After putting a scare into the gold medal favorites, Lithuania is poised to end group play on a positive note.
Clinging to the final quarterfinal qualifying spot in Group A, Lithuania looks to avoid a third straight loss when it faces winless Tunisia on Monday in London.
After falling 82-74 to France on Thursday, Lithuania (1-3) was saddled with the daunting task of trying to compete with a star-studded United States squad on Saturday. Failing to be intimidated, the Lithuanians ended up giving the U.S. its biggest challenge of the Summer Games before falling 99-94.
"I think we took a step forward in staying in the game," Lithuanian coach Kestutis Kemzura told fiba.com.
Toronto Raptors forward Linas Kleiza scored a game-high 25 points for Lithuania, which trailed by four at halftime and led 82-80 with 7 minutes to play before the Americans took control down the stretch. The Lithuanians shot 58.5 percent and outrebounded the U.S. 42-37 to bolster their confidence heading into the final day of group play.
"I think we finally played how we know we can play and we executed our game plan which I think was the most important thing," said Lithuanian guard and former Duke Blue Devil Martynas Pocius, who finished with 14 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
The Lithuanians should see a better result if they can execute their game plan Monday when they face Tunisia (0-4) for the first time. Lithuania currently holds the fourth and final qualifying spot in Group A. A victory over Tunisia and a Nigeria loss to France on Monday would be the easiest way for the Lithuanians to advance to the eight-team quarterfinal round.
Lithuania, which beat Nigeria 72-53 on Tuesday, has placed fourth in each of the last two Olympics after winning three straight bronze medals from 1992-2000.
"If we keep our spirit high and play like this in our next games, I think we should be alright," said Pocius, who is averaging 9.5 points and 3.5 rebounds during the tournament.
Kleiza ranks eighth in scoring in these Olympics, averaging 18.8 points on 52.0 percent shooting. He's also averaging 6.2 rebounds per contest and could be hard to contain for a Tunisian squad that is giving up 83.7 points per game in the tournament.
One of three winless teams at the Summer Games, Tunisia trailed by eight at halftime and remained competitive during a 73-69 loss to France on Saturday. Mohamed Hadidane scored 20 points and Makram Ben Romdhane added 17 to lead Tunisia.
The 6-foot-8 Romdhane is averaging team highs of 15.8 points and 9.3 rebounds during Olympic action. He scored 22 and pulled down 12 rebounds in Tunisia's 110-63 loss to the U.S. on Tuesday.
