The 2008 Olympic basketball competition runs August 10-24 (that's Beijing time -- in the USA the first games technically start the night of August 9), with the main round of action August 10-18, the quarterfinals on August 20, semifinals on August 22, and finals on August 24. InsideHoops.com in a few days (Around July 25) will begin our complete coverage of the 2008 Olympics basketball tournament, with key info on each team, a list of the favorites, discussion on Team USA and more. Basically, everything you could possibly want. And we'll link to anything worth reading elsewhere. So, consider this your homepage for 2008 Olympics hoops.

LINKS: Overview | Teams/Groups | Schedule | USA Starters | USA Bench | USA Strengths | USA Weaknesses | Our Prediction | Full USA Roster | USA Select Team Roster

OLYMPIC BASKETBALL STANDINGS
FINAL OVERALL OLYMPICS STANDINGS

Gold: USA
Silver: Spain
Bronze: Argentina
4) Lithuania
5) Greece (3-3)
6) Croatia (3-3)
7) Australia (3-3)
8) China (2-4)
9) Russia (1-4)
10) Germany (1-4)
11) Iran (0-5)
12) Angola (0-5)

FINAL PRELIMINARY ROUND STATS

GROUP A 1) Lithuania (4-1) 2) Argentina (4-1) 3) Croatia (3-2) 4) Australia (3-2) 5) Russia (1-4) 6) Iran (0-5)

GROUP B 1) USA (5-0) 2) Spain (4-1) 3) Greece (3-2) 4) China (2-3) 5) Germany (1-4) 6) Angola (0-5)

2008 OLYMPIC BASKETBALL GAMES SCHEDULE
All times Eastern (ET)

Note: InsideHoops.com translated all times into ET. So for example, under August 9, the first game of the evening is at 9pm ET August 9, but those night games are technically August 10. So, the first Team USA game, USA vs China, is actually at 10:15am ET the morning of August 10.

Box scores open in a new window. Though, everything worth knowing from each box score is already in each InsideHoops.com mini-summary.

AUGUST 9/10 GAMES

Russia 71, Iran 49: In a total no-contest, Russia dominated. In the win, JR Holden (on 19 shots) had 19 points and 5 steals, Andrei Kirilenko (5-of-7) had 15 points, 5 rebounds and 3 blocks, and Aleksey Savrasenko had 11 points and 4 assists. In the loss, Mohammadsamad Nikkhah had 16 points. Russia shot 50% from the field, Iran just 38%. [Box score]

Germany 95, Angola 66: In a blowout win, Germany had no problem smoking Angola. In the victory, Chris Kaman (10-of-12) had 24 points and 2 rebounds, Dirk Nowitzki (7-of-9) had 23 points and 6 rebounds, Steffen Hamann scored 13, and Jan-Hendrik Jagla had 10 with 11 rebounds. In the loss for Angola, Carlos Morais (5-of-13) had 14 points, Milton Barros had 10 with 4 rebounds, and Joaquim Gomes (just 1-of-7) had 8 rebounds. Germany shot 59%, Angola just 33%. Germany nailed an excellent 11-of-20 three-pointers, Angola just 9-of-29. Germany also dominated the glass. [Box score]

Spain 81, Greece 66: After a fairly close first half Spain outscored Greece by 10 in the third quarter to hold on for a solid victory. In the win, Rudy Fernandez (5-of-9) had 16 points, Jose Calderon (5-of-8) had 13 points, 4 rebounds but more turnovers than assists, Pau Gasol (4-of-8) had a quiet 11 points with 7 rebounds, and Ricky Rubio, Juan Carlos Navarro and Marc Gasol each scored 7. In the loss for Greece, Vasileios Spanoulis had 15, Dimitrios Diamantdis had 14, and Nikolaos Zsis had 10. Free throws won it for Spain, as they hit 22-of-25, while Greece only made 11 of their 24 FT attempts. [Box score]

Lithuania 79, Argentina 75: A very low-scoring start for both teams finished with a wild 4th quarter where the two teams combined for 58 points, and a narrow victory for Lithuania. In the win, Linas Kleiza (3-of-4, 3-of-3 three-pointers) had 13, Robertas Javtokas had 12 with 5 rebounds, Sarunas Jasikevicius (just 2-of-10, 0-of-4 threes) had 10 points, 4 rebounds and 8 assists (5 turnovers). Several other players scored 10. In the loss, Manu Ginobili (just 6-of-15, 1-of-7 threes) had 19 points, Andres Nocioni (lousy 5-of-14) had 15 points, 9 rebounds but 5 turnovers and no assists, Carlos Delfino (4-of-9) had 13 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals, and Luis Scola (just 4-of-11) had 10 points and 6 rebounds. [Box score]

Croatia 97, Australia 82: A very balanced scoring effort and simply amazing shooting all around carried Croatia to a sound victory over Australia, who had just three players score double-digits. Croatia outscored Australia 21-14 in the first quarter, and 26-17 in the second. In the win, Nikola Prkacin (5-of-5) had 16 points. Marko Banic (7-of-8) had 16 as well. Zoran Planinic (5-of-6) had 12. Marko Tomas (4-of-6, 4-of-4 three-pointers) had 12 with 4 rebounds. Kresimir Loncar on 9 shots had 10 points and 10 rebounds. And Roko Ukic on 10 shots scored 9. In the loss for Australia, Matt Nelson (5-of-10) had 13 points and 5 rebounds. David Barlow (just 5-of-12) had 12 points. Andrew Bogut, who the team needs to play like a star, shot 3-of-3 but had just 10 points, 1 rebound, and lots of fouls and turnovers. Croatia shot an amazing 67%, including a ridiculous 12-of-16 three-pointers. [Box score]

USA 101, China 70: The USA got off to a slow and ugly start, but still outscored China in all four quarters, steadily pulling away with each tick of the clock. InsideHoops.com is sad to report that Team USA's halfcourt game was still as ugly as it was in years past, with unintelligent play, a lack of pick-and-rolls or give-and-go's, one player moving with the ball while others stand still as if frozen to their spot, etc. But Team USA's superior athletic ability enabled them to get out on tons of fast breaks and that made the big difference. In the win, Dwyane Wade (7-of-7) had 19 points. LeBron James (8-of-12) had 18 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocks. Kobe Bryant (6-of-14, 1-of-7 threes) was off with 13 points and 2 steals. Dwight Howard (5-of-10) was low in the stats department but did well in containing Yao Ming and had 13, but little else. Deron Williams, Michael Redd (just 3-of-9) and Chris Bosh each scored 9. Bosh had 8 boards. Paul had 6 assists. In the loss for China, Yao Ming (just 3-of-10) had 13 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocks. Fangyu Zhu (4-of-6) had 11 with 8 rebounds. Yi Jianlian, traded this off-season to the Nets, shot just 4-of-13 for 9 points, 3 rebounds and more turnovers than assists. China began the game on fire from three-point range but cooled off, finishing 10-of-27 from outside the arc. For the game, the USA shot 54%, China 34%. USA had 18-of-25 free throws, China 14-of-15. Rebounds were pretty close, and the USA had a bit of an edge in assists. The USA had 14 steals, China just 2. [Full Recap | Box score]

AUGUST 11/12 GAMES

Lithuania 99, Iran 67: This was a no-contest, as Lithuania won easily. In the win, Linas Kleiza (8-of-11) had 22 points, 8 rebounds and 2 steals. Sarunas Jasikevicius (8-of-9) had 20 points, 3 assists and 3 steals. Rimantas Kaukenas (6-of-9) had 14, but 5 turnovers. In the loss, Hamed Ehadadi had 21 points, 9 rebounds, 3 steals, 4 blocks but 8 turnovers. No other Iran players scored more than 9 points. Oshin Sahakian had 12 rebounds. [Box Score]

Croatia 85, Russia 78: Great three-point shooting and success at the free throw line helped Croatia beat Russia. In the win, Marko Popovic had 22 points. Zoran Planinic (7-of-9) scored 20. Stanko Barac (6-of-9) had 12 with a team-high 7 rebounds. In the loss for Russia, Andrei Kirilenko (5-of-11) had 18 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists (5 turnovers) and 3 blocks. Sergey Bykov (5-of-6) had 15 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals. Viktor Khryapa (just 5-of-13) had 14 points. Aleksey Savrasenko scored 10. [Box Score]

Greece 87, Germany 64: Greece made a loud statement here that they are to be taken seriously, shutting down Dirk Nowitzki, Chris Kaman and Team Germany. In the win, Vasileios Spanoulis (9-of-13) had 23 points, 3 rebounds and 5 assists. Theodoros Papaloukas (4-of-8) had 15 points and 5 rebounds. Dimitrios Diamantidis scored 12. In the loss for Germany, Nowitzki (just 3-of-8) had 13 points and 6 rebounds. Kaman (just 1-of-3) had 4 points, 2 rebounds and lots of turnovers. Greece shot 57%, Germany just 36%. Greece got more rebounds, and won the assists category 15-7. Greece also had more steals. Blocks were even. [Box Score]

Spain 85, China 75 OT: Euroleague.net reports: World champion Spain remained unbeaten in Group B by rallying from a 14-point deficit in the fourth quarter to edge China 75-85 in overtime in a fully-packed Wukesong Arena. Spain overcame a strong basketball atmosphere to beat China for the eighth time in nine official games and is set to face the United States in a highly anticipated game on Thursday. Meanwhile, China dropped to 0-2 and needs to start winning right away to reach the quarterfinals. Former all-Euroleague second team selection Pau Gasol paced the winners with 29 points on 13-for-16 two-pointers. ULEB Cup Final Eight MVP Rudy Fernandez added 21 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists, while Felipe Reyes of Real Madrid scored 10 points for Spain, but it was Ricky Rubio of DKV Joventut that his team's comeback with outstanding defense in the fourth period. Liu Wei had 19 points for China while Wang Zhizhi and Fangyu Zhu each added 15 for the hosts. [Box Score]

USA 97, Angola 76: A full recap of this game is on our USA basketball page. [Box Score]

Argentina 85, Australia 68: Euroleague.net reports: Argentina registered its first win in Group A by downing Australia 85-68 in the final game of the day at Wukesong Arena. Argentina is now tied with Russia for third place in Group A, each with a 1-1 record. Meanwhile, Australia dropped to 0-2. Former Euroleague Final Four MVP Manu Ginobili led the winners with 21 points. Former All-Euroleague forward Luis Scola added 17, Carlos Delfino of Khimki had 14 and Fabricio Oberto netted 12 for Argentina. Patrick Mills had 22 points for Australia, Brad Newley of Panellinios added 11 and David Andersen of FC Barcelona had 10 for the Boomers. [Box Score]

AUGUST 13/14 GAMES

Spain 72, Germany 59: Euroleague.net reports: Spain stayed undefeated and kept its eye on first place in Group A by outlasting Germany 59-72 in Thursday's first game of Day 3 at the Olympic men's basketball tournament in Beijing. Spain is now 3-0 in group play, while Germany dropped to 1-2. Spain used a 3-22 run on either side of halftime to take over a game that Germany had controlled early. Alex Mumbru of Real Madrid came off the bench for 14 points, including 3-for-3 shooting from three-point range, to lift Spain to victory. Jose Manuel Calderon added 15 points and Pau Gasol 13 for the winners, who got solid supporting performances from Ricky Rubio, Marc Gasol and Jorge Garbajosa. Spain also pulled 14 offensive rebounds. Steffen Hamann of Alba Berlin led Germany with 15 pionts, while Dirk Nowitzki had 11.

Australia 106, Iran 68: Euroleague.net reports: Australia routed Iran 106-68 in Thursday's second game to climb back into the fight for a spot in the quarterfinals. Panellinios swingman Brad Newley led the Boomers with 24 points as Australia recorded the highest tally of the games so far. Australia dominated the glass, outrebounding Iran 39-25, and forced 28 turnovers to secure the win with ease... Mills finished with 15 points and 5 assists for Australia, Anstey added 13, Andrew Bogut recorded 10 points and 7 rebounds in 17 minutes and FC Barcelona's David Andersen contributed 10 points and 5 boards in 16 minutes. Nikkhah paced Iran with 23 points, Ehadadi added 15 points and 8 rebounds, Afagh Eslamieh also scored 15 and Hamed Sohrabnejad had 10.

China 85, Angola 68: Euroleague.net reports: China made the home crowd in Beijing happy by grabbing its first victory in Group B with relative ease on Thursday, 68-85 over winless Angola. China used the size advantage of star Yao Ming to make most of the difference. Yao finished with 30 points and 11 rebounds and scored 10 points in a row to put the game away in the final quarter. He was joined by four teammates scoring in double figures: Yue Sun had 11 points, while Wang Liu, Fangyu Zhu and Yi Jianlian had 10 each. Yi's 11 rebounds paced China's 19-37 advantage on the boards.

Lithuania 86, Russia 79: Euroleague.net reports: Lithuania stayed unbeaten in Group A by edging Russia 86-79 in a pivotal game at Wukesong Arena. Lithuania is all but mathematically into the quarterfinals at 3-0 while Russia went down to 1-2 and needs to be beat Australia on Saturday. Rimantas Kaukenas of Montepaschi Siena led the winners with 20 points. Euroleague MVP Ramunas Siskauskas of CSKA Moscow added 16, former Final Four MVP and three-time Euroleague winner Sarunas Jasikevicius had 12 while all-Euroleague second team selection Ksistof Lavrinovic of Montepaschi got 11 for Lithuania. Reigning Euroleague champion J.R. Holden of CSKA Moscow had 25 points for Russia, Andrei Kirilenko added 17, Viktor Khryapa of CSKA had 11 and Aleksey Savrasenko 10.

USA 92, Greece 69: Euroleague.net reports: The United States of America left no doubt about their power and showed it is arguably the team to beat in Beijing 2008 by thrashing Greece 92-69 at Wukesong Arena. The U.S. tie with Spain atop the Group B standings, each with a 3-0 record. Both teams face each other in a direct fight for first place on Saturday at 16.15 CET, a must-watch showdown for all basketball fans around the world. Meanwhile, Greece dropped to 1-2 and must beat Angola and China to finish third in this group. Kobe Bryant and Chris Bosh paced the winners with 18 points apiece. Dwayne Wade added 17 while Lebron James had 13 for the United States. Former Euroleague MVP Theo Papaloukas of Olympiacos led Greece with 15 points while former All-Euroleague second team selection Vassilis Spanoulis of Panathinaikos added 14.

Argentina 77, Croatia 53 -- Euroleague.net reports: Argentina sent a message that echoed all around Beijing 2008 by simply overwhelming previously undefeated Croatia 77-53 in the final game of the day in Group A. Both teams tie for second place in Group A at 2-1 right behind the undefeated leader Lithuania, first at 3-0. Croatia faces Lithuania in a decisive game for the final outcome in Group A. Former All-Euroleague second team selection Andres Nocioni paced the winners with 18 points and 8 rebounds. Carlos Delfino of BC Khimki added 15 points, former Euroleague champion and Final Four MVP Manu Ginobili had 14 and 8 assists while Luis Scola, two-time All-Euroleague first team selection and still the second top scorer in the competition, got 12 points for Argentina. Marko Banic of Bilbao Basket and Marko Tomas of Real Madrid each had 9 points for Croatia.

August 15/16

Greece 102, Angola 61: Euroleague.net reports: Greece registered its second win in Group B and set a big showdown against Greece in the finl day of this stage by simply overwhelming Angola 102-61 at Wukesong Arena. Greece improved to 2-2 and is all but mathematically qualified to the quarterfinals due to its 23-point win against Germany. Meanwhile, Angola dropped to 0-4 and will finish sixth in Group B. Ioannis Bouroussis paced the winners with 22 points on 9-for-9 two-pointers in just 13 minutes. His Olympiacos teammates Giorgios Printezis and Panos Vasilopoulos added 13 and 10 points, respectively, while Andreas Gliniakadis had 11 for Greece. Eduardo Mingas had 23 points for Angola while Luis Costa had 16 for the African champs. [Box Score]

Australia 95, Russia 80: Euroleague.net reports: Australia landed in the Olympic men's basketball quarterfinals and eliminated European champion Russia with a clear 80-95 victory in their do-or-die Group A showdown at Wukesong Arena in Beijing on Saturday. Andrew Bogut and C.J. Bruton led the winners with 22 points apiece. Matt Nielsen of Lietuvos Rytas and former All-Euroleague center David Andersen of FC Barcelona each had 11 for the Boomers. Current Euroleague champion J.R. Holden of CSKA Moscow led Russia with 20 points. His CSKA teammates Viktor Khryapa and Aleksey Savrasenko added 19 and 16 points, respectively. Khryapap nailed 6 of 6 three-pointers and grabbed 9 rebounds. [Box Score]

Lithuania 86, Croatia 73: Euroleague.net reports: Lithuania became the Group A champion by downing Croatia 73-86 at Wukesong Arena in Saturday's third game. Both teams have mathematically advanced to the quarterfinals, which take place on Wednesday. Lithuania clinched first place already despite having a game to play against Australia. Meanwhile, Croatia will finish third in this group if it downs Iran on Monday. Mindaugas Lukauskis of Lietuvos Rytas paced the winners with 20 points off the Lithuanian bench. Linas Kleiza sank 4 triples in the fourth quarter on his way to 18 points while Simas Jasaitis of DKV Joventut had 12 for Lithuania. Roko Ukic had 13 points for Croatia, Zoran Planinic of Tau Ceramica added 11 while Marko Banic of iurbentia Bilbao Basket got 10. [Box Score]

Argentina 97, Iran 82: Euroleague.net reports: Defending gold medalists Argentina secured second place in Group A by putting away Iran 82-97 at the Olympic men's basketball tournament on Saturday in Beijing. Argentina raised its record to 3-1 and will finish second regardless of whether it wins or loses the last group-stage game against already-eliminated Russia on Monday. With the loss, Iran fell to 0-4 and elimination in its first Olympics appearance. The Iranians stayed fairly close to Argentina until the middle of the third quarter, when Manu Ginobili's 3 three-pointers in less than a minute-and-a-half turned the tide for good. Ginobili finished with 32 points, the highest total so far in the tournament by any player, in 27 minutes. Luis Scola follwed with 20 points, while Pablo Prigioni of Tau Ceramica had 11 to go with 6 assists. Iran big man Hamed Ehadadi posted a double-double of 21 points, 16 rebounds. [Box Score]

China 59, Germany 55: Euroleague.net reports: China made its untold millions of fans jump for joy on Saturday by advancing to the quarterfinals at the Olympic men's basketball tournament with a do-or-die 59-55 victory over Germany in Beijing. China made another country's fans happy, too, as the victory meant qualification for Greece, also. Those two teams will play each other on Monday to decide third and fourth place in Group B. Germany was eliminated with Saturday's loss. Great defense in long stretches fueled victory for China, which lost all of an early double-digit lead but reasserted itself after halftime. Yao Ming led the victors with 25 points and 11 rebounds as the only double-digit scorer for China. Yi Jianlin added 9 points and 11 rebounds. Germany got double-doubles from Dirk Nowitzki, who had 24 points and 17 rebounds, and from Chris Kaman, with 10 and 12, respectively. Pascal Roller added 13 points but the rest of the team scored only 8 points. [Box Score]

USA 119, Spain 82: Euroleague.net reports: Team USA wrapped up first place in Group B and proved its status as gold-medal favorite by stomping Spain 82-119 in the Olympic men's basketball tournament on Saturday in Beijing. The U.S. lifted its record to 4-0 in the group while Spain fell to 3-1 but still clinched second place. Its trademark ball-hawking defense forced 28 turnovers from Spain while the U.S. shooters sank 12 of 25 three-pointers to preserve big leads throughout the game. Eight different USA players scored in double figures, led by LeBron James, who had 18 points to go with 8 assists. Dwayne Wade and Carmello Anthony added 16 each and Chris Paul 14 for the winners. Felipe Reyes of Real Madrid led Spain with 19 points and 8 rebounds. Pau Gasol added 13 points, but no other Spain player reached double digits. [Box Score | Full Recap]

AUGUST 17/18 GAMES

Croatia 91, Iran 57: Euroleague.net reports: Croatia assured itself third place in Group A by crushing winless Iran by 57-91 at the Olympic men's basketball tournament in Beijing on Monday. Croatia finished group play at 3-2 and will now face Spain in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. The victory also relegated Australia to fourth place and a quarterfinals matchup with the United States. Croatia made sure against Iran with an incredible 8-35 second quarter that established unbridgeable differences for the rest of the game. Iran finished its first Olympics in more than half a century with an 0-5 record. Four of Croatia's scorers finished in double-figures, with Marko Tomas of Real Madrid and Marin Rozic of Cibona popping for 16 points each. Niksa Prkacin of Cibona had 15 and Damjan Rudez of Bilbao 13. Croatia played without veteran guards Zoran Planinic and Marko Popovic, the latter out for the second game in a row. Iran got 25 points from Mohammadsamad Nikkhah plus a 17-point, 15-rebound effort from Hamed Ehadadi.

Australia 106, Lithuania 75: Euroleague.net reports: Australia showed it was readier than ever for the quarterfinals by ending Lithuania's undefeated status in Group A with a blowout 106-75 victory on Monday at the Olympic men's basketball tournament in Beijing. The victory couldn't keep Australia from finishing fourth in the group with a 3-2 record because of tie-breaks, however. Australia will face Group B winner USA in Wednesday's quarterfinals. A pair of massive first-half runs established double-digit leads that Australia protected the rest of the game against Lithuania, which was already group champ and was only playing for the pride of staying undefeated. Tournament-best 16-for-25 three-point shooting saw six Australian players reach double figures, led by Andrew Bogut with 23 points. Brad Newley added 16, Chris Anstey and Patrick Mills 13 each, Glen Saville and David Barlow 10 each. Lithuania got 14 points from Ksistof Lavrinovic and 12 from his Montepaschi Siena teammate Rimantas Kaukenas. Linas Kleiza also added 12, while Euroleague MVP Ramunas Siskauskas of CSKA Moscow had 10.

Greece 91, Croatia 77: Euroleague.net reports: Greece faced down a home crowd in Beijing to win a showdown for third place in Group B by 91-77 over China in the Olympic men's basketball tournament on Monday. Greece finished with a 3-2 record and will face Argentina in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. China finished 2-3 and will go against Group A winner Lithuania in the quarters. Greece's defense gave up only 24 points in the first half and withstood 9 three-pointers by China in the second without seeing its lead fall below double digits. Vassilis Spanoulis of Panathinaikos and Giannis Bouroussis of Olympiacos paced the winners with 19 points each, while Antonis Fotsis added 17. Yao Ming had 18 points in as many minutes for China, while Wang Zhizhi added 14 and Yi Jianlian 11.

Spain 98, Angola 50: Euroleague.net reports: Spain bounced back from its loss against the United States by overwhelming Angola 50-98 in Group B at Wukesong Arena. Spain finished second in Group B with a 4-1 record and faces Croatia in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Angola registered its fifth loss in as many games and was sixth in this group. Pau Gasol paced the winners with 31 points on 13-for-14 two-pointers and 9 rebounds. Juan Carlos Navarro of FC Barcelona added 12 points, Berni Rodriguez of Unicaja got 11 while Jorge Garbajosa of Khimki had 10 and 7 rebounds for Spain. Eduardo Mingas led Angola with 10 points.

USA 106, Germany 57: Euroleague.net reports: The United States of America stayed unbeaten and entered the quarterfinals as the Group B champion by thrashing Germany 106-57 at Wukesong Arena. The U.S. became the only team to stay unbeaten before the quarterfinals, while Germany finished fifth in Group B with a 1-4 record. Dwight Howard led the winners with 22 points on 9-for-10 two-pointers. Lebron James added 18 on 4-for-5 three-pointers, Kobe Bryant had 13 while Chris Paul and Dwayne Wade each got 10 for the United States. Dirk Nowitzki had 14 points for Germany while Jan Jagla of DKV Joventut added 10. Meanwhile, Patrick Femerling of Alba Berlin played his final game with the German national team... Deron Williams and Paul took over early in the second period to make it a 24-point game, 36-12. The United States kept rolling with outstanding man-to-man defense, double-teaming Nowitzki as often as possible.

Argentina 91, Russia 79: Euroleague.net reports: Argentina registered its fourth consecutive win in Beijing 2008 by edging Russia 91-79 in the final game in Group A at Wukesong Arena. Argentina was second in Group A and is set to face Greece in the do-or-die quarterfinals. Meanwhile, Russia finished fifth in Group B with a fifth and could not advance to the quarterfinals. Two-time All-Euroleague forward Luis Scola paced the winners with 37 points in 12-for-16 two-pointers and 8 rebounds, but stayed all 40 minutes on court, which could be important for the upcoming game against Greece. Former All-Euroleague second team selection Andres Nocioni added 19 points and 9 rebounds, former Euroleague Final Four MVP Manu Ginobili had 11 points while two-time All-Euroleague second team guard Pablo Prigioni scored 11 points and dished 10 assists for Argentina, the defending Olympic champion. Andrei Kirilenko led Russia with 23 points and 9 rebounds. Two-time Euroleague champion J.R. Holden added 19 points while Andrei Vorotnsevich of CSKA and Sergey Bykov of Dynamo Moscow each had 10 for the reigning European champs.

August 20: Quarterfinals

Spain 72, Croatia 59: The AP reports: Los Angeles Lakers center Pau Gasol scored 20 points to lead world champion Spain to a 72-59 win against Croatia on Day 12 in the men's basketball quarterfinals. Felipe Reyes added 13 points for Spain, while Toronto Raptors point guard Jose Calderon added 10. Gasol also had a game-high 10 rebounds. Marko Banic had 15 points to lead Croatia.

Lithuania 94, China 68: The AP reports: Sarunas Jasikevicius scored 23 points to lead Lithuania to a 94-68 win against China, eliminating the Olympic hosts from the men's basketball competition. Lithuania plays Spain in the semifinals Friday night. Spain beat Croatia 72-59 earlier Wednesday to advance. Houston Rockets center Yao Ming had 19 points for China in what may have been the team's final game with coach Jonas Kazlauskas at the helm... By that stage, Yao, who scored 11 of his 19 points from the free throw line, appeared exhausted.

USA 116, Australia 85: The AP reports: Kobe Bryant scored 25 points in his best game in Beijing, and the men's U.S. Olympic team advanced to the semifinals by beating Australia 116-85 on Wednesday night... LeBron James added 16 points for the Americans, who are guaranteed a chance to play for a medal. They need two more wins for their first gold medal in a major international competition since the 2000 Sydney Games... Full recap here.

Argentina 80, Greece 78: The AP reports: San Antonio Spurs' guard Manu Ginóbili scored 24 points and Carlos Delfino added 23 to lead defending Olympic champion Argentina into the men's semifinals with an 80-78 victory against Greece Wednesday night... Antonis Fotsis led Greece with 17 points, while Kostas Tsartsaris finished with 13.

August 22: Semifinals

Spain 91, Lithuania 86: The AP reports: Pau Gasol scored 19 points as Spain defeated Lithuania 91-86 on Friday night to advance to the Olympic gold medal game for the first time since 1984. Rudy Fernandez bounced back from a third-quarter head injury to score 18 for the Spaniards, who will face the United States for the gold medal on Sunday. The U.S. drubbed Spain 119-82 in pool play... Simas Jasaitis and Sarunas Jasikevicius each scored 19 points for Lithuania, which will play for the bronze medal for the fifth straight time... Lithuania hit five 3-pointers - three by Jasaitis - in the final 3:50 of the first half to take a 42-40 lead into intermission. The second half was a riveting possession-by-possession battle, with neither team able to open up a lead of more than four points.

USA 101, Argentina 81: The AP reports: The United States scored 21 of the first 25 points, got a big break when Argentina star Manu Ginóbili reinjured his left ankle, and surged into its first gold-medal game in eight years... Carmelo Anthony scored 21 points and LeBron James added 15, 13 in the second half... The U.S. lead was already 10 points when Ginobili, who came in leading the tournament with 20.3 points per game, went down in a play away from the ball, limped to the sideline and took off his left sneaker after reinjuring the same ankle that slowed him so badly in the Western Conference finals. See full recap.

August 24: Olympic basketball finals

Bronze Medal Game: Argentina 87, Lithuania 75 -- The AP reports: Carlos Delfino had 20 points and 10 rebounds as Argentina defeated Lithuania 87-75 on Sunday to win the Olympic bronze medal in men's basketball. Luis Scola added 16 points and Andres Nocioni had 14 for Argentina, which won the gold medal in 2004. It's the first time the Argentines have won back-to-back Olympic medals. Argentina played without Manu Ginóbili, who injured his left ankle in the semifinals against the U.S. Wearing jeans and a polo shirt, the San Antonio Spurs standout watched from the bench... Ramunas Siskauskas had 15 points for Lithuania, which fell in the bronze medal game for the second straight time... Argentina led 46-34 at halftime, opening a cushion with a barrage of 3-pointers. The Argentines hit 8-of-14 (57 percent) from beyond the arc in the first half, with Alfredo Quinteros going 3-for-3... Luis Scola once again led the way. Argentina's captain had 28 points and 11 rebounds against the U.S. and provided energy at both ends of the floor... Euroleague.net reports: Lithuania did not improve its defense after the break while Javtokas stepped up with a hook shot in the other end. Two-time All-Euroleague second team selection Pablo Prigioni of Tau Ceramica shined with a driving layup that Delfino followed with a second-chance basket, good for a 37-50 Argentinian lead. Nocioni buried a jumper while Scola scored in a two-on-two play with Prigioni to break the game open, 37-54. Lithuania called timeout and Kaukenas tried to change things with a power basket but Argentina stayed focused. Scola took over with a driving layup for a 39-57 score. Lithuania was now more aggressive in defense with Mindaugas Lukauskis of Lietuvos Rytas and Jonas Maciulis of Zalgiris on court. Argentina stayed patient, slowing down the game tempo. Delfino struck from downtown while Nocioni dunked it off a steal to make it a 20-point game, 44-64. Fast break layups by Gutierrez and Nocioni kept Argentina way ahead, 49-68, after 30 minutes. Lithuania needed a quick comeback to get back in the game and Kaukenas tried to ignit one with consecutive driving layups. Delfino sank another triple but Lukauskis and Kaukenas gave Lithuania some hope, 59-71. Scola fouled out with 5 minutes to go while All-Euroleague second team center Ksistof Lavrinovic made it an 11-point game, 64-75. Gutierrez buried a seven-meter bomb and Delfino sank free throws to seal the outcome, 64-80, as a good number of Argentinian fans were already celebrating that the team would go back home with another Olympic medal!

Gold Medal Game: USA 118, Spain 107 -- See a full recap here... Euroleague.net reports: The United States of America won its 13th gold medal in 16 Olympic appearances by beating Spain 107-118 in the final at Wukesong Arena on Sunday, in one of the best games ever seen in world basketball history. The U.S. won its first world-class competition since 2000 while Spain matched its best olympic results ever, getting its second silver medal 24 years after its first Olympic final. One of the greatest games in basketball history closed the Olympic men's basketball tournament in Beijing on Sunday with the United States on top of the world again, but Spain having put European basketball perhaps higher than ever despite losing. Dwayne Wade paced the winners with 27 points on 5-for-5 two-pointers and 4-for-7 triples. Kobe Bryant added 20, Lebron James had 14 while Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony each got 13 for the United States. Reigning ULEB Cup Final Eight MVP Rudy Fernandez led Spain with 22 points in 18 minutes. Pau Gasol added 21, two-time All-Euroleague guard Juan Carlos Navarro of FC Barcelona had 18, Carlos Jimenez of Unicaja got 12, Marc Gasol 11 and Felipe Reyes of Real Madrid 10 for Spain, that trailed 104-108 with 2:25 to go but could not complete its comeback. ... The AP reports: After overwhelming everyone for seven games, the Americans led by only four points with under 2½ minutes to play. Then the U.S. proved it could handle a close game that seemed would never come in Beijing. Their prize: the first U.S. gold medal since the 2000 Olympics... Dwyane Wade scored 27 points for the Americans, who found a much gamer Spanish team than the one it humiliated by 37 points earlier in the tournament. Kobe Bryant added 20 points. In a game so void of defense that it felt more like an NBA All-Star game than one with a title at stake, the Americans had too much offense down the stretch. Bryant converted a clutch four-point play with 3:10 remaining, holding his finger to his lips to quiet the rowdy Spanish crowd behind the basket. Wade added another 3-pointer that made it 111-104 with just over 2 minutes left, and only then could the Americans relax a little... Rudy Fernandez scored 22 points and Pau Gasol had 21 for the Spanish, the reigning world champions who were hoping to win their first Olympic gold... Spain hit seven of its first nine shots, leading for much of the first quarter. A quick burst of 10 points by James and Wade had the U.S. advantage up to 14 points with 4 minutes left in the half, but Spain chipped away and trailed only 69-61 at the break... Spain made one last push to close within 108-104 on Carlos Jimenez's 3-pointer, but Wade hit one on the other end, and the final score became lopsided when the Americans hit a bunch of free throws after the Spanish became frustrated and were called for the technicals... Euroleague.net reports: Pau Gasol stepped up with a tip-in early in the fourth quarter, as Spain had fully adjusted its 2-3 zone defense. Pau Gasol provided a highlight with an alleyoop dunk that Fernandez followed with a running triple to make it a nine-point game, 89-91, after a 9-0 run. Bryant scored in penetration off a U.S. timeout while Williams struck from downtown to give his team some fresh air at 89-96. Howard dunked it to cap a 7-0 U.S. run while Fernandez and Bryant traded triples for a 92-101 score. James scored inside but Fernandez simply took over with a dunk-and-foul over Howard, 95-103, midway through the fourth quarter. Spain tried Navarro and Fernandez at both guard spots for more fire power, while Pau Gasol followed free throws with a jumper made it a five-point game at 99-104. Bryant nailed a critical triple and the free throw that came with it but Navarro gave Spain some hope, 101-108, with 3 minutes to go. Jimenez buried a corner triple but Wade immediately answered from downtown to make Spain call timeout at 104-111. Navarro made a free throw while Bryant sealed the outcome with a driving layup, 105-113. Spain ran out of time and the U.S. became the Olympic champion in an instant classic that will go down as one of the best games in world basketball history!


BEST TEAMS IN OLYMPIC BASKETBALL: Other than the USA, in the opinion of InsideHoops.com the best teams are Spain, Argentina, Greece and Lithuania, in that order.

USA GAMES: Recaps of every Team USA game, including the exhibition games taking place before the Olympics, are on our USA Basketball page.

Upon completion of the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Men in Athens, Greece, the field of the 12 participant men's national teams at the upcoming Beijing 2008 Olympic Games is now finalized.

Germany, winner of tonight's Final of the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Men, has joined Croatia and Greece (the winners of yesterday's semi-finals) as the last team clinching a final spot for the 2008 Olympic Basketball Tournament for Men.

The draw to determine the final composition of groups for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Basketball Tournament for Men has taken place in the OAKA Basketball Arena in Maroussi, Athens, just a few minutes after the Final of the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Men. As a result of this draw, Croatia will be in Group A, while Germany and Greece will compete in Group B.

Listed below is the final composition of groups, as well as the complete event schedule for the Olympic Basketball Tournament for Men that will be played from 10th to 24th August 2008 in the brand new 18.000-seat Wukesong Indoor Stadium. Please note that all tip-off hours are local time in Beijing, China.

2008 OLYMPICS BASKETBALL TEAMS

TEAMS (And how they qualified for the Olympics): Angola (African Champion), Argentina (Americas runner-up), Australia (Oceanian Champion), China (host), Iran (Asian Champion), Lithuania (European Bronze medallist), Russia (European Champion), Spain (World Champion) and USA (Champion of the Americas). The other three teams got here thanks to the Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

Group A: Argentina Australia Croatia Iran Lithuania Russia

Group B: Angola China Germany Greece Spain USA

USA OLYMPIC BASKETBALL TEAM STARTERS:

PG: Jason Kidd, SG: Kobe Bryant, SF: LeBron James, PF: Carmelo Anthony, C: Dwight Howard. As in the past, Melo, a small forward, will have to play bigger than he really is as a power forward in this lineup. He can pull it off. And LeBron is much stronger than the average small forward, so that makes up for it a little. But still, it's somewhat small frontcourt. Defensively, Bryant is the team's best stopper for guarding the opponent's best swingman. Of the starters, Kidd is likely to play the least minutes.


USA OLYMPIC BASKETBALL TEAM BENCH PLAYERS:

August 2, 2008 update: In Team USA's exhibition games, Dwyane Wade has been the team's scoring star off the bench. The main backup point guard to Kidd is Chris Paul, though Paul may very well wind up playing more minutes than Kidd does. Deron Williams, a point guard, will be used at both PG and shooting guard. And then shooting guard Michael Redd brings a great, consistent outside shot and has the green light to rip the net every chance he gets. At small forward, the team has versatile, defensive-minded Tayshaun Prince. And at backup power forward and center the team has Chris Bosh and Carlos Boozer. Again, depth is very thin at the big-man spots.


INSIDEHOOPS.COM ON TEAM USA STRENGTHS

The starters are some of the world's best players. Kobe, LeBron and Carmelo together are unstoppable scorers from anywhere on the court. Kidd is an amazing passer who will make it easy for those guys as well as for Dwight Howard, who mainly scores with dunks and other moves near the basket that are created by his great combination of size, strength and absolutely incredible athletic ability. The bench is also very versatile.


INSIDEHOOPS.COM ON TEAM USA WEAKNESSES

The lack of size could be a minor problem. The team only has one true center (Howard), two true power forwards (Bosh and Boozer), and then everyone else is a small forward or a guard. As said above, they can play either LeBron or Carmelo at power forward (it'll be Melo, mainly) and very easily get away with it, but still, ideally the team would have had one more big man and one less guard. InsideHoops.com would have liked to see Tyson Chandler on the team as a big role player to defend, rebound, block shots and set screens.


INSIDEHOOPS.COM OLYMPICS PREDICTION

InsideHoops.com editor Jeff Lenchiner officially predicts that the USA will win the Gold medal. This is the year.


2008 TEAM USA OLYMPIC BASKETBALL ROSTER

NO	NAME	POS	HGT	WGT	DOB	CURRENT TEAM / COLLEGE or HIGH SCHOOL
15	Carmelo Anthony	F	6-8	230	5/29/84	Denver Nuggets / Syracuse
4	Carlos Boozer	F	6-9	266	11/20/81	Utah Jazz / Duke
12	Chris Bosh	F	6-10	230	3/24/84	Toronto Raptors / Georgia Tech
10	Kobe Bryant	G	6-6	205	8/23/78	Los Angeles Lakers / Lower Merion High School (PA)
11	Dwight Howard	F/C	6-11	265	12/08/85	Orlando Magic / Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy
6	LeBron James	F	6-8	250	12/30/84	Cleveland Cavaliers / St. Vincent-St. Mary High School (OH)
5	Jason Kidd	G	6-4	210	3/23/73	Dallas Mavericks / Califonria
13	Chris Paul	G	6-0	175	5/06/85	New Orleans Hornets / Wake Forest
14	Tayshaun Prince	F	6-9	215	2/28/80	Detroit Pistons / University of Kentucky
8	Michael Redd	G	6-6	215	8/24/79	Milwaukee Bucks / Ohio State
9	Dwyane Wade	G	6-4	216	1/17/82	Miami Heat / Marquette
7	Deron Williams	G	6-3	205	6/26/84	Utah Jazz / Illinois
Managing Director: Jerry Colangelo
Head Coach: Mike Krzyzewski, Duke University
Assistant Coach: Jim Boeheim, Syracuse University
Assistant Coach: Mike D'Antoni, New York Knicks
Assistant Coach: Nate McMillan, Portland Trail Blazers
Team Physician: Sheldon Burns, Minnesota Timberwolves
Athletic Trainer: Keith Jones, Houston Rockets
Athletic Trainer: Casey Smith, Dallas Mavericks
Director of Scouting: Rudy Tomjanovich
Director of International Player Personnel: Tony Ronzone, Detroit Pistons

TEAM USA OLYMPICS SELECT TEAM
The USA Select Team only exists to practice with Team USA and help them prepare for the Olympics.

NO	NAME	POS	HGT	WGT	DOB	CURRENT TEAM / COLLEGE or HIGH SCHOOL
48	LaMarcus Aldridge	F/C	6-11	245	07/19/85	Portland Trail Blazers / Texas
41	Jerryd Bayless	G	6-3	200	08/20/88	Portland Trail Blazers / Arizona
52	Kevin Durant	G	6-9	215	09/29/88	Oklahoma City NBA / Texas
22	Jeff Green	F	6-9	235	08/29/86	Oklahoma City NBA / Georgetown
23	Luther Head	G	6-3	185	11/26/82	Houston Rockets / Illinois
33	Al Horford	C	6-10	245	06/03/86	Atlanta Hawks / Florida
25	Andre Iguodala	F/G	6-6	207	01/28/84	Philadelphia 76ers / Arizona
38	Robin Lopez	C	7-0	255	04/01/88	Phoenix Suns / Stanford
26	Kevin Love	C	6-10	255	09/07/88	Minnesota Timberwolves / UCLA
32	Kevin Martin	G	6-7	185	02/01/83	Sacramento Kings / Western Carolina
40	O.J. Mayo	G	6-5	200	11/05/87	Memphis Grizzlies / USC
31	Derrick Rose	G	6-3	190	10/04/88	Chicago Bulls / Memphis
44	Rodney Stuckey	G	6-5	205	04/21/86	Detroit Pistons / Eastern Washington
Head Coach: P.J. Carlesimo, Oklahoma City NBA
Assistant Coach: Jay Triano, Toronto Raptors

MUCH MORE COMING, INCLUDING INFO ON EACH TEAM, FULL PREVIEWS, OLYMPICS HISTORY AND MUCH MORE