FIBA 2008 Olympic Qualifying Tournament, Day 2: July 15, 2008
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 Only one spot in the quarterfinals remains up for grabs after two days and eight games in the FIBA 2008 Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Athens. However every game in the last day of the group stage on Wednesday will matter with first place in three of the four groups still open. On Tuesday, Slovenia became the first group winner by beating Canada 86-70. The squad’s Euroleague star-studded backcourt of Barcelona’s Jaka Lakovic and Roma’s Sani Becirovic led the way with a combined 34 points in 44 minutes. On Wednesday Canada and Korea will open the action in a head-to-head duel for second place in Group C and the last ticket to the quarterfinals. In Tuesday's second game, Germany crushed Cape Verde 68-104 to advance in Group B and set up a battle with New Zealand for the top spot. Later Puerto Rico's backcourt led it to a 72-81 win over Cameroon in Group D. Puerto Rico faces Croatia Wednesday for the top spot in the group. And Brazil crushed Lebanon 54-94 with Maccabi big man Murilo Da Rosa netting 14 points and 4 assists in 13 minutes.
 Slovenia became the Group C winner by thrashing Canada 86-70 in the first game on Tuesday. Slovenia will next face the second-ranked team in Group D in the quarterfinals, while Canada faces a do-or-die game against Korea on Wednesday. Jaka Lakovic of FC Barcelona paced the winners with 19 points. Sani Becirovic of Virtus Roma added 15 on 11-for-11 free throw shooting, Rasho Nesterovic had 14 points and 9 rebounds and Uros Slokar of Triumph scored 10 for Slovenia. Rowan Barrett had 16 points for Canada, which led 9-15 early. Slokar, Lakovic - who scored 16 points in the first quarter - and Becirovic fueled a 16-3 run than helped Slovenia to get a 27-22 edge after 10 minutes. Nebojsa Joksimovic of Hemofarm and Nesterovic stepped up for Slovenia early in the second quarter. Joel Anthony followed a three-point play with a layup to get Canada within 35-34, but a 6-0 run that Slokar capped with a layup gave Slovenia a 41-34 halftime edge. A three-pointer by Domen Lorbek broke the game open, 52-39, midway through the third quarter. Barrett stepped up for Canada, but Eric Preldzic of Fenerbahce also struck from downtown to make it a 15-point game, 64-49, after 30 minutes. Canada needed a wild comeback to keep its Olympic options alive, but Nesterovic, Goran Dragic and Preldzic allowed Slovenia to climb within two wins of reaching Beijing 2008.
 Germany joined New Zealand as the two qualifiers for the quarterfinals in Group B by trouncing Cape Verde 68-104. Germany and New Zealand will meet on Wednesday for first place in the group while Cape Verde returns home. Dirk Nowitzki scored 16 and Chris Kaman recorded a double-double in his debut as every German played saw at least 10 minutes of action and scored at least 5 points. The contest was never in doubt as Germany never trailed. Head coach Dirk Bauermann's men scored the game's first 7 points, had a double-digit advantage after four-plus minutes and was up 11-34 by the end of the first period. Brose Basket's Robert Garrett scored twice as the Germans reeled off 11 unanswered points early in the second period to go ahead by 33 and Cape Verde never got closer than 29 the rest of the way. Philip Zwiener of Alba Berlin added 11 points and Kaman finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds for Germany. Berlin's Patrick Femerling added 8 points in 10 minutes. Jeff Xavier led Cape Verde with 21 points.
 Puerto Rico held off a late Cameroon charge for a 72-81 win that sent it through to the quarterfinals from Group D. Puerto Rico will face Croatia on Wednesday for first place in the group. Cameroon has finished its participation in the tournament and will not continue to the Beijing Olympics. Ricky Sanchez, Carlos Arroyo, Larry Ayuso and Juan Jose Barea each nailed 3 three-pointers to lead Puerto Rico’s aerial attack. Arroyo heated up early with 3 triples and 10 points in a 0-15 first-period charge as Puerto Rico went ahead 7-22 after 10 minutes. The North American squad’s lead reached 19 before settling at 29-46 at halftime. Franck Ndongo scored twice during a 10-0 run as Cameroon showed signs of life in the third quarter and then Parfait Bitee and Harding Nana closed the gap all the way to 61-65 midway through the fourth. Another Nana jumper with 100 seconds to play got Cameroon within 3 points, but 5 straight points from Ayuso, who was perfect from the lien down the stretch, helped Puerto Rico wrap up the win and a spot in the next round. Sanchez paced Puerto Rico with 17 points and 9 rebounds, while Arroyo scored 16 and Ayuso 15. Nana carried Cameroon with 22 points and 14 rebounds and Bitee added 17 in defeat.
 In Tuesday's last game, Brazil thrashed Lebanon 54-94. Marcelo Huertas led the way with 17 points and Maccabi Tel Aviv big man Murilo Da Rosa added 14 points and 4 assists in 13 minutes. Brazil never trailed and took care of business early by bridging a 19-point run between the first two periods to go up 8-30. Huertas scored 9 during the run. Da Rosa then came through with 12 second-period points as Brazil built a 21-48 halftime lead to set the stage for an easy second half. A 10-point charge in the third ended all doubt as Brazil went ahead 31-69 and Lebanon never got closer than 35 the rest of the way. Rafael Araujo added 16 points in 17 minutes and All-Euroleague center Tiago Splitter posted 9. Rony Fahed led Lebanon with 15 points and Omar El Turk scored 11 in defeat. On Wednesday, Brazil faces host Greece in a head-to-head clash for the top spot in Group A.
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