Colombia, Chile, Ecuador and Argentina victorious on the South American U17’s second day of competition

LIMA (South American U17 Championship) - The second day of competition of the South American U17 Championship was victorious for the Colombia, Chile, Ecuador and Argentina national teams.

Colombia led an exciting 59-58 victory over Venezuela: it was a close game in which both teams exchanged points and advantages during the 40 action-packed minutes. The key possession of the game happened with a triple by Octavio Muñoz with 2:13 left on the clock, which gave Colombia a 59-57 advantage. The Venezuelans had the opportunity to even the game when Emir Arteaga was called to the free throw line. However, he failed the second attempt and Colombia secured its victory. Beyond the offensive parity, both teams seemed unorganized during the game, which featured 75 turnovers (40 by Venezuela, and 35 by Colombia). The best Colombian player was Muñoz, who scored 15 points; while Venezuelan Fernando Fuenmayor stood out with 13 points and 13 rebounds in the defeat.

In the second game of the day, Chile dominated the host, Peru 100-35. The Chileans were superior in every one of the game's aspects, winning the rebound struggle 71-40; executing 23 passes, while Peru only achieved 4; and leading in points from the paint, 72-12. Maxwell Lorca was Chile's best with 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Peru’s Luis Rodríguez was responsible for 24 of the losing team’s total of 35 points.

Ecuador achieved an important triumph over Uruguay in the day’s third game, which ended 58-52. They knew how to close after a 12-3 streak in the last 3 minutes of a game that remained competitive, although Uruguay went through some offensive droughts during key moments. Ecuador relied on a good contribution from the bench, with 35 points, and was effective on the paint, with 32 points. Luis Riascos was once again a central figure for Ecuador, and made 10 points and 15 rebounds; while Franco Villalba was the best Uruguayan player, scoring 14 points.

At the end of the day, Argentina dominated Paraguay 77-43. The Argentine team secured the game with a long last quarter of 28-13. Argentina was more effective in the offense, with a field goal percentage of 43. Paraguay, meanwhile, shot 28% and also made 29 turnovers in its defeat. The best player for the Argentine team was Leandro Bolmaro, with 14 points and 6 rebounds. Néstor López was Paraguay's best, with 7 points and 5 rebounds in a lost cause.

Venezuela will face Chile during third day of the South American U17 Championship, as will Colombia and Perú, Bolivia and Argentina, and Paraguay and Uruguay, who will close the day.

The South American U17 Championship qualifies the best three teams for the FIBA Americas U18 Championship 2018, which will take place next year in St. Catharines, Canada.

You can access the live statistics and coverage of the South American U17 Championship at fiba.basketball.

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