Italy survive battle with Angola for opening win

MANILA (Philippines) - Italy faced a stiff challenge to open the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 but prevailed in beating Angola 81-67 in the Group A curtain raiser.

Italy improved to 3-0 all-time against Angola in World Cup history, winning in 9-16 Classification action in 1990 and walloping the Africans 92-61 in the 2019 World Cup First Round. But Angola showed they have taken a step forward in their generation change - though not enough to knock off the Italians in front of 21,214 fans at Philippine Arena.

The turning point​: After a back-and-forth and tight first three quarters, Italy finally grabbed control of the game with some tough defense to start the final frame and open an eight-point lead 65-57. Angola could not get back to closer than five points the rest of the way.

TCL player of the Game​: Simone Fontecchio was strong all game as Italy struggled to score the ball from long range, picking up 19 points on 8-of-14 shots to go with 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 1 block.

Stats don't lie​: Italy shot just 6-of-31 (16 percent) from long range but made 69 percent of their two-point attempts. Gianmarco Pozzecco's team also held Angola to 4-of-29 (14 percent) from long range.

Bottom Line​: Italy will look to make it two in a row and take a major step towards the Second Round with their second game against Dominican Republic on Sunday, August 27. Angola have a second chance for a first victory in a near must-win showdown with hosts Philippines on the same day.

They said: "I apologized to my players because I was completely under stress. I didn't support them. I was negative. And they felt that. I really want to apologize to them. But they are amazing. They did what they had to do." - Italy coach Gianmarco Pozzecco

"It's a good win because it's the first game of the tournament. So there was a little bit of tension, we were a little bit nervous. But we broke the ice. It was a good win in the end. I think we played well but we just missed shots. They were very physical but we found a way to compete and stayed together throughout the game. We were up nine and they came back and we went down. It was good that we stuck together." - Italy forward Nicolo Melli

"We were a little tight for an emotional game. It was the first one. A big gym and everything. But we are happy about the win. A win is a win. We will take it. It's a difficult groupe. Everybody can beat everybody." - Italy guard Marco Spissu

"We were mentally prepared to compete and did well. But once some problems appeared we became weaker. I hope this is a lesson we learn because this is a World Cup and you always have to finish strong - no matter what the score is. That is something we have to improve on.

"Part of offense and defense is character. And no matter what the score is, you have to show character. I think we lacked strong character in the final minutes. When you face a team that is better than you - which we all know, recognise and accept - it's clear that the only way to win is to give more. To play harder and to never give up." - Angola coach Pep Claros

"The team had a great attitude. Our intention was to fight for all the quarters. For three quarters we did that. Unfortunately the fourth quarter we didn't play very well. They played better than us and won. But we are proud of ourselves because we fought in the game. And now we have to fight in the next game." - Angola forward Antonio Monteiro

Press conference​

The game report will be updated shortly. Check back soon for Game Highlights.

FIBA