Spain defeat Serbia in 2009 European Basketball Championships

September 22, 2009

Spain has won the final of the 2009 European Basketball Championships (also known as EuroBasket) in Poland by beating Greece in the semi-final on Saturday by 82-64, and then going on to beat Serbia in the final on Sunday night by 85-63.

It’s the first time that Spain has won the Gold medal despite being in the final on six previous occasions, and trainer Sergio Scariolo has thus ended an long-running jinx.

The game was dominated by the Spanish play, with Pau Gasol, Rudy Fernández, and Felipe Reyes leading the Spanish combination, whose defence proved key to winning the match.

Gasol was voted the tournament's most valuable player, but praised the other members of his team. "Obviously I'm extremely happy at the outcome of the game - we've played amazingly well for the last five games and a half," Gasol told the BBC. "I'm super-proud of my team-mates and coaching staff who got us where we are today."