FIBA - FIBA Ranking finalised for 2011

GENEVA (FIBA) - With the 2011 season of FIBA continental and world championships having come to a close, the FIBA Rankings have been finalised for the year.

The FIBA Combined Ranking for 2011 - which encompasses the results of the participating countries' men's, women's, boys' and girls' teams in FIBA-sanctioned events - sees the USA remain at number one with Spain once again their closest challengers.

Even with their senior national teams not in action, the USA managed to increase their advantage over their closest challengers and stand just under a thousand points clear of them.

This was accomplished thanks to the USA's boys and girls teams combining to successfully defending their crowns at the FIBA Americas U16 Championships. All the while, their U19 women completed a hat-trick of titles at the FIBA U19 World Championship in Chile.

For Spain, a high point in 2011 saw the senior men's side repeat as champions of Europe in Lithuania. However, in equal measure, there was huge disappointment as their female counterparts suffered an early exit at EuroBasket Women in Poland.

The Spaniards were also well served by their youth teams, which combined to win four of summer's six European Championships Division A events.

While the top two of the combined ranking remained unchanged, there was some movement lower down, with Russia and Argentina climbing one place each to stand third and fourth respectively, at the detriment of Australia who dropped two spots.

Russia were helped by huge performances by both their senior national teams - the women took top honours in Poland to punch their ticket for the London Games, while the men claimed a bronze and booked a place in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

Argentina's Golden Generation gave their fans much to cheer about by winning the FIBA Americas Championship on home soil, in Mar del Plata, for their second-ever continental title.

Lithuania stay put in sixth, with Brazil and France moving up one notch each and Greece falling back two and China closing out the top 10.

There is not much change in the top 30 with the exception of Belgium, who climb 12 places to 29. This comes on the back of some big performances by their junior women's teams in the European Championships. The U18 side won it all in Romania, while the U16s came in second in Italy.

Tunisia had a memorable 2011, with the senior men's team beating the odds - and favourites Angola - to win its first-ever major international tournament at the FIBA Africa Championship in Madagascar.

The junior teams also played their part in the country's rise up the ranking, as the U16 boys and girls finished second and fourth respectively at the continental championships.

There were huge leaps forward for a number of teams in the lower half of the FIBA combined ranking.

Montenegro, whose senior women's team turned heads by winning its first six games and coming close to reaching the Semi-Finals in Poland, moved up from 93 to 66.

Also improving their position in the ranking by 27 places was Finland, as its men's team surpassed even their own expectations in finishing a commendable ninth at the first-ever 24-team EuroBasket.

F.Y.R. of Macedonia, with a team that was arguably the revelation in Lithuania after knocking out the hosts at the Quarter-Final stage and then just missing out on a bronze medal, jumped from 77 to 67.

Netherlands registered the biggest jump of all, climbing from 101 to 67 (+34) on the back of some encouraging results in particular by their junior women's teams in the three European Championships. They registered a fifth-place finish at the U18, came in ninth at the U16 and 10th at the U20.

Click here to find out more about the FIBA Rankings.

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