The final gameday in the first group stage of the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup is upon us. The Australian Boomers will take on crowd favourites Japan in a Group E matchup that will see the winner progress and the loser eliminated from contention. We preview Tuesday night’s do-or-die matchup below and provide our best bet.
Also, make sure to check out our Basketball Tips page regularly to find our full game previews and best bets for the key matchups throughout the World Cup, including all of the Boomers’ games!
FIBA Basketball World Cup Betting Tips
Australia vs Japan
Tuesday 9:10pm AEST, August 29th, Okinawa Arena (Japan)
Despite being favourites and seemingly being aided by the late out of opposition star Franz Wagner, Australia were unable to capitalise on their favouritism against Germany in their second game in Group E, losing by three points (82-85).
Patty Mills led the way in the scoring department for the Boomers in the loss with 21 points on an efficient 9/14 shooting clip, although he’ll be dreading the two turnovers he had late in the fourth quarter. Elsewhere, Josh Giddey chimed in with 17 points to be the only other double-digit scorer for the #3 ranked nation.
Taking on Australia will be Japan who were able to delight their fans in their second game by defeating a European nation at a World Cup for the first time. They trailed by double-digits the most of the way including at three-quarter time, but with the aid of the crowd they were able to overcome Finland by 10 points (98-88).
Arguably their best player, newly-acquired Phoenix Suns wing Yuta Watanabe was quiet by his standers with only four points and two assists, but naturalised centre Josh Hawkinson picked up his slack and then some by posting 28 points and 19 rebounds in a monster performance.
Group E Standings
Match prediction: Japan will be fuelled by enthusiasm after their recent win but now face a determined and highly-fancied Australian outfit on Tuesday night. The Boomers are the overwhelming favourites to secure the win and anything less would be a massive surprise. There’s simply no value in Australia winning this game and the handicap market is too dicey to take on.
Instead, there looks to be some value in the Boomers scoring under their current total points line which looks too high at 94.5 points. The Boomers’ roster is built with defensive-minded players for the most part and consistent scoring has been hard to come by thus far. I expect them to prevail without putting up a huge total.
Australia Under 94.5 Points
$1.80 (2 Units)
Same Game Multi
Going for a 4-leg multi in this one for odds of just over $4. Patty Mills is the #1 option on offence for Australia and is averaging 23 points per game so far. The ball is in Josh Giddey’s hands more often than not and the Boomers need him to be more aggressive, so expect him to step it up. Finally, Josh Hawkinson secured Japanese citizenship earlier this year and has made an immediate impact. He had 28 points and 19 rebounds against Finland last outing and is a double-double machine.
Leg 1: Patty Mills 15+ Points
Leg 2: Josh Giddey 15+ Points
Leg 3: Josh Hawkinson 10+ Points
Leg 4: Josh Hawkinson 8+ Rebounds
SGM Odds: $4.08 at Ladbrokes
