2010 FIBA World Championships Quarterfinals Set to Begin

The 2010 FIBA World Championships enter the quarterfinals today. Just eight teams remain in the 2010 FIBA World Championships, one of them being the new incarnation of Team USA. This puts one of these countries just three wins away from taking home the Gold Medal in Turkey, and it is about to get really competitive at the FIBA World Championships.

Argentina beat China in an ultra-competitive game yesterday, which saw the No. 1-ranked team in FIBA (Argentina) just barely make it into the quarterfinals. Now they will have to play a really tough Lithuania team on Thursday, Sept. 9, in their next game.

The first four teams in the 2010 FIBA World Championship quarterfinals take the court on Wednesday, Sept. 8, and this will decide two of the teams that head into the medal rounds in Turkey. The first game of the day is the most interesting, where a big Serbia team takes on the defending World Champion team from Spain. Spain isn't as good as they were four years ago, but not many teams are when they lose someone like Pau Gasol from the roster. They still have his brother, as well as some great guards on the roster like Ricky Rubio, though, and that could give them an edge on the court.

The Serbia vs. Spain game is followed by Turkey vs. Slovenia, as the undefeated host of the tournament tries to continue their win streak. This Turkish team has been a pretty big surprise in the 2010 FIBA World Championships, as they are just the No. 18-ranked country in the world. They play a Slovenia team that is ranked No. 20 in the world, so the semifinals are going to have a very interesting team advance from this game no matter what. Can the winner here compete on the same level as Serbia (ranked No. 5) or Spain (ranked No. 3)? We will find out that answer on Saturday.

The other side of the quarterfinals has the United States vs. Russia and Lithuania vs. Argentina, with both games taking place on Thursday. That will decide the other semifinal game, and possibly set up a match-up of United States vs. Argentina, deciding which country will advance to the Gold Medal Game. The winner of that game is also going to become the No. 1 country in the world, so there is even more on the line than just the medals this year.

Coverage of all FIBA World Championship games is on ESPN3.com for those who want to watch some of the best basketball from around the world.

References:

FIBA_World_Rankings

2010_FIBA_Brackets