Dominican Republic surprised Italy with dominating Win in FIBA Basketbal World Cup.
– The second day of games in the Smart Araneta Coliseum brought the first real surprise of the 2023 FIBA World Cup, as the Dominican Republic got the massive upper hand over Italy by beating them 87-82.
Andres Feliz completely switched the game around, completing an amazing three-point performance with 24 points and 7/10 from deep. Karl-Anthony Towns ended with his second straight double-double of the tournament, scoring 24 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.
Despite the loss, Giampaolo Ricci provided a brave performance, ending with 12 points and six rebounds. Achille Polonara followed with 10 points and two rebounds. Simone Fontecchio scored 13 with 1/8 from deep.
The game started with two back-to-back turnovers into fast breaks converted by Achille Polonara, helping Italy go up 12-0 after three minutes on the court. The Dominican Republic reduced the deficit up to two points following a technical foul awarded to Italy’s bench. A nervous Gianmarco Pozzecco got a technical foul near the end of the first quarter, which ended at 19-13 for the Italian national team.
At the beginning of the second quarter, Andres Feliz began to steal the show, being perfect from deep (4/4) in his first eight minutes on the court. Marco Spissu put back Italy up 37-31 with one of his usual threes off the dribble. With 2:20 minutes before halftime, the potential turning point of the game:
Gianmarco Pozzecco got ejected after receiving his second technical foul. He took time to talk with the whole Italian national team before exiting the court. Italy still led 39-38 at halftime.
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