After years of disappointment with the national team in the FIBA World Cup, veteran forward Gigi Datome is now beaming with pride as Italy booked a spot in the quarterfinal round of the tournament.
It came on his 200th game that Italy snapped a long drought of not making it to round-of-eight in the last 25 years and it was indeed a memorable moment for the former Boston Celtics.Italy needed a big fourth quarter to score a 73-57 win over Puerto Rico Sunday, Sept. 3 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.Stefano Tonut and Giampaolo Ricci led Italy with 15 points each, while Simone Fomtecchia contributed 12 points and 12 assists.
For sure, the level's gonna raise up and also we need to step up to the level but today we enjoy the day because it's a very important game for us,' he said.'I'm ready to help if this is the case but I always try to give my best. I try only to do the right things on the court,' said Datome, who averages 7.8 points with 1.2 boards through five games in the World Cup.'Sometimes, the ball goes in and you look at replay and the ball goes out... I try to find my balance.
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