Paolo Banchero, Team USA (FIBAWC photo)
MANILA – The United States of America (USA) quickly staved off a surprisingly rough start and made quick work of New Zealand, 99-72, in front of 10,978 fans in Day 2 of the FIBA World Cup at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City on Saturday night.
The Americans found themselves on the verge of falling to a huge upset early on when the Tall Blacks started the game on a 14-4 run.
However, Team USA finished the first quarter on a 15-4 run to go up, 19-18 and never looked back.
The 20-year-old Paolo Banchero led Team USA with 21 points on 8-for-10 field goals, including a perfect 2-of-2 from beyond the arc, four rebounds, one assist, and four blocks.
Jaren Jackson, who went 4-for-4 from the field and 4-for-4 from the free throw line, and Austin Reaves, who also went 2-of-2 on threes, each added 12 points.
Reuben Te Rangi had 15 points, two rebounds and one assist for New Zealand, which performed its usual pregame Haka traditional dance.
In Jakarta, Indonesia, defending champion Spain dumped Cote d'Ivoire, 94-64.
It led by as much as 30 points, 71-41, in the 27th minute.
Willy Hernangomez, the Eurobasket 2022 Most Valuable Player, paced the holders with 22 points, scoring 20 of them in the first half.
His brother, Juancho, added 11 points while Usman Garuba poured in 12.
Over at Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, Serbia cruised to a 105-63 win against China to spoil Kyle Anderson's FIBA World Cup debut.
The Serbian defense did well in containing Anderson, who was held scoreless in 21 minutes.
Anderson’s great grandfather on the maternal side is of Chinese descent.
Bogdan Bogdanovic led Serbia with 14 points, four rebounds, three assists, one steal, and one block, while Dustan Ristic added 13 points and six rebounds.
Zhao Rui paced China with 17 points and two steals.
The first game of the Quezon City twinbill saw Puerto Rico beating World Cup first-timer South Sudan in overtime, 101-96.
Stephen Thompson led Puerto Rico with 21 points, 13 rebounds, four assists, and five steals, while Tremont Waters added 19 points, four rebounds, 11 assists, and three steals.
George Conditt put up 18 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks, and one steal, and Ismael Romero, who had been vindicated after missing two free throws with 0.3 seconds left in regulation that could have won the game for Puerto Rico outright, had 16 points on 8-of-9 field goals, 12 rebounds, three assists, and three steals.
Puerto Rico set the tone in the extension after going on a 7-0 run right in the first minute.
Jones exploded for 35 points with six rebounds, 11 assists and four steals for South Sudan.
At the Okinawa Arena in Japan, the "Luka Magic" was officially ignited as Luka Doncic fired 37 points to lead Slovenia to a 100-85 win against Venezuela.
Doncic also had seven rebounds, six assists, two steals, and one block, while Mike Tobey went 9-for-9 from the field for 21 points with five rebounds and two assists.
Garly Sojo had 16 points, two rebounds, two assists, and one steal to lead Venezuela, which was still in the thick of things by halftime.
In the other games, Georgia ripped Cape Verde, 85-60; Greece downed Jordan, 92-71; and Brazil clobbered Iran, 100-59. (PNA)
