Spain beat Lithuania 80-63 in tonight's Eurobasket final, notching up their third European title in the last four championships in front of a record 27,372 crowd at the Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille.
Pau Gasol, with 22 points and 10 rebounds, was voted MVP (most valuable player) of the tournament for the second time in his career, and the team as a whole - with Rudy, Llull and Claver outstanding once again - proved why they have been a force to be reckoned with for the past 16 years.
No other team has won three European titles since the former Yugoslavia achieved the feat in 1973, 1983 and 1991.
Spain's defence, their Achilles heel in the opening phase of the tournament, turned into their passport to glory in the final which they dominated from start to finish. The Spaniards came out with all guns firing and a Gasol block on Maciulis set the scene for the match. Extraordinary defensive work gave the Lithuanian side few options on the court and Spain were already 19-6 up by the eighth minute.
The second quarter saw the Spanish side pick up where they had left off, with Rudy finding his rhythm in attack. Midway through the second quarter Lithuania had only netted five times in open play (27-14) and a renewed push by Mirotic and Gasol brought their opponents' defence to its knees (34-18, min 16). The Baltic side survived thanks to their successful counter-attacks, Spain's only weak point, and kept their hopes alive with a triple from Kalnietis, two from Seibutis and another from Maciulis (41-33, min 20).
Two minutes into the third quarter and the Lithuanians were brushed aside by the assault by Llull, Gasol and Rudy and a triple from Ribas (52-35, min 25). Spain looked unstoppable and only a brutal clash between Rudy and Jankunas, which forced the Mallorcan to retire with a back injury, caused a minor hiccup in the side's onslaught. The Gasol-Chacho combination reaped rewards and a triple from Claver, the one player above all others who has embodied the growth of the Spanish side over the course of the tournament, dealth Lithuania the final blow (60-42).
In the fourth quarter the Baltic side stretched their game and reduced the deficit (66-54, min 36), but Valanciunas committed two faults in a minute and was eliminated, and then Gasol decided it was time to seal the match once and for all, netting a triple (75-59 min 39).
Both Spain and Lithuania have automatically qualified for the Rio Olympics in 2016.
