LILLE, France: Greece secured a place in the quarter-finals of the European Basketball Championship by beating Belgium 75-54 last night for their sixth win in as many games and will next play Spain.
Spain pulled away at the start of the fourth quarter to beat Poland 80-66. Pau Gasol put the game away with eight straight points with just over three minutes left. Gasol, the tournament’s leading scorer, finished with 30 points and seven rebounds.
Latvia also reached the quarter-finals by beating Slovenia 73-66.
Centre Yannnis Bourousis led Greece with 14 points, and Kostas Koufos added 13 as the team looks for its first title at the competition since 2005.
Spain has one of the most impressive runs in European championship history, having not finished lower than fourth in the last eight tournaments. It won in 2009 and 2011 and took the bronze two years ago.
That record seemed in real jeopardy when the two teams were tied 55-55 at the end of the third. But Spain then put together a 14-2 run to lead by 10. If Poland had any hopes of coming back, Gasol destroyed them with a jumper followed by two straight three-pointers before leaving the game to a standing ovation.
Spain played without guard Rudy Fernandez, who is nursing a sore back.
Power forward Nikola Mirotic had 15 points and eight rebounds. The only Polish player to reach double digits was Damian Kulig with 10.
Belgium, trailing by three at halftime, resisted well until midway through the third quarter, when Vassilis Spanoulis gave Greece a 10-point lead.
Jumper
Georgios Printezis followed with two free throws and Bourousis made a jumper as Greece took a decisive 57-42 lead at the end of the third, and used a 21-3 run into the fourth quarter to take a 23-point advantage, while Belgium could not score for nine minutes.
“In the first-half we would have had a better score if we were not so static against the zone,” Greece coach Fotis Katsikaris said. “In the second-half, the team was very determined and played unbelievable defence.”
Greece is seeking its third title, having also won in 1987. Greece went 5-0 in the group stage and looked at ease as the tournament moved into the knockout stage at Lille’s football stadium, which has been converted into an indoor arena.
Pierre-Antoine Gillet led Belgium with 14 points, Sam van Rossom added 13, and Matt Lojeski, who plays his club basketball in Greece, had 10.
Janis Strelnieks scored 17 points and had six rebounds and eight assists to pace Latvia, which won the first title 80 years ago but whose best recent placing was eighth in 2001.
Slovenia, which finished fifth at home two years ago, got 17 points from Zoran Dragic, who was the only player to score in double digits.
Slovenia pulled within four points with 1:15 to play but Strelnieks then sank a jumper that sealed the victory.
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