POWERHOUSES Serbia and Spain bagged their opening wins easily at the FIBA World Cup on Saturday.

Serbia, one of the World Cup title favorites, tamed Angola 105-59 in Group D.

Bogdan Bogdanovic led Serbia’s scoring sheet with 24 points. Nikola Jokic and Nikola Milutinov scored 14 apiece. Serbia made 13 of 20 three-pointers shooting, and outclassed Angola 32-7 in assists.

“We played a great game from the beginning until the end. We are tough and strong, and mentally we are ready,” Milutinov pointed out after the game.

“They are a really good team, and shot the ball very well,” said Angola’s coach William Voigt.

A crazy second half helped Spain trounce Tunisia 101-62 in Group C. Spain showed near perfection in overall attack with six players scoring in the double digits. Ricky Rubio had a game-high 17 points and Sergio Llull added 16. Salah Mejri scored 15 points for Tunisia.

With an 11-0 run in the beginning of the second half, Spain controlled well and the game flowed at a comfortable rhythm for the side. Spain increased its lead to 72-47 by the end of third quarter. The game later turned into a slaughter as Spain kept scoring easy baskets in the fourth.

Other action saw Russia win over Nigeria 82-77 in Group B. Mikhail Kulagin of Russia earned 16 points, and Audrey Zubkov added 12, plus four assists and four rebounds for the winner. Nigeria’s Josh Okogie led the game with 18 points.

Puerto Rico came back from 19 points down to win over Iran 83-81 in the opening game of Group C. In Group D, Italy took control of the first quarter to seal a 108-62 victory over the Philippines.

(Xinhua)