Indiana University Athletics
Allen, Australia Wrap Up Top Spot in Group A
8/10/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Aug. 10, 2005
CORDOBA, Argentina - The Australian Young Men's Team (the Crocs) wrapped up the top spot in Group A of the FIBA Under-21 World Championship with a 82-76 win over host Argentina. Indiana freshman Ben Allen finished as one of four Crocs in double figures. He had 10 points, seven rebounds and a block on the evening.
Australia jumped out to a big lead early, as the Crocs led 22-10 after the first quarter and 51-29 at the half. Argentina rallied to cut the lead to 80-76 late in the fourth period, but could not overcome the deficit.
Allen finished the game 4-of-7 from the field and a perfect 2-of-2 from the free-throw line. The Melbourne native finished with three offensive rebounds and ranked second on the team with seven rebounds. He helped the Crocs dominate the glass against Argentina, 45-30.
For the championship, Allen is averaging 9.5 points per game and 6.3 rebounds a contest. He ranks third in free throw shooting at the World Championship with an 88.2 percent (15-of-17) clip.
Steven Markovic led Australia with 20 points, while Brad Newley and Aaron Bruce rounded out the Crocs' double-digit scorers with 19 and 14, respectively. Carlos Sandes led Argentina with 23 points, while Carlos Schattmann had 18.
Despite the outcome, both Australia and Argentina had already secured quarterfinal spots in the tournament. Canada earned the final quarterfinal spot in Group A with a 78-66 victory over Israel. Greece finished 4-1 in the group to place second.
In Group B, The United States wrapped up a perfect opening round with an 82-79 victory over Slovenia. Elsewhere in Group B, Lithuania upended China, 96-75, and Puerto Rico beat Nigeria, 90-72. In Group B, the U.S., Lithuania, Puerto Rico and Slovenia advance to the quarterfinals. Australia will battle the fourth-place team in Group B, Slovenia, in the quarterfinals.
The top seed from Group A, the U.S., will take on the fourth-place team from Group B, Canada, in the next round. The winner of that quarterfinal match will face the winner of Greece, second in Group B, and Puerto Rico, third in Group A. Lithuania, the second-place team in Group A, will face Argentina, third in Group B, in a quarterfinal match. The Australia-Slovenia and Lithuania-Argentina winners will meet in the other semifinal.
The quarterfinals of the World Championship are set to begin Friday. All four quarterfinal games, along with the semifinals and finals will be held in Mar del Plata, Argentina.
