BARCELONA, Spain
The U.S.A. brushed aside Lithuania to progress to the final of the Basketball World Cup on Thursday.
The tournament favorites won 96-68 in the Barcelona semi-final, a game marked by tight first and second periods that finished with the Americans eight points ahead (43-35).
But the early minutes of the third quarter saw the U.S.A. go on a 10-0 run and increase the gap to 18 points before extending the margin to 30 points.
The last quarter was marked by the U.S.A. relaxing towards an easy win.
Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving scoring 18 points while Golden State Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson completing the clash with 16 points. Houston Rockets guard James Harden got 16 points and Warriors shooting guard Stephen Curry scored 13.
The top scorers for Lithuania were Jonas Valanciunas and Mindaugas Kuzminskas, on 15 points each. Kuzminskas also grabbed 9 rebounds. They were followed by Adas Juskevicius completing the game with 12 points. Martynas Pocius scored 10 points.
Lithuania will enter the third place playoff.
The second semi-final will be played between France and Serbia on Friday. The showdown in Madrid tips off at 22.00CET (20.00GMT).
www.aa.com.tr/en
