The defensive genius of Alberto Díaz ends with Turkey and Spain travels to Berlin first in the group

Shane Larkin and Alberto Diaz

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A denouement on the edge.

A first place that, more than opening doors, prevents many from being slammed shut in the future of the Eurobasket.

And, things of faith, of those who do not give up, of brave cheeky, the redhead from Malaga triumphed, picked up at the last minute by

due to Llull's injury.

And Spain, who would have said it, finished off Turkey, a surprise, first in the group towards Berlin.

And to dream.

[69-72: Narration and statistics]

Two defensive geniuses for the team to smile.

A self-made point guard with effort as the first commandment, unique tactical rigor, the delight of the coaches.

First, wise, he took

the court , who was destroying Spain in the paint.

Later he recovered the ball that was going to give a victory to reinforce a group ignored by comparisons.

The team will be in the round of 16, a minimum target, showing that, despite the lack of stars, nobody can be trusted.

's Turkey

, with its NBA, with Larkin at the controls, was stunned.

Since dawn Spain did not tremble.

It was a first quarter score, but in equality the dynamics were checked.

Spain compensated for their failures from the triple with their mastery of the rebound, despite the difference of centimeters, pure desire.

The first nine points for the team were from

, the antidote to static problems, but the player from Madrid soon had to go to the bench with the second foul.

Saiz and Garuba

The team was willing to swim as far as it covered, to stand up to a team that it really only surpassed in troops willing to go to war.

And that was missing Rudy, rest as a precaution after a blow to the knee against Montenegro.

He was not daunted even when Cedi Osman chained three triples while Spain missed its first eight.

It was going to be the second act that made the Turks reel, stunned by the rival's energy, by the elements that started from the back of Scariolo's bench to raise the bar of energy.

Juancho finally hit from the triple and the zonal defenses were stones for Larkin to trip over.

And then, when Garuba also did the second, Sebas Saiz emerged, the last soldier.

And far from feeling out of the loop, from being intimidated by the defense of the talented Segun, the man from Madrid dedicated himself to electrocuting the game with energy.

Wonderful attitude of one of the great heroes of Las Ventanas, a guy without fear, who scored, blocked, ran, rebounded like there was no tomorrow.

He was not going to return to the duel, but there was his seal.

Turkey cried out for the break and the last possession, five seconds in which Spain did not let them even advance two meters, was significant for those who dominated at that time.

On the way back came trouble, because Ataman's men got back on their feet.

It was a constant.

With the Turkish quintet at full throttle, it took Spain a few minutes of each quarter to take their measure.

But there was always a response to the talent of Korkmaz and Osman.

There was always faith.

In those moments of nervousness, of mistakes that unhinged Scariolo, -such as Brizuela's self-expulsion-, the silent brushstrokes of a guy who was called to win the game began.

There came the only basket of Alberto Díaz, a released triple;

but the man from Malaga is used to making a difference from defense.

Although first you had to start over.

Garuba had left his seal, but now he was shipwrecked against his teammate in the Rockets.

According to him, he is a talented 21-year-old.

A 9-0 made Spain tremble again.

But Willy and Brown came back to tidy up.

And, in that impasse, the first decisive action of the afternoon.

The redheaded Díaz, brave as no one else, stood in the middle of the area to be run over by a truck.

The physical was played, but it ended with Sengun with more than five minutes left, eliminated due to fouls.

The Spanish hand seemed to shrink as the moment of truth approached and a Turkish 6-0 put them ahead in the finish line.

That is where Lorenzo Brown took responsibility.

A basket, a technical free kick to Korkmaz, a tap by López Aróstegui... After a two plus one by Osman, a bad Spanish attack put the victory on a plate for Turkey with 22 seconds to play and possession.

He took out the background, looked for, of course, Larkin, but Alberto Díaz appeared from the shadows, like Spiderman.

He stretched out his arm just long enough not to be missed, brushed the ball with the tips of his fingers, touched Larkin and returned possession to Spain.

A genius.

Willy and Lorenzo did not fail in the lottery of free throws and the team added a huge, unexpected, full victory.

He leaves for Berlin without knowing the rival, but with all his homework done.

No one can blame them for anything.

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