Tonight we got treated to another “Raptor vs. Former Raptor” battle as current Raptors starting centre Jonas Valanciunas led his Lithuanian squad against former Raptor blogosphere whipping boy Luis Scola and the Argentineans. This was the first real test for the Lithuanian squad, who had under-performed their way to some close games against weaker competition and were saved by simply having too much talent to lose coupled with some of the best basketball that Mantas Kalnietis has ever played. Age has left Argentina a shadow of the team that won 2004 gold but their experience and cohesion make them a formidable foe for any team but the Americans.
The first half of the game was an ugly affair, with the refs calling quick touch fouls one minute and letting shooters get bodied to the floor the next, leaving players unsure of what exactly they were allowed to do. This kept the pace of the game uneven and the players tentative. This sloppy play led to some poor shooting and an unexpectedly low-scoring first half, as Lithuania clawed their way to a 30-27 lead. There wasn’t lot that was noteworthy in the first half, with most of the entertainment provided by the play by play commentator’s attempting to figure out how to pronounce “Valanciunas” and struggling to tell the difference between Paulius Jankunas and Domantas Sabonis, who were mistaken for each other no fewer than three times.
But those who didn’t change the channel after the first half were treated to a great second half, as urgency set in and the players shook off the uneven officiating to play the games you’d expect from them at this level. Argentina relied on their chemistry and the savvy veteran play of longtime stalwarts Scola, Andres Nocioni, Manu Ginobili and Carlos Delfino. The aging Ginobili poured in 22 points, showing that while he doesn’t have the legs to get up and down the court constantly like he used to he’ll always have his bag of tricks at his disposal, like when he hit this nifty floater over Valanciunas:
He and Scola also showed that they can still run the pick and roll to perfection:
It wasn’t quite vintage Ginobili but it was enough to keep Lithuania from running away with the game as the tempo increased.
The aging Argentineans were not the only ones using the pick and roll effectively. The Lithuanians continue to use the threat of Valanciunas’ tremendous finishing ability to force defenses to collapse inside and yield open outside shots or opportunities to attack scrambling defenders. It continues to pay dividends and every now and then the defense is unable to stick with Valanciunas as he charges to the rim and we’re treated to one of these:
It’s a pick your poison scenario: you either give Lithuania’s shooters ample room or you give up a basket inside to Valanciunas. There are no good options, you just have to decide which you hate least.
As the game wore on the Argentinean team seemed to slow down, giving Lithuania more freedom to move in the halfcourt and a few transition opportunities which they converted with a bit of style:
The younger, deeper Lithuanian squad bounced back from a lackluster first half with a strong 3rd quarter. After trading blows with Argentina most of the way they built the games first double digit lead(57-47 off of a hot stretch from Mindaugas Kuzminkas, who scored 9 of his 23 points in the final 2 minutes of the quarter. Argentina was too good for Lithuania to just roll over and the veterans even managed to take a 61-59 lead in the middle of the fourth that they would hold for a couple of minutes but in the end they just couldn’t handle the size, youth and improved guard play of this Lithuanian squad, who would retake the lead and never let Argentina get closer than 3 points for the remainder of the game, winning 81-73.
Lithuania continues to be led by Kallnietis, their starting PG. He followed up his double-double against Nigeria with a very strong 17 point, 5 rebound, 7 assist performance tonight. Valanciunas continues to contribute with his rebounding on both ends and his gravity on offense but has not been able to receive the ball consistently. This is in part because his team seems to only look for him once per possession – if they look for him at all – and in part because he hasn’t been sealing his defenders well and has been suffering from a mild case of the Biyombo’s when it comes to catching passes. Lithuania has been fortunate to have other players step up in his stead but if Lithuania is going to get a medal in this tournament they’re going to need to find some ways to get the young big man the ball in position to score a little more consistently. Teams are crowding him because he’s their best offensive threat, they need to recognize that and find ways to use him as more than a decoy. Thankfully teammates have been able to take advantage of the extra attention he commands – tonight it was Kuzminskas stepping up with 23 points on 13 shots.
Lithuania takes a 3-0 record into Saturday, when they take on perennial powerhouse Spain at 6 p.m. Spain is a team that may be on their way to becoming what Argentina is now: a former gold medal contender slowed down by age. As Lithuania continues to build on last summers Eurobasket success
