Wednesday brought forth the first day of the preliminary round of EuroBasket ’13.
This year’s EuroBasket has a lot on the line. Of the 24 teams competing, only six teams will earn spots in the inaugural 2014 Basketball World Cup.
Among the teams competing, the two-time defending EuroBasket champion Spanish national team.
[AJ Mitnick: EuroBasket ’13 Preview]
The first day of action saw a lot of close games with a few blowouts sprinkled in for good measure.
| Preliminary Round – Day 1 | ||
| GROUP A | ||
| Sep. 4, 2013 14:30 | Israel – United Kingdom | 71 – 75 OT |
| Sep. 4, 2013 17:45 | Belgium – Ukraine | 57 – 58 |
| Sep. 4, 2013 21:00 | France – Germany | 74 – 80 |
| GROUP B | ||
| Sep. 4, 2013 14:30 | Serbia – Lithuania | 63 – 56 |
| Sep. 4, 2013 17:45 | FYR Macedonia – Montenegro | 80 – 81 |
| Sep. 4, 2013 21:00 | Latvia – Bosnia | 86 – 75 |
| GROUP C | ||
| Sep. 4, 2013 14:30 | Georgia – Poland | 84 – 67 |
| Sep. 4, 2013 17:45 | Spain – Croatia | 68 – 40 |
| Sep. 4, 2013 21:00 | Czech Republic – Slovenia | 60 – 62 |
| GROUP D | ||
| Sep. 4, 2013 14:30 | Russia – Italy | 69 – 76 |
| Sep. 4, 2013 17:45 | Sweden – Greece | 51 – 79 |
| Sep. 4, 2013 21:00 | Turkey – Finland | 55 – 61 |
A few NBA players from the Spanish national team tweeted about their native country’s game.
Great win by our basketball national team against Croatia by 28 points. Keep it going guys! #EuroBasket2013 #SomosEquipo
— Pau Gasol (@paugasol) September 4, 2013
The best way to start the tournament, great TEAM effort, great win! Now rest a little and get ready for tomorrow vs Slovenia. #SomosEquipo
— jose manuel calderon (@josemcalderon8) September 4, 2013
With defense and playing as a TEAM is the way to win games. Next one against Slovenia #SomosEquipo
— Victor Claver (@Victor_Claver) September 4, 2013
As both Calderon and Claver mentioned, Spain’s next game will be tomorrow against Slovenia at 9:00 PM in Celje, Slovenia (3:00 PM EDT).
After a 28-point victory to open EuroBasket ’13, Spain is looking very good. Marc Gasol led the team with a double-double, scoring 14 points and snagging 11 rebounds. Rudy Fernandez added 15 points and eight rebounds.
Point guards Jose Calderon (13 points and three assists) and Ricky Rubio (seven points and seven assists) did their part to contribute to the two-time defending champions’ win.
The next five days will go a long way towards determining how strong Spain’s chances at a EuroBasket three-peat truly are.
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Michael writes the Tweet of the Day for SheridanHoops.com and is the Atlanta Hawks NBA Featured Columnist for BleacherReport.com. Follow @MBrumagin