With group play in men’s basketball coming to an end Monday night with Croatia’s win over Lithuania, the four quarterfinal matchups are now set. And for the U.S. men’s basketball team, that means an opponent they certainly have some familiarity with.
Thanks to the combination of their loss to Spain and Croatia’s victory, Argentina gets first crack at the Americans in the bracket rounds. Argentina’s got some players fans will certainly be familiar with, as Manu Ginobili, Luis Scola and Andres Nocioni are still mainstays on the roster. But there’s another player on Argentina’s roster, point guard Facundo Campazzo, who has the potential to give the U.S. trouble if they aren’t better defending the pick and roll than they were in their last three games in group play.
Campazzo scored 33 points and dished out 11 assists in Argentina’s double-overtime win over Brazil, and he averaged 16.4 points and 5.2 assists per game in group play. The U.S. did blow out Argentina in an exhibition leading into these Olympics, but Ginobili played just over 14 minutes with Scola and Nocioni playing a shade over 23 and 22 minutes, respectively.
Also on that side of the bracket are France and Spain, with the French finishing third in Group A and the Spaniards second in Group B. The U.S. beat France by three in their final game in group play, and they’ve defeated Spain in each of the last two gold medal games. On the other side of the bracket, Group B winner Croatia takes on Serbia in one quarterfinal, with Group A runner-up Australia drawing Lithuania in the other.
Wednesday’s Quarterfinal Schedule
Australia vs. Lithuania, 10 a.m. Eastern
Spain vs. France, 12:30 p.m.
U.S.A. vs. Argentina, 5:45 p.m.
Croatia vs. Serbia, 9:15 p.m.
