Four teams are left standing at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup. The quarterfinal round is now over, and while the losing teams will continue playing in an effort to determine seeding, four of the top international squads on the planet are moving on, setting up a pair of high-profile showdowns with a spot in the final on the line.
On one side of the bracket, the United States earned a spot in the semis after an emphatic, 100-63 drubbing of Italy. Their opponent didn’t have quite as comfortable of a road to get there, as a Germany squad with plenty of NBA talent barely hung on against an upstart Latvia team, 81-79, as a Davis Bertans three in the game’s waning moments did not go in.
DAVIS BERTANS FOR THE WIN… NOT GOOD, GERMANY MOVE ON TO THE SEMI-FINALS.
#FIBAWC pic.twitter.com/mv46svGKYb
— FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023
(@FIBAWC) September 6, 2023
On the other side, the Nikola Jokic-less Serbia squad that has been led by Bogdan Bogdanovic and Nikola Jovic handled business against Lithuania with an 87-68 blowout, while Canada was able to pull away from Serbia in the second half of the highly-anticipated showdown between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luka Doncic. The Oklahoma City Thunder star went for 31 points in a 100-89 win.
Both of the semifinal contests will take place on Sept. 8. The Serbians and the Canadians will square off first, with their game tipping off at 4:45 a.m. ET. Once one of those teams secures a spot in the final, the United States and Germany will go head to head at 8:40 a.m. ET. As of now, both games are slated to be broadcast on ESPN+, and will take place at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
As for the four teams that lost and are playing for the 5th-8th place spots, Italy will play Latvia and Lithuania will play Slovenia on Sept. 7. The former will tip off at 4:45 a.m. ET, while the latter will begin at 8:30 a.m. ET, and both will air on ESPN+.