No Gasol, No Problem: Spain wins first-ever world championship (with video highlights)
09.3.2006 - Updated on 09.5.2006
Saitama, Japan (Basketball News) - Pau Gasol played cheerleader Sunday with a left foot injury, as Jorge Garbajosa and Juan Carlos Navarro more than picked up the slack with 20 points a piece to carry Spain to its first-ever world championship with a resounding 70-47 victory over Greece.
Gasol, the team’s leading scorer and rebounder and the tournament’s most valuable player, broke his foot in the waning moments of Spain’s 75-74 victory over Argentina in the semifinals.
Without Gasol, Spain was also staring at the task of facing a team that played a flawless game in upsetting the United States, 101-95, in the other semifinal contest.
However, with its fallen star as motivation, Spain turned it up on the both ends of the court in a final that was all but determined by halftime.
Felipe Reyes started in Gasol’s place, scoring 10 first-half points — one less than he had the entire tournament while battling back problems. Marc Gasol, Pau’s younger brother, pulled down seven rebounds after averaging less than two for the tournament.
Spain outrebounded Greece, 40-32, without its seven-footer in the lineup.
Mihalis Kakiouzis had 17 points and nine rebounds for Greece, which couldn’t buy a bucket in the first half. Trailing 18-12 after one stanza, Greece tallied only 11 more points in the second while settling for perimeter shots.
Greece shot 63 percent in the victory over the United States, but made only 18-of-55 from the floor on Sunday. A 5-of-21 effort from beyond the arc also illustrated Greece’s shooting troubles.
A 43-23 halftime advantage stayed status quo during the third, and Spain cruised to victory during the final period.
Spain’s victory marked Europe’s third straight world championship, as Yugoslavia took home the gold medal in 1998 and 2002. Fellow European country Turkey will be the host country in 2010.
The United States defeated Argentina, 96-81, to take home the bronze medal on Saturday.
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