AUCKLAND, New Zealand — The United States broke an 18-year gold medal drought when it beat Greece 88-80 Sunday to win the FIBA under-19 world basketball championships.
Tyshawn Taylor had 18 points and five steals to lead the United States to its first victory at the world junior tournament since it claimed the gold medal at Edmonton, Canada in 1991.
“It was a tough game. Greece played their hearts out but I think in the end we wanted it more,” Taylor said.
“They did what we expected, made a lot of big shots but we managed to tough it out.
“When we played Croatia (in the semifinals) they made a big run at us in the third quarter, as Greece did, but we managed to hold on and the same thing happened tonight.”
The teams were tied 19-19 after the first quarter but the United States gained a crucial break with an outstanding defensive performance in the second period, outscoring Greece 27-11 to lead 46-30 at halftime.
Greece made a concerted comeback in the third quarter, outscoring the Americans 21-14 to cut their lead to 60-51 at three-quarter time. /AP
Tyshawn Taylor had 18 points and five steals to lead the United States to its first victory at the world junior tournament since it claimed the gold medal at Edmonton, Canada in 1991.
“It was a tough game. Greece played their hearts out but I think in the end we wanted it more,” Taylor said.
“They did what we expected, made a lot of big shots but we managed to tough it out.
“When we played Croatia (in the semifinals) they made a big run at us in the third quarter, as Greece did, but we managed to hold on and the same thing happened tonight.”
The teams were tied 19-19 after the first quarter but the United States gained a crucial break with an outstanding defensive performance in the second period, outscoring Greece 27-11 to lead 46-30 at halftime.
Greece made a concerted comeback in the third quarter, outscoring the Americans 21-14 to cut their lead to 60-51 at three-quarter time. /AP
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