Olympic basketball schedule 2016: Nigeria has a chance to make Olympic history

Monday represents the final day of group play in Olympic basketball, and there’s a chance for a major surprise. If Nigeria can pull off an upset against Brazil, they only need a Croatian loss to advance to the knockout phase for the first time in the country’s Olympic history.

MSNBC will televise Brazil vs. Nigeria, and NBCSN will televise Spain vs. Argentina on Monday, with all three games on the schedule available to stream online at NBC Sports.

Thanks to FIBA’s goofy scoring — who awards one point for a loss when a win is only worth two? — Nigeria enters Monday with five points in the standings, trailing Spain and Croatia by only a single point. By virtue of their head-to-head win against Croatia, just the second ever for Nigeria in Olympic play, they would advance to the knockout phase if they end group play tied with Dario Saric and Co.

Brazil’s stakes are equal, only needing a win in their final game and a loss by Spain to make it to the next stage of the tournament. The host country will have the voice of the Brazilian people behind them in what could be their final game, so expect a rowdy affair to start the day of hoops.

Spain and Argentina face off in the second game, a matchup which highlights how cluttered Group B is. Spain is a loss and a Brazil win away from elimination, but they can win the group if they triumph over Argentina. The Spanish have run hot and cold in group play, but they might finally be putting it together based on their 50-point trouncing of Lithuania.

Argentina, thought by many to be a little too old this go around, are the surprise leaders of Group B. Andres Nocioni jumped in the wayback machine to the tune of 37 points (!!!) against Brazil, and the South Americans will need another strong performance to assert their superiority at the top of the group.

Group play ends in an evening battle between Lithuania and Croatia, and the aforementioned Croatians need a win in order to guarantee inclusion in the next round. Expect their best effort against an opponent with their eyes already on the next part of the tournament.

All times Eastern

1:15 p.m. - Brazil vs. Nigeria, MSNBC (online stream)
6 p.m. - Spain vs. Argentina, NBCSN (online stream)
9:30 p.m. - Lithuania vs. Croatia (online stream)