Nicolas Laprovittola (Rear) of Argentina controls the ball during the group I match between Poland and Argentina at the 2019 FIBA World Cup in Foshan, south China's Guangdong Province, on Sept. 8, 2019. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)
FOSHAN, China, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- Argentina tamed Poland 91-65 in Group I to maintain its perfect record after the second round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup here on Sunday.
Already stepping off the court with a 15-point lead going into halftime, Argentina rode onto a 28-14 third quarter to kill any suspense.
Argentina tops the group with a 5-0 record, ahead of second-placed Poland at 4-1, with both teams securing last eight berths prior to their duel.
Luis Scola registered a game-high 21 points. Marcos Delia made 6 of 8 shots to contribute 12 points.
"We are happy to win tonight's game by almost 30 points in the World Cup. That's not easy. We are looking forward to the next game," said Delia. "We have our weapons, and is a mature team with a lot of personality. We are ready to play, compete with and beat the team we are going to play."
Delia and Scola combined for all 12 points after the tip-off for Argentina, who led 20-14 after the first quarter.
Fueled by Nicolas Brussino's five straight points into the second quarter, Argentina extended its margin to double digits before returning to the locker room at 42-27.
Argentina paced the match with consecutive fast breaks afterwards to run away from Poland, who came no closer than 20 points in the final 10 minutes.
Argentina's head coach Sergio Hernandez attributed victory to offense in the first five minutes.
"They won the game against Russia with defense, so it's very important to open the game in the best way we can," Hernandez said.
A.J. Slaughter scored 16 points for Poland. Karol Gruszecki had 11.
"We take our hats off to Argentina, a very strong team. We didn't play what we want tonight with a lot of turnovers and mistakes," admitted Slaughter.
For Poland's head coach Mike Taylor, "Argentina really outplayed us today. Our effort was there. A big issue for us was their defense and pressure. They pressured us out of our action, and we were hesitant when responding to their pressure."
Earlier, Russia bagged its third win of the tournament after defeating Venezuela 69-60, but both sides have bowed out from the last eight.
