MONTEVIDEO (Uruguay) – Leandro Bolmaro is back with a vengeance. After last donning the Argentinian National Team jersey in February of 2024, the 25-year-old went off for 22 points to lead his country to a 91-76 road victory against Uruguay at Antel Arena in Montevideo.
The talented wing, who saw little action in two NBA seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Utah Jazz, turned his career around in Italy in recent times and put on a show Thursday night. He shot 8-for-11 from the field, including perfect marks at the free-throw line and the three-point arc. The Cordoba native added 3 assists and a pair of rebounds for a team-high 21 efficiency rating. Bolmaro scored 13 of his 22 in a pivotal third quarter where Argentina turned an 8-point deficit into a 9-point lead.
Uruguay would get within a bucket early in the fourth quarter before Argentina closed on a hot 22-9 run. The home team fought valiantly behind a masterful performance from Joaquín Rodríguez, who led his country with a 19-point, 10-rebound double-double. He shot 6-for-12 from the field, including 3-for-8 from long distance and added 5 assists and 2 steals for a game-high 27-efficiency rating. Santiago Vescovi (14 points and 7 rebounds) and Emiliano Serres (12 points on 50 percent from the field) also scored in double digits.
Argentina’s offense got hot as the game went on, and they ended up shooting 47.6 percent from the field. They drained 11 threes and had 18 assists to 10 turnovers. Meanwhile, Uruguay had a small edge in points in the paint (38-34) and scored 14 points off Argentina’s misses. Facundo Campazzo (18 points and 5 rebounds) missed a three-pointer at the buzzer that would’ve pushed the lead to 18 points and given his country the upper hand in the head-to-head matchup, where both teams now boast identical 4-1 records In the end, the home team managed to “defend” the 17-point lead they got in their victory over Argentina in late February. This keeps Gerardo Jauri’s team atop Group D and they would clinch first place with a win by any margin against Cuba on Sunday. Both teams had already punched their tickets to the next round.
FIBA