2024-07-07 22:11:20
The basketball teams of Lithuania and Puerto Rico can only meet in intercontinental tournaments. Puerto Ricans regularly qualify for the world championships, but the draw has never brought Lithuanians together with this country’s team. Meanwhile, the Puerto Rican team has never qualified for the Olympic Games since 2004.
As a result, Lithuanian and Puerto Rican basketball players have played few official matches against each other so far – just three. The Lithuanian national team won all three times – in the 1994 and 2004 Olympic Games and in the 2012 Olympic selection tournament – but it was harder and harder to defeat.
in 1992 Olympic Games
in 1992 July 29 Barcelona. Group
Lithuania – Puerto Rico 104:91. A. Sabonis 31, Š. Marčiulionis 29, R. Kurtinaitis 20, A. Karnišovas 17 / J. Ortizas 20, J. Mincy 12, M. Moralesas 11.
The first confrontation between the national teams of Lithuania and Puerto Rico took place during the Barcelona Olympic Games, after Lithuania had just returned to the Olympic family after a long break.
The teams met in the third round of group competition. The Lithuanians already had two victories against the Chinese and Venezuelan national teams, while the Puerto Rican team had only defeated the Chinese.
Although Arvydas Sabonis, Šarūnas Marčiulionis, Rimas Kurtinaitis and their comrades extended the string of victories and even won by a double-digit margin, the field had to be beaten. The Lithuanians ran forward several times, but the opponents did not intend to give up and restored the balance. We also had to worry about the fact that the leaders of the Lithuanian national team were burdened with fouls – until the middle of the second half (at that time two halves of 20 minutes were still played), A. Sabonis, Š. Marčiulionis and Artūras Karnišovas committed four fouls each. It was not possible to save all the leaders until the final siren – A. Sabonis and Rimas Kurtinaitis did not finish the match due to five fouls, but they left the field when the lead was already sufficiently secure.
The result was tied for the last time in the 23rd minute – 53:53, and the Lithuanian basketball players made a decisive spurt in the middle of the second quarter, when they trailed 73:63 (in the 30th minute).
Four players scored 97 out of 104 points for the Lithuanian team coached by Vladas Garasts: A. Sabonis (31), Š. Marčiulionis (29), R. Kurtinaitis (20) and A. Karnišovas (17). Valdemaras Chomičius, who scored 3 points, was fifth in terms of productivity.
After defeating the Puerto Ricans, Lithuanian basketball players delighted the fans with yet another victory at the Olympic Games in Barcelona and won bronze medals. The Puerto Rican team also qualified for the playoffs, but lost to the USA in the quarterfinals and finished eighth in the final table.
in 2004 Olympic Games
in 2004 August 17 Athens. Group
Lithuania – Puerto Rico 98:90. R. Šiškauskas 23, A. Macijauskas 19, Š. Jasikevičius 18 / C. Arroyo and L. Ayuso each 25, D. Santiago 12.
For the second time, Lithuanians entered the fight with Puerto Ricans during the Olympic Games in Athens. The match took place in the second round of the group competition.
In the first round, both teams achieved victories, but their moods were as different as day and night. The Lithuanians barely beat the Angolan team 78:73, while the Puerto Ricans shook the entire sports world – they were the first to beat the USA national team made up of NBA basketball players 92:73.
The victory for Puerto Rico, led by Carlos Aroyo and Larry Ayus, was much more impressive, but it did them a disservice. A little physically, but more emotionally tired, the Puerto Ricans did not concentrate for the match against the Lithuanians in the same way as for the first match. Meanwhile, the Lithuanians went to the field angry with themselves and determined to show that they can play much better than the Angolan team.
In the first half of the match, Puerto Rico basketball players were in the lead almost all the time. However, after Dainius Šalenga made the score 46:44 with a three-point shot in the 19th minute, the Lithuanian national team did not let the opponents go forward even once. The difference gradually increased until the middle of the fourth quarter (88:73 – in the 36th minute).
The team coached by Antanas Sireikas repeated the achievement of the Puerto Ricans a few days later and defeated the USA national team, beat the Chinese team in the quarter-finals, but lost the two most important matches to the Italians (in the semi-finals) and the Americans (for the third place) and remained without medals.
Puerto Rico’s basketball players’ hopes of winning their first Olympic medals were also dashed. The Puerto Ricans lost to Italy in the quarterfinals and finished sixth in the final table. Since then, the Puerto Rican national team has never qualified for the Olympics.
By the way, former team leader C. Arroyo is now the manager of the Puerto Rico national team. Another former leader, L.Ayuso, who then briefly played in “Zalgiris” Kaunas, joined the coaching staff of the Puerto Rican national team this year.
in 2012 Olympic selection tournament
in 2012 July 6 Caracas. Quarter final
Lithuania – Puerto Rico 76:72. M. Kalnietis and L. Kleiza 14 each, Š. Jasikevičius 11, J. Mačiulis 10 / A. Galindo 17, JJBarea and C. Aroyo 13 each.
At the Barcelona and Athens games, Lithuanian basketball players met with the Puerto Rican national team during the group competition. In them, even the losing team still had a chance to improve.
Meanwhile, twelve years ago, in the qualifying tournament for the London Olympic Games, Lithuanians and Puerto Ricans clashed in a match, after which they did not get another chance. The duel took place in the quarterfinals of the tournament.
In 2012, the Olympic selection tournament was held under a different system than now. Twelve teams competed in Caracas for three tickets to the London Games. Neither the Lithuanians nor the Puerto Ricans escaped failure in the group competition. The Lithuanian national team coached by Kęstutis Kemzuras defeated the host team of Venezuela, but lost to Nigerian basketball players, the Puerto Rican team, in which Carlos Aroyo still played, who shared the leadership role with Jose Juan Barea, defeated the Jordanian team, but lost to the Greek national team.
The Puerto Rico national team, which was in the lead almost all the time, started the quarterfinal match better in the first half. Her biggest lead was 8 points. However, the Lithuanians even before the break, just like in Athens, weighed the result. In the third and fourth quarters, the Lithuanian national team was ahead of the opponents by a small step almost all the time. But unlike in Athens, the Lithuanians failed to gain a greater advantage.
On the contrary, in the last minute, Daniel Santiago, a veteran of the Puerto Rico national team, made the score 72:71. In the next attack, Šarūnas Jasikevičius restored the advantage to 73:72, and in the last seconds, two mistakes by JJBarea and accurate free throws by Linas Kleiza and Š. Jasikevičius after the opponents deliberately fouled.
The Puerto Rican national team went home after this match. Lithuanian basketball players defeated the Dominican Republic in the semi-finals the next day and won a ticket to the London Olympic Games (since the teams were fighting for three tickets, the match for the formal first place selection in the tournament was not played).
It is interesting that twelve years ago Lithuanian basketball players played decisive matches in Caracas on the same days: against Puerto Rico – on July 6, and against the Dominican Republic – on July 7.
2024-07-07 22:11:20