Group C – Turks aim to secure top spot

ANKARA (2010 FIBA World Championship) – Turkey can secure first place in Group C of the Preliminary Round at the 2010 FIBA World Championship when they face Puerto Rico on Wednesday night.

Bogdan Tanjevic’s side improved to 3-0 by beating neighbours and rivals Greece 76-65 on Tuesday. A win over Puerto Rico will guarantee they finish as the top seeded team in the pool as they hold the tiebreak over the Greeks and the Russians, having won both those games.

Puerto Rico will come into this game with a lot of confidence after dispatching China 84-76 for their first victory.

If they can hand Turkey their first defeat of the tournament, Manolo Cintron’s team will all but assure themselves of a place in the knockout stages in Istanbul.

In the day’s first game, China take on Russia in search of their second win.

The Chinese have the same record as Puerto Rico (1-2) but lie in fifth place in the standings having lost to them.

Bob Donewald Jr’s team must make a concerted effort at the defensive end after they allowed the Puerto Ricans to shoot 58 percent from two-point range and score 52 points in the paint.

They also need other players to step up as Yi Jianlian and Wang Zhizhi have been carrying the scoring load, particularly in the early going. The two big men combined to score all 21 of their team’s points against Puerto Rico on Tuesday.

Russia improved to 2-1 with a 72-66 win over Ivory Coast but got a real fright in the final minutes as their double-digit lead evaporated and they only saved face by making free-throws down the stretch.

The lesson then for David Blatt’s charges is to do a better job of closing out games. That will be at a premium, especially against a team like China known for their ability to score in a hurry.

Ivory Coast take on Greece in the day’s other game. The Elephants must put behind them the disappointment of coming agonisingly close to beating Russia and focus on doing their very best to challenge the Greeks, who could still be vulnerable following their defeat at the hands of the hosts.

A victory for Randoald Dessarzin’s team, combined with losses by both Puerto Rico and China, would make for a three-way tiebreak for the fourth and final qualifying place going into Thursday’s final day of first round play.

Don't forget you can catch all the Group C action live on FIBATV.Com.

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