The men’s basketball team was defeated by 92 to 90 by Puerto Rico, on Thursday night (23) at Ginásio Arnão, in Santa Cruz do Sul (RS), and wasted one of the two opportunities it still had to guarantee its qualifying for the World Cup to be played in Indonesia, Japan and the Philippines in August 2023.
End of game in Santa Cruz do Sul, with Puerto Rico winning by 92 to 90!
Brazil returns to the court on Sunday, at 21:10, against the United States, again in Santa Cruz do Sul, and goes for the victory to qualify for the World Cup! pic.twitter.com/AykYgK26qm
— Basketball Brazil – CBB (@basquetebrasil) February 24, 2023
The confrontation was very balanced, with the Puerto Rican victory being achieved only in the last bid of the match. When there were 24 seconds left for the end of the game, the score marked a tie of 90 to 90. Having possession of the ball, Puerto Rico did not fail and had the cold blood of Waters, who hit the basket in the burst of the timer to decide the match.
Now, the team commanded by coach Gustavo De Conti will have to defeat the United States, starting at 9:10 pm (Brasília time) next Sunday (26), in their second and last match of the last window of the Qualifiers for the World Cup. What makes the mission of the Brazilian team a little easier is the fact that the North American team does not have athletes who play in the NBA.
