Paris 2024: Boomers survive pool stage after Canada beat Spain
The Boomers will live to fight another day at the Paris Olympics after an NBA-loaded Canada scraped home to beat Spain 88-85 and keep Australia’s campaign alive. REPORT AND PLAYER RATINGS.
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The Boomers will live to fight another day at the Paris Olympics after an NBA-loaded Canada scraped home to beat Spain 88-85 and keep Australia’s campaign alive.
Coach Brian Goorjian and his charges are breathing a huge sigh of relief thanks to Canadian NBA duo Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Andrew Nembhard combining for 38 points to sink a Spanish side who got within one point late in the fourth quarter.
It means the Boomers will progress to the quarter-finals to face the likes of Germany, France or Serbia in Paris as Group A’s second-placed team.
Crazy to think when you consider the Australians lost to group stage games to Canada and Greece, but they sneaked through based on differential.
Don’t be fooled, though, the Boomers have plenty of work to do if they want to progress beyond the quarter-final stage.
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It’s exactly how coach Goorjian felt after a 77-71 loss to Greece, with the frustrated veteran mentor blaming “hero ball” for the defeat that left the Aussies needing Canada to beat Spain to continue in the tournament.
The bitterly disappointed coach said a poor first half offensively cost the Boomers against the Greeks and it can’t continue if the Aussies want to be a threat moving forward.
“There was a lot of hero ball, head dropping, poor defence,” lamented Goorjian, who revealed he wouldn’t stay around at the stadium to watch the Spain versus Canada clash because his nerves couldn’t handle it.
“That led to us not being able to play the defence that we know we can play.
“I thought the second half we did a better job and I thought it was a tale of two halves.
“We’ve got young point guards in their first Olympics. Guys who are 20, 21 and I don’t know if they have played in a game of this magnitude.
“But in the second half it was all huddles, talk, grit and ball movement and that’s what we need going ahead.”
A potent performance from the Greek Freak helped the Greeks sneak past the brave Boomers in a thrilling match in Lille.
Australia showcased remarkable fight to surge back from a 19-point first deficit to get within two late in the fourth quarter.
But the brave comeback came up short as the Greek’s held on to claim a thrilling win led by NBA superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.
It was always going to be a daunting proposition to stop Antetokounmpo - arguably the best player in the world – who finished with 20 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
The Greek Freak attracted multiple players every time he touched the ball and the Boomers were largely powerless to stop him.
Antetokounmpo in person is a fearsome sight.
Now imagine how the Boomers felt trying to guard the almost seven footer weighing in at 110 kilos.
Antetokounmpo wasn’t alone in the scoring for Greece, with his teammates also aiming up to provide scoring punch.
In comparison, the Australians struggled to score.
It prompted Boomers great Andrew Gaze to call for veteran Joe Ingles (who played zero minutes for the second straight game) to be injected into the game to help with the scoring drought.
Ingles has hardly played throughout this Paris campaign, mostly warming the bench, but Gaze felt the Aussies needed the veteran’s three-point presence.
The Boomers dropped just 36 points in the first half to trail Greece by 17 points at halftime.
Patty Mills did his best to rediscover his shooting mojo after a substandard showing against Canada.
Mills knocked down his first two threes before finishing with 13 points.
Josh Giddey looked sluggish early, scoring just three points in the first quarter while giving up two turnovers.
Giddey finished with nine points, nine rebounds and four assists.
Boomers defensive beast Dyson Daniels went down with what looked like a knee injury in the early stages of the second quarter.
Thankfully, Daniels limped off the court, and later returned to the game to net 11 points despite receiving medical attention on the sidelines.
Boomers big man Jock Landale did his best to ignite the Boomers, netting 17 points and adding seven rebounds, but the Aussies were simply outclassed.
Australia’s loss to Greece came amid the backdrop of a denied player boycott prior to the Paris Olympics.
A member of the Boomers coaching staff emphatically squashed social media claims that a senior player threatened to pull out of the Games after a “celebrated” star originally missed out on Australia’s Olympic squad.
In a strongly worded Facebook post, Lucas went on to say Thybulle was replaced by a senior player because another veteran had said he would boycott if the player wasn’t reinstated in the squad.
The Boomers put the social media storm aside to bravely push Greece, and while they’ve been given a second chance thanks to Canada, they must dramatically improve.
COACH BLAMES HERO BALL FOR LOSS
Boomers coach Brian Goorjian has blamed “hero ball” for Australia’s loss to Greece that has left the Aussies needing Canada to beat Spain for their Paris Olympic campaign to stay alive.
A potent performance from the Greek Freak helped the Greeks sneak past the brave Australians 77-71 in a thrilling match in Lille.
Australia can still reach the quarter-finals if Canada beats Spain later today from 1.15am (AEST).
The Boomers showcased remarkable fight to surge back from a 19-point first deficit to get within two late in the fourth quarter.
But the gutsy comeback came up short as the Greek’s held on to claim a thrilling win led by NBA superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.
It was always going to be a daunting proposition to stop Antetokounmpo - arguably the best player in the world – who finished with 20 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
A bitterly disappointed Goorjian said a poor first half offensively cost the Boomers in the end.
“There was a lot of hero ball, head dropping, poor defence,” lamented Goorjian, who revealed he wouldn’t stay around at the stadium to watch the Spain versus Canada clash because his nerves couldn’t handle it.
“That led to us not being able to play the defence that we know we can play.
“I thought the second half we did a better job. I thought it was a tale of two halves.
“We’ve got young point guards in their first Olympics. Guys who are 20, 21 and I don’t know if they have played in a game of this magnitude.
“But in the second half it was all huddles, talk, grit and ball movement.”
The Greek Freak attracted multiple players every time he touched the ball and the Boomers were largely powerless to stop him.
Antetokounmpo in person is a fearsome sight.
Now imagine how the Boomers felt trying to guard the almost seven footer weighing in at 110 kilos.
Antetokounmpo wasn’t alone in the scoring for Greece, with his teammates also aiming up to provide scoring punch.
In comparison, the Australians struggled to score.
It prompted Boomers great Andrew Gaze to call for veteran Joe Ingles (who played zero minutes for the second straight game) to be injected into the game to help with the scoring drought.
Ingles has hardly played throughout this Paris campaign, mostly warming the bench, but Gaze felt the Aussies needed the veteran’s three-point presence.
The Boomers dropped just 36 points in the first half to trail Greece by 17 points at halftime.
Patty Mills did his best to rediscover his shooting mojo after a substandard showing against Canada.
Mills knocked down his first two threes before finishing with 13 points.
Josh Giddey looked sluggish early, scoring just three points in the first quarter while giving up two turnovers.
Giddey finished with nine points, nine rebounds and four assists.
Boomers defensive beast Dyson Daniels went down with what looked like a knee injury in the early stages of the second quarter.
Thankfully, Daniels limped off the court, and later returned to the game to net 11 points despite receiving medical attention on the sidelines.
Boomers big man Jock Landale did his best to ignite the Boomers, netting 17 points and adding seven rebounds, but the Aussies were simply outclassed.
Australia’s loss to Greece came amid the backdrop of a denied player boycott prior to the Paris Olympics.
A member of the Boomers coaching staff emphatically squashed social media claims that a senior player threatened to pull out of the Games after a “celebrated” star originally missed out on Australia’s Olympic squad.
Former Boomer and NBL guard Darren Lucas took to social media this week to suggest NBA star Matisse Thybulle was originally selected in the 12-man squad before a late change of heart.
In a strongly worded Facebook post, Lucas went on to say Thybulle was replaced by a senior player because another veteran had said he would boycott if the player wasn’t reinstated in the squad.
The Boomers put the social media storm aside to bravely push Greece, but now they must wait for their Olympic fate to be decided.
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Originally published as Paris 2024: Boomers survive pool stage after Canada beat Spain
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