29.Jul 96.
_______________________________________________________________________________
Dana: Mon, 29 Jul 1996 21:53:40 +0000
Na temu: Official 1996 Olympic Web Site - Sports Features: 29 July - Men's Medal Round Set To Begin Tuesday
_______________________________________________________________________________
http://www.atlanta.olympic.org/acog/news/sports/29jul/d-sbk729a.html
> [ACOG - News - IBM]
> [Image]
>
> (29 July 1996; Day 10)
>
> Men's Medal Round Set To Begin Tuesday
>
> With the completion of group competition on Sunday, the medal round
> for the men's basketball competition at the 1996 Olympic Games is set
> to begin on Tuesday.
>
> The rush for the gold begins at 10:00 in the Georgia Dome as
> Lithuania, the number-two seed out of Group A, will face Group B's
> number-three seed, Greece. The second game will feature the winner of
> Group B, Yugoslavia, and China, which edged Argentina for the fourth
> spot from Group A. The evening session begins with Australia, which
> placed second in Group B, and Croatia, seeded third coming out of
> Group A. The final game of the first night of competition in the medal
> round has Group A's top squad, the United States, squaring off against
> Brazil, which placed fourth in Group B.
>
> Following is a capsule look at the eight teams which will be competing
> for the gold, silver and bronze medals. Included are some notes on the
> teams' play to this point in the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games.
>
> GROUP A
>
> # 1 SEED: UNITED STATES. With a squad of 12 of the greatest basketball
> players in the world, the U.S. defeated all comers in Group A's
> preliminary competition and has a 5-0 record entering the medal round.
> Team USA, also known as the "Dream Team," has been picked by all as
> the favorite for the gold medal. Scottie PIPPEN leads a balanced
> attack with a 13.0-point per game scoring average. Power forward
> Charles BARKLEY ranks sixth overall in rebounds, averaging 7.5 boards
> per contest.
>
> # 2 SEED: LITHUANIA. Lithuania posted a 3-2 record in the preliminary
> round, losing to the United States and Argentina. The Lithuanians gave
> the United States the toughest game in the opening round before the
> USA pulled out a 104-82 victory. This squad is led by a pair of NBA
> players in point guard Sarunas MARCIULIONIS and center Arvydas
> SABONIS. MARCIULIONIS, who missed the game against the USA with a knee
> injury, is averaging 5.3 assists per game in the 1996 Olympic Games.
> SABONIS has been a power inside, ranking second in these Olympic Games
> in rebounds, averaging 8.8 per contest.
>
> # 3 SEED: CROATIA. Croatia completed the preliminary round tied with
> Lithuania for second place with a 3-2 record. The Lithuanians took the
> second seed in the medal round due to a better point differential.
> Croatia's two losses were to the United States and a 2-point loss to
> Lithuania in double-overtime. Croatia is led by Chicago Bulls' star
> Toni KUKOC, who ranks 11th in the Olympic Games in scoring (16.0 ppg),
> 10th in rebounds (6.4 rpg) and leads in assists (7.8 apg). Dino RADJA
> of the NBA's Boston Celtics, ranks fifth in rebounding with 7.6 boards
> per game.
>
> # 4 SEED: CHINA. China earned the fourth spot out of Group A by virtue
> of its earlier 87-77 victory over Argentina. China and Argentina tied
> for the final spot with identical 2-3 records, but China's earlier win
> over the Argentinians was used as the tie-breaker. HU Wei-dong leads
> China in scoring and ranks 15th in these Olympic Games, averaging 13.4
> points per game. China, which has had problems scoring recently, will
> be facing a Yugoslavian defense which has been one of the toughest so
> far in the 1996 Olympic Games.
>
> GROUP B
>
> # 1 SEED: YUGOSLAVIA. Like the United States, Yugoslavia also
> completed the preliminary round with an unblemished 5-0 record. The
> Yugoslavian squad is the second toughest team defensively in these
> Olympic Games, allowing just 72.8 points per outing. After winning its
> five games in Group B by an average of 22.8 points per game,
> Yugoslavia is expected to advance to the gold-medal game to meet the
> United States. Yugoslavia is led by Vlade DIVAC, the new center for
> the NBA's Charlotte Hornets. While not concentrating on scoring, DIVAC
> has led his squad with his experience and his 7.0 rebounds per game.
> Zoran SAVIC is averaging 12.8 points per outing to lead a balanced
> offensive attack.
>
> # 2 SEED: AUSTRALIA. Australia ended the preliminary round with a 4-1
> record, losing only to Yugoslavia. The Australians boasts one of the
> best backcourts in the 1996 Olympic Games as Andrew GAZE and Shane
> HEAL rank fourth and sixth in scoring, respectively. GAZE is averaging
> 22.8 points, while HEAL tosses in 20.2 points per game. The problem
> for the Australians has been their lack of rebounding and a soft
> defense, which is allowing 87.6 points per game.
>
> # 3 SEED: GREECE. Greece advanced with a 3-2 record in the preliminary
> round. In Group B, Greece gave Yugoslavia its closest game through the
> first round; the Yugoslavians, winning all games by an average of 22.8
> points, recorded only a 71-63 victory over Greece. Small forward Nikos
> ECONOMOU leads Greece and ranks fifth overall in scoring, averaging
> 21.0 points per game. Center Panayotis FASSOULAS is a force inside,
> averaging 5.6 rebounds per game.
>
> # 4 SEED: BRAZIL. Although 2-3 after the preliminaries, Brazil is the
> second-highest scoring team in the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games,
> averaging 99.6 points per game. The problem has come defensively,
> where Brazil is allowing opponents to tally 98.8 points per game.
> International scoring superstar Oscar SCHMIDT leads the Brazilian
> squad and ranks first in the Olympic Games with a 28.0-point per game
> average. Aristides Josuel DOS SANTOS chips in 13.2 points and 8.0
> rebounds per game.
>
> This is an official publication of the Atlanta Committee for the
> Olympic Games Sports Publications Department. Written by Wayne White.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Return to Olympic News Menu
>
> Select another day:
> Pre July19 2021 2223 2425 2627 2829 3031 August1 23 4Post
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> [Image]
>
> Olympic The number of cable installations to be made before
> Factoid Games-time is 80,000
>
> Page Last Updated: 29 July 1996
> Served by Atlanta Womplex
_______________________________________________________________________________