BOCAUE, Bulacan – Italy leaned on a strong final quarter to keep Angola at bay en route to a lopsided 81-67 win at the start of the Philippine leg of the FIBA World Cup on Friday night at the Philippine Arena here.
In front of 21,214 fans who arrived ahead of Gilas Pilipinas' home stand against the Karl-Anthony Towns-led Dominican Republic, the Italians pulled away in the final period behind National Basketball Association player Simone Fontecchio who scored 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting.
The Utah Jazz small forward also had five rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block.
Stefano Tonut added 18 points, one rebound, and two assists.
Childe Dundao paced Angola with 19 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals.
In other matches, Nikola Vucevic fired 27 points to power Montenegro past Mexico, 91-71, at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City; Josh Giddey debut in the World Cup with 14 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists to lead Australia against Finland, 98-72, at Japan’s Okinawa Arena; and Latvia beats Lebanon, 109-70, at the Indonesia Arena.
The 20-year-old Giddey became the first player in the 21st century to have more than 10 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists in a first World Cup game since LeBron James in 2006. (PNA)
