FIBA Americas Championship results 2013: Mexico edges Argentina, Puerto Rico downs Dominican Republic to set up final

Mexico got a big effort from Gustavo Ayon, while J.J. Barea and Carlos Arroyo led the way for Puerto Rico.

Sep 11, 2013, 1:54 AM UTC

Mike Ehrmann

J.J. Barea and Carlos Arroyo proved to be too formidable in the backcourt as Puerto Rico downed the Dominican Republic, 79-67, in the semifinal round of the FIBA Americas Championship on Tuesday night.

With Mexico’s win over Argentina, it sets up a final on Wednesday that will feature two teams vying for supremacy in the Americas tournament. Argentina will face the Dominican Republic prior to the main event, and all four teams will head to Spain for the FIBA Basketball World Cup in 2014.

Arroyo led all scorers with 20 points and added five rebounds and three assists. Barea wasn’t far behind as he added 16 points, eight assists and five rebounds. For his part, Arroyo was particularly good from long range, connecting on 4-of-8 three-pointers.

Eulis Baez had 12 points and six rebounds to pace the Dominicans. Puerto Rico shot just 40.6 percent from the field, but held their opponents to 39.7 percent.

The final will be a rematch of Sunday’s second round, where Mexico defeated the Puerto Ricans convincingly, 66-59.

Mexico 76, Argentina, 70

Gustavo Ayon scored 24 points and added 12 rebounds and three assists as Mexico defeated Argentina, 76-70.

Hector Hernandez continued to be a force off the bench for Mexico and added nine points and seven rebounds.

Mexico shot 44.8 percent from the field, but struggled from the three-point line, going just 5-for-20 on the evening. They overcame their deficiencies from deep by holding Argentina to just 33.3 percent from beyond the arc and 42.4 percent overall.

Luis Scola led the way for Argentina with 18 points on 7-of-16 shooting from the field, including a 1-of-5 effort from the three-point line, to go along with eight rebounds, five assists and two blocked shots. Facundo Campazzo added 14 points for the Argentine squad.