Australia and Argentina Book Quarterfinal Seat

Australia and Argentina booked their spots in the quarterfinals after dispatching their respective opponents in day four of the men’s basketball competition of the 2012 London Olympics.

The Australian Boomers started out flat before playing terrific basketball halfway through the third period to score a dramatic 106-75 win over Great Britain for their second win in four games.

Patrick Mills had an outstanding performance as he finished with 39 points and five rebounds, while David Anderson and Joe Ingles added 13 and 11 points, respectively.

“This is what you live for, to play in a game like this in the Olympics. It’s the best feeling,” said Mills, who shot 14-for-22 from the field including five three-pointers. “We were down in the first half but we stuck with it. You’re never going to beat someone in the first quarter or the first half.”

Joel Freeland, on the other hand, had 16 points, while Dan Clark added 14 for Great Britain, who led by as much as 15 points, 51-36 early in the third quarter.

With their fourth defeat in as many games, Great Britain is now out of contention for the quarterfinals, but head coach Chris Finch said that they will look to end their Olympic stint with a win on Monday.

“We’ve played well enough to deserve a victory but we have to go out and get it now,” said Finch, whose team will face China in their final game in this year’s Olympics.

Meanwhile, Argentina also cruised to the quarterfinals after dismantling Nigeria, 93-79, to improve their record to 3-1 and sits second in Group B behind USA.

Argentina cruised to a huge 37-19 lead at the end of the second period and never looked back, withstanding attempted rallies from the African squad.

Argentina will next face USA, where a win could propel them on top of Group A.