MAR DEL PLATA (Argentina) – The Dominican Republic did not intend to miss a FIBA Basketball World Cup again. The Caribbeans secured their third consecutive championship attendance this Sunday, after having been absent for 36 years, after defeating 75-79 to Argentina at the Islas Malvinas Sports Center in Mar del Plata.
The Dominicans got the ticket in the last match of Window 6, with the public against and a disadvantage of 17 points with more than 12 minutes to play. They turned around a meeting that seemed uphill and silenced more than eight thousand Argentines at night in Mar del Plata. They finished as Canada’s guards in Pool E with a 9-3 record.
Néstor “Che” García, who returned to his country after leaving the Albiceleste coaching staff, asked his team for peace of mind with a 12-point disadvantage. “Our good moment will arrive”, he predicted. Indeed, from the end of the third period he began to change the dynamics on the court.
The zonal defense prevented the flow of the southern attack, while on the other side they insisted on attacking the key. Jean Montero, only 19 years old, looked like an experienced man in moments of urgency. The point guard totaled 18 –nine in the last stretch- of his 22 units in the second half.
“Our mentality was different going into the fourth quarter. We knew that we were not going to tie the game in a single possession, we had to work on the game. The coach told us that the last three minutes of the game were going to be key, and that’s how it was. We got the victory because we didn’t give up. I still can’t believe we’re in the World Cup,” said Montero, who also stole three balls.
Montero hit a jumper from the free throw with 1:19 left in the fourth quarter that tied the score at 71 after trailing 17 points. Andrés Feliz stole the ball and Víctor Liz hit a double on a counterattack that gave the Dominican Republic the lead 75-73, with 57.4 seconds remaining. The visiting defense silenced Gabriel Deck, Facundo Campazzo and Nicolás Laprovittola to just eight points in the final stretch. Néstor “Che” García was lifted up by his players on the court after the victory. The coach led Argentina in the first windows of these qualifiers. Jean Montero sealed the classification with a double that left the score 79-75 with 19 seconds left.
Argentina saw a streak of nine consecutive World Cups snapped. For the first time since 1982 they will be absent from the contest. In the last Cup, held in China, they won the silver medal.
“We did not knock them out and the doubts began. It is a very hard blow. Emotionally we didn’t have the strength to come back after they equalized the match. It’s going to hurt a lot to watch it on TV. I take full responsibility”, lamented the technical director of Argentina, Pablo Prigioni.
Gabriel Deck excelled offensively with 27 points after shooting 10 of 15 from the field. Facundo Campazzo, Marcos Delía and Nicolás Laprovittola added 10 goals each.
FIBA