Argentina and Spain to play for the FIBA Basketball World Cup title in Beijing

BEIJING (China) - The Final of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 will be contested by Argentina and Spain, who took another step towards the Naismith Trophy by clearing their respective Semi-Final hurdles on Friday evening.

The Spanish return to the Final for the first time since their only previous appearance in 2006, when they lifted the World Cup trophy in Japan, while Argentina are now set to play in their first title game since the 2002 defeat to Yugoslavia.

Still unbeaten at the World Cup, Spain demonstrated their resilience and heart in a 95-88 double-overtime victory over Australia, erasing a double-digit deficit in regulation to hand the Boomers their first defeat of the tournament.

An incredible 33-point, 6-rebound and 4-assist performance by Marc Gasol and 19 points, 7 rebounds and 12 assists from Ricky Rubio helped the Spanish outlast the Patty Mills-paced Australia.

After knocking out Serbia in the Quarter-Finals, Argentina continued their incredible World Cup run with an 80-66 victory against France in Beijing, with Luis Scola and Facundo Campazzo leading the way.

Winners of the inaugural edition of the World Cup in 1950, Argentina have put themselves in a position to recapture the title after the 69 years. They last played in the Final in 2002, coming up short against Yugoslavia.

The new FIBA Basketball World Cup champions will be crowned on Sunday, September 15 at the Wukesong Sport Arena in Beijing. The title game is scheduled to tip off at 20:00 (GMT+8).

Meanwhile, Australia and France will look to bounce back after their Semi-Final defeats in the Third-Place Game, also set to take place on Sunday at 16:00 (GMT+8), and finish the FIBA Basketball World Cup on a high note.

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