Spain overcame a gallant Russia 93-85 to win bronze and send
retiring captain Juan Carlos Navarro off in style.
Turning point: After trailing by 17 points midway
through the third, Russia fought back gamely and capitalized on Spain's
sloppiness with the ball. Russia continued their fight deep into the fourth,
trailing 83-79 with under two minutes left with Spain without Ricky Rubio who
earlier in the quarter was ejected after receiving his second unsportsmanlike
foul. However, Vitaly Fridzon badly missed a three-pointer that would
have cut the deficit to one and Spain scored on the other end to restore their
momentum.
Stats-don't-lie: Russia dominated from deep, which
kept them in the contest, but Spain's size and domination inside proved too
much - as highlighted by a convincing 38-27 edge in rebounds.
Game hero: In possibly his final FIBA
EuroBasket game, Pau Gasol was brilliant for Spain. He dominated the second
quarter when his brother Marc was injured and stepped up when Spain was
challenged in the last quarter, where he scored 12 of his 26 points. He also
had 10 rebounds and 3 blocks.
They said: "I am really proud of my team
after losing in the Semi-Finals to get this success. I am proud of finishing my
career with a medal. (I feel) both sadness and happiness. How it finished makes
me happy. Maybe the 2006 World Cup is the proudest moment but every year is
important and you learn something." - Spain captain Juan Carlos
Navarro after his final international game.
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