Australia continue their 2019 FIBA World Cup campaign on Friday at 6pm (AEST) when they take on Spain. Both countries were impressive in their respective quarterfinal matches and have earned the right to play for a spot in the World Cup final!
We will be bringing you a brief preview and betting tips for all of the Australian games in the World Cup, as well as other key finals matchups. Check out our prediction for Australia vs Spain below and good luck to everyone following!
FIBA World Cup Betting Tips
Australia vs Spain (Friday, 6pm AEST)
Just four nations remain in the 2019 FIBA World Cup! There’s been upsets left, right, and centre, resulting in the draw opening up massively for the underdog Boomers. Can they go one step further and make it to the final?
Australia
What a World Cup it’s been for our Boomers! They’ve won all six matches they’ve played, smashing our previous records out of the park. This current crop of Aussies is unarguably the best we’ve ever had, even if we’re without NBA star Ben Simmons. The Boomers made relatively light work of Czech Republic in the quarterfinals, despite a strong outing from their star player Tomas Satoransky who finished with a near tripled double (13/9/13). For Australia, it was the Patty Mills show once again. The star guard finished with 24 points and six assists to top our scoring for the fifth straight game. Making it to the final four is a fantastic achievement and the best in our nation’s history, but something tells me the Boomers aren’t satisfied just yet.
Spain
Spain, who are the number two ranked nation in the world, have had another fantastic tournament. Like Australia, they went undefeated in both group stages and come into the semi-finals with a perfect 6-0 record at the tournament. Spain have appeared at 11 World Cups in their history, with their best result being a Gold Medal in Japan in 2006. They’ve also had great success at the Olympics, claiming three Silver Medals (1984, 2008, 2012) and a Bronze Medal in 2016 when they defeated Australia in a third-place playoff by one point. Spain made light work of Poland in their quarterfinal clash on Wednesday night, defeating them by 12 points on the back of Ricky Rubio’s 19 points and nine assists.
History
Australia and Spain have met three times in major competitions since 1998, and seven times in total when including friendlies. The results aren’t pretty for the Aussies… Spain lead the head-to-head count 7-0. However, we’re obviously a much better squad this time around. Here are Australia’s three results vs Spain at major competitions (Olympic Games (OG), World Cup (WC)).
Previous meetings:
22.08.16 OG – Australia 88-89 Spain
31.07.12 OG – Australia 70-82 Spain
30.07.98 WC – Australia 76-77 Spain
Prediction
In our extremely non-bias opinion, Australia can beat anyone in the world at the moment. They’re playing a team-first style that bodes extremely well on the international stage and have a squad with great talent and tremendous depth. Unlike previous encounters with Spain, Australia are not disadvantaged by experience or talent. In fact, you could make the case that the Boomers squad boasts greater experience, particularly in the NBA. All in all, this seems like a genuine 50-50 match, so to get $2.55 odds is fantastic value. All aboard.
