Argentina pick up first win, USA, Puerto Rico, Brazil still undefeated after second day

TIJUANA (Mexico) - The FIBA U18 Americas Championship continued Tuesday with Puerto Rico, USA and Brazil remaining unbeaten and Argentina winning their first game at the Auditorio Zonkeys in Tijuana, Mexico.

Puerto Rico 65 - 61 Dominican Republic

Puerto Rico (2-0) remained undefeated after securing a thrilling overtime victory over the Dominican Republic (0-2) in the first game of Tuesday’s Group B action.

In a back-and-forth affair in which both teams shot under 30 percent from the field, Edin Santiago’s squad took a commanding lead after winning the third quarter 26-13 before the Dominicans roared back in the fourth.

José Cabrera’s guys rallied in the final minutes, tying the matchup on a pair of free throws from Edwin Daniel – erasing what was a 59-53 deficit with 57 seconds to go in regulation.

Carlos Delgado scored four of his 11 points in overtime and Ruben Rodriguez Jr. put the exclamation point with a thunderous one-handed dunk.

Alejandro Aviles led the way for Puerto Rico with 13-point and 11 rebounds while Edir Ortiz (10 points, 12 boards) notched a notched a double-double of his own.

Edwin Suárez paced the Dominican Republic with 12 points, seven rebounds and three steals, with Daniel grabbing a game-high 16 rebounds.

In the end, the boricuas parlayed slight edges in fast break points (24-20), second chance points (12-10) and points off turnovers (18-10) into their second victory of the tournament.

USA 123 - 41 Ecuador

The United States (2-0) continued their torrid start to the tournament with a 123-41 drubbing against Ecuador (0-2) to remain undefeated atop Group A.

For the second consecutive day, Tad Boyle’s boys quickly jumped to a double-digit lead and kept expanding it throughout the game – all the way to the final buzzer.

All 12 members of the American team scored, led by Duke recruit Jared McCain who dropped 22 points in 21 minutes. Gregory “GG” Jackson, who committed to play at the University of North Carolina, added 20 points, 12 rebounds and a pair of blocks.

Ecuador just had no answer for their opponent’s firepower on both ends of the floor, finishing 20.3 from the field and with almost twice as many turnovers (30) than made baskets (16). They were led once again by Joseph Caicedo (17 points and seven rebounds) and Janer Arcila (13 points and 12 boards).

The United States dominated every facet of the game, with an ample edge on the boards (69-43) that also translated to an 84-20 advantage in points in the paint.

Their depth once again proved to be lethal, as center Kel’el Ware (18 points) and guard Mark Armstrong (13) also scored in double digits and led a 79-point bench explosion.

Canada 92 - 97 Argentina

When their outside shot is falling, Argentina (1-1) is a much more dangerous team.

A day after going 1/17 from downtown, the South Americans shot 11/30 on their way to a 97-92 win over Canada (1-1) in Group A.

Herman Mandole’s boys fought and scraped to earn their first victory of the tournament. After taking the lead with an excellent second quarter, the Argentinians saw their lead evaporate after a furious Canadian comeback in the fourth.

However, with Dylan Borbon running the show, and Juan Bocca and Benjamín Marchiari spacing the floor, Argentina was able to regain their poise and close out the matchup.

Lee Aaliya paced Argentina with 17 points despite being in foul trouble most of the second half. Bordon added 17 points and eight assists, while Bocca (16), Santiago Trouet (13) and Marchiari (10) also scored in double digits for a team that shot 56.3 percent from the field

And despite shooting just 1/18 from three-point territory, Canada looked on their way to their second win of the tournament behind Vasean Allette’s 23 points and Elijah Fisher’s 22. The North Americans imposed their size and had a 25-11 edge in offensive rebounds, but only won second chance points by two (19-17), a mark that fell short of what was needed to compensate for their outside shooting woes.

Brazil 75 - 57 Mexico

Thanks to a masterful defensive performance where they held their opponent to 21 points in the first half, Brazil defeated Mexico, 75-57 to move to 2-0 in Group A play.

Vitor Galvani’s squad took an 18-point lead into halftime and administered it the rest of the way, keeping Mexico to just 31.8 percent from the field.

Eduardo Bersch shined again as he led Brazil with 19 points on 5-6 shooting from beyond the arc. Reynan Camilo Dos Santos added 15 points and eight rebounds and Samis Rodriguez Calderon chipped 14 and six. Brazil’s bench also outscored Mexico’s by a 28-12 margin.

The host country shot just 4-20 from three-point territory and despite a better showing in the second half, they could never score enough to get back in the game.

Jesús Ochoa (16 points) and Victor Valdez (15) were the only players in Javier Monferrer’s team to score. in double digits.

FIBA