spots

Japan U19 - Mali U19 87:72
Japanese U19 National team gained their first win at the World championship as they handled Mali in classification round. Both teams entered this one winless and tried to improve their records. Mali were first to strike as they outscored their opponents 25:22 in the first quarter. Japan however withstood a blow and emerged strong in the second frame. They held African team to 12 points and drove to a 42:37 advantage at halftime. Japan never looked back from now on. Their aggressive style of game helped them to stay ahead as Mali struggled to maintain Japanese players defensively.
Naomi Hayashi (-88) scored 26 points and dished out 10 assists for Japan. Eri Nakahata (-88) added 14 points for the winners. Nagnouma Coulibaly (192-F-89) secured 25 points and 26 rebounds for Mali. Fanta Toure (-89) had 19 points in a loss.
Nagnouma Coulibaly and Minata Keita combined 42 rebounds to match Japanese team effort. But Mali committed 32 turnovers and shot just 10.5% from beyond the arc. Japanese players were much more accurate converting 32.2% from the field and 84.2% from the charity stripe.
Mali will now play against Cote d'Ivoire tomorrow. Japan faces Argentina for the 13th spot.

Japan U19: Naomi Hayashi 26+10 assists, Eri Nakahata 14
Mali U19: Nagnouma Coulibaly 25+26 boards, Fanta Toure 19

Argentina U19 - Cote d'Ivoire U19 73:55
Argentina successfully started the classification round at the U19 World championship. They handled Cote d'Ivoire to post their first victory at the tournament. Argentina started strongly and grabbed a 22:17 advantage after the first frame. However Cote d'Ivoire quicly bounced back as they outscored Latin Amercican team 17:11 and gained a 34:33 lead at halftime. But due to impressive performance from Andrea Boquete (-90) and Stephany Thomas (179-F-89) Argentina stepped back and routed Cote d'Ivoire 21:12 in the third frame to spur ahead. Argentina found the touch in the fourth frame and did not allow Cote d'Ivoire to come back into this one. Argentina secured the positive result and recorded their first win at the competition.
Andrea Boquete topscored for Argentina with 24 points and 13 rebounds. Sofia Castillo (175-G-88) nailed 15 points, while Stephany Thomas secured another 13 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. Cote d'Ivoire were paced by Assetou Kolga (-88) with 23 points and 13 rebounds. Kani Kouyate (-90) dropped in 17 points in defeat.
Argentina dominated under the rims outrebounding their opponents 45:38. They also limited Cote d'Ivoire to just 27.9% from the field.
Argentina will now face the winners of Japan versus Mali battle. Cote d'Ivoire will play against the losing side in that one tomorrow.

Argentina U19: Andrea Boquete 24+13 boards, Sofia Castillo 15, Stephany Thomas 13
Cote d'Ivoire U19: Assetou Kolga 23+13 boards, Kani Kouyate 17

Eighth-finals

Group F

Canada U19 - Australia U19 55:70
Canada were not able to provided a sensation and had to surrender against Australia today. The gems entered the game undefeated and remained at perfect record after the final buzzer.
Canada stayed in the game throughout the opening frame and finished it all square 13:13. However impressive flexibility of Australian squad allowed them to change the tempo and the threat waas coming from different players. Canada struggled to maintain 100% concentration in defence and started to slip away in the second quarter. Australia used a couple of mini runs to gain necessary advantage as they completed the first half leading 38:29. Canada tried to cut the deficit in the third and they actually managed to outscore Australia to stay at a striking distance but Aussies revived in the fourth to emerge victorious.
Cayla Francis (192-C-89) secured 16 points and 10 boards for Australia. Nicole Hunt (167-G-88) and Abby Bishop (189-C-88) produced 9 points apiece for the winners. Kendel Ross (185-G/F-88) had 10 points and 12 rebounds for Canada. Tara Watts (175-G-88) finished with 9 points in a losing effort.
Australia outrebounded North Americans 44:37 and limited them to 27.3% from the field. Aussies shot 44.8% of field goals, including 4/11 from beyond the arc.
Australia will next face Czech Republic tomorrow. Canada will take on Brazil.

Canada U19: Kendel Ross 10+12 boards, Tara Watts 9
Australia U19: Cayla Francis 16+10 boards, Nicole Hunt 9, Abby Bishop 9

Serbia U19 - Brazil U19 82:57
Serbia remained undefeated as they topple Brazil today. The victory opened the qualifying round in Group F for Serbia. The winners never stumbled en route to a confident victory. They thrashed their opponents 19:6 in the opening quarter and eased to a 40:24 lead at halftime. Brazil managed to outscore Serbia in the third quarter 19:18 but it was a little consolation for Latin American team as Serbia proved the difference with a 24:14 final quarter.
Jelena Milovanovic (191-F/C-89) led all scorers with 20 points. Andja Ivkovic (184-F-88) added 11 points for the winners. Clarissa dos Santos (182-C-88) paced Brazil with 19 points and 15 rebounds. Djane Santos (185-F-88) and Ariani Silva had 9 points piece in defeat.
Serbia will next play against Sweden tomorrow. Brazil faces Canada in their next encounter at the tournament.

Serbia U19: Jelena Milovanovic 20, Andja Ivkovic 11
Brazil U19: Clarissa dos Santos 19+15 boards, Djane Santos 9