With round-robin play in the books, only eight teams remain in the chase for the gold medal in men’s basketball at the Rio de Janeiro Summer Olympics. In a battle of two evenly matched countries, Australia and Lithuania will tangle on August 17 for the right to advance to the semifinals.
- Neither side has been lighting it up from downtown, as both teams are shooting below 37 percent from beyond the arc.
- Australia (46) has a big edge over Lithuania (31.6) in points in the paint.
- Australia beat Lithuania 106-75 the last time these teams faced off (2008 in Beijing).
Australia (4-1) is arguably the biggest surprise of the tournament. Entering the competition, the Boomers had a +25000 chance of winning the title. Their odds now sit at +2000.
Paced by the steady play of point guard Patty Mills, the Aussies’ in-your-face style of basketball has befuddled other countries in Brazil. Mills is averaging 16.4 points per game, while center Andrew Bogut is second on the team at 13. Sportsbooks have tabbed the Aussies as 3.5-point favorites for the matchup, with the total at 158.5.
Lithuania (3-2) limps into the quarters on a two-game slide. The Lithuanians looked lost against Spain (a 109-59 thumping) before falling to Croatia on Monday by a score of 90-81. Lithuania has been waiting for big man Jonas Valanciunas to break out, but it hasn’t happened yet. The Toronto Raptors center is averaging 7 points per game while shooting 38.9 percent from the field through five contests.
The Sportsbook of this game will go on to face either Croatia or Serbia in the semis.
For outright Sportsbook odds, visit our Rio men’s basketball futures page.
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