Spain have reached the Olympic summit for the first time ever.
Led by the dynamic duo of Alba Torrens and Astou Ndour, plus a dominant double-double by Laura Nicholls, Spain ultimately cruised to a 68-54 win over reigning Eurobasket Women champions Serbia in the first semi-final match-up in the Olympic women’s basketball tournament.
The Spanish raced to a 20-9 lead after the first period, signalling their intent from the start, suffocating the Serbs on defence and not allowing them to get into their offensive stride.
Serbia, desperate to not be outdone in front of a global audience fought back in the second, and narrowed the deficit to just five points at the half which left the contest nicely poised.
Both sides have shown tremendous fighting spirits throughout the Olympics, coming back from deficits to get to this stage. Serbia were showing their determination, leaving Spain free to respond in the third.
And respond, Spain so duly did. They held Serbia, appearing at their first ever Olympic Games scoreless for the first four minutes of the third frame as Spain burst out with an 8-0 run to take a 41-28 lead and they held on to a double-digit lead from then on in.
Serbia can still claim bronze despite the loss. They will face the loser between the other semi-final between USA-France. Sonja Petrovic and Sasa Cado each had 12 for the Serbians.
