WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP ATHENS 1998
Lolo ' s team, which had been highly solid once again in beating Brazil by a difference of 12 points and Lithuania after overtime in a match in which Herreros once again showed his class( 4 from 7 in triples) and sangfroid( 11 from 12 in free throws). Second place seemed scant reward, maybe because they had deserved to beat the USA, but this was the situation after six matches; five victories and one defeat. Lithuania and Argentina accompanied the Spaniards and the Americans into the next round. Puerto Rico, based around and enormously talented trio( Piculin Ortiz, Mincy and Vega) but woefully short on strength in depth, and Canada who put on a disastrous showing with only one victory( against Senegal) and seven defeats were eliminated.
In the other group, after the surprise of the Yugoslav defeat to Italy and the excellent run of the Russians, all that remained to be played for had taken place in the Greece-Italy match in the first round in which the triumph of the local team by 64-56 was enough to give them third place.
Australia, with Gaze, still active but going downhill, and Heal as their only valid references, and Brazil, still relying on the veteran Viana to be competitive were eliminated. The retirement of Oscar Schmidt had been excessively traumatic for the Brazilians and his natural successor, Klafe, was a long way from the numbers that had been achieved by the great shooter whose loss weighed heavily on Rubens ' s team.
DAMNED PAIRING, DAMNED REFEREEING
The hosts as a rival. Once again the quarter-finals proved an insurmountable barrier for Spain. Everything seemed to conspire against them that day on the OAKA court: an ill-fated performance by the referees, the Israeli Virovnik and the North American Jones, an off-day from Herreros( only six points) who was fouled from all sides and ended up complaining bitterly to the referees and the desk official. Two final triples ended the dreams of a team that deserved far more than they finally got, fifth place. They achieved this because, and this was the best evidence of the determination and talent of the Spanish team, after the disappointment of not qualifying for the semi-finals they picked themselves up and, first of all beat Argentina 77-64 in what was a tricky match after what had happened against Greece but with Orenga( 22 points) and Herreros( 15 points) they pulled it off and followed this by confirming their potential and beating Italy in the match for fifth place. The Italians went home with the consolation of being the only team to have beaten the eventual champions, and the sensation that Myers could have contributed more than he did. Fucka and Abbio, two men who came on from the bench, had been their strongest players. In the other quarter-finals there were no surprises, but there were difficulties; for the USA, whom Italy held in check until the very end and possibly deserved a greater reward in the only good match from Myers( 2 points) in the entire tournament. Tomjanovich ' s team won by three points and went on to meet Russia who were awaiting them in the semi-finals.
Sergei Belov ' s team ended the hopes of Lithuania who were losing steam as the competition progressed. The presence of three complete players in Stombergas, Karnisovas and Adomatis, together with the appearance of the young Jasikevicius( 22 years old) could not cover the absence of the eternal symbol, Arvydas Sabonis. Between them Eurelijius Zakauskas, Einikis and Praskevicius contributed a great many centimetres but the foresight, class and solidity of Sabonis could not be replaced by height alone.
241 FUNDACIÓN PEDRO FERRÁNDIZ