Leo Gutierrez, Paolo Quinteros answer the call

BUENOS AIRES (Olympics) - The names Leo Gutierrez and Paolo Quinteros may not resonate with the international basketball world like "Ginobili" or "Scola", but they are well known in Argentina.

Gutierrez and Quinteros combined to make the difference for Argentina in 2008 when an injury-riddled side coached by Sergio Hernandez managed to beat the odds and leave Beijing with a bronze medal.

Lithuania had beaten the Argentinians in the Preliminary Round and when it came time to facing them again, they had the added advantage of not having to worry about Manu Ginobili.

Ginobili had suffered a serious ankle injury in Semi-Final defeat to the United States and was lost for the bronze-medal clash.

Complicating matters further for Argentina was that Andres Nocioni was also hurt and could barely walk.

Veterans Gutierrez and Quinteros came to the rescue.

They combined for 15 points in the first half and 22 overall in an 87-75 Argentina victory.

The South Americans trailed Lithuania 27-26 nearly three minutes into the second quarter when Gutierrez hit two straight threes and Quinteros followed with a third.

The 9-0 run put the Argentinians in front for good.

Luis Scola, one of the lynchpins in the side with Ginobili, paid tribute to Gutierrez and Quinteros.

"With Manu out, we knew that we needed something else," Scola.

"I spoke to Paolo and I asked him he if he was ready and he said, 'I'm always ready.'

"Many people don't know Leo but he has been very successful in our country, winning league titles, earning MVPs, he has been our man there.

"He was ready for the big shot."

Gutierrez, also a member of the Argentinians' gold-medal winning team at the 2004 Olympics, added to his reputation as one of the best shooters ever in his homeland in a league game against Boca Juniors at the end of 2010.

Playing for Peñarol, Gutierrez hit a Liga Nacional record 15 shots from behind the arc while amassing 48 points in a 120-76 victory for his team.

Neither he, nor Quinteros, had played much in Beijing until the second meeting with Lithuania.

"The strength that we have had in the last 10 years has been on other players stepping out in big games," Scola said.

"Like in Athens, we had Walter Herrmann."

FIBA