Lauvergne, France wrap up group play, Gasol helps Spain snag top seed

Lauvergne, France wrap up group play, Gasol helps Spain snag top seed

The French lose their final game, but still advance to the elimination round; Gasol, Spain rally past Croatia

Eurobasket Report – Lauvergne, France split last group games

Joffrey Lauvergne couldn’t stop cleaning the glass.

In France’s narrow 78-75 win against Poland Tuesday, Lauvergne led his team in rebounds with 11 but struggled to score, shooting just 1 for 9 from the field. However, he added 3 assists and went 4 for 5 from the free-throw line for a total of 6 points. However, his fortunes (and those of France) were reversed in Wednesday’s game. The French lost to Goran Dragic-led Slovenia to close the group stage in a lackluster 95-78 game that was decided in the middle two quarters. Lauvergne didn’t see much playing time, scoring just 7 points and grabbing a solitary rebound in a limited 14 minutes as Slovenia used a 25-point third period and 22 points from Dragic to get the win. A French rally in garbage time merely made for a more respectable final scoreline — but they’ll still advance to play Germany in the Round of 16 on Saturday.

Davis Bertans, who’s not-so-quietly having a great tournament, helped Latvia cruise past Russia 84-69 by scoring 9 points on 4 of 8 shooting. He also chipped in 5 rebounds and 3 turnovers, was +15 for the game and proved once again to be a difference-maker. Latvia plays Turkey on Thursday.

With the first seed on the line, Spain managed to steal a 79-73 victory over Croatia. Trailing by one going into the fourth quarter, the Spaniards turned it around by turning to the ever-reliable Pau Gasol. He led the team with 11 rebounds and contributed 11 points, but his shooting was a poor 5 for 15 from the field. Spain as a team shot just 36 percent, but won the game thanks to a 20-11 advantage on the offensive glass and bench scoring. They play Hungary on Thursday.

Source: Pounding The Rock

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