1994 FIBA World Championship

The 1994 FIBA World Championship was the 12th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's national teams. The tournament was hosted by Canada from August 4 to 14, 1994. The tournament was held at SkyDome[1] and Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto[2] as well as at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton.[2] The hosting duties were originally awarded to Belgrade, Yugoslavia, but after United Nations limited participation in sporting events in Yugoslavia, Toronto stepped in as a replacement option in 1992.

1994 FIBA World Championship
FIBA Championnat du monde de basket-ball masculin 1994
Tournament details
Host countryCanada
CityToronto
Hamilton
DatesAugust 4–14
Officially opened byRay Hnatyshyn
Teams16 (from 5 confederations)
Venue(s)SkyDome
Maple Leaf Gardens
Copps Coliseum
Final positions
Champions United States (3rd title)
Runners-up Russia
Third place Croatia
Fourth place Greece
Tournament statistics
Games played64
MVPUnited States Shaquille O'Neal
Top scorerAustralia Andrew Gaze
(23.9 points per game)
1990
1998

The 1994 FIBA World Championship was the first time that the FIBA World Championship (now called the FIBA Basketball World Cup) allowed current American NBA players that had already played in an official NBA regular season game to participate. Prior to that only professionals from other leagues were allowed to compete, since players from other leagues were still considered amateurs.[3]

The tournament was won by the United States's "Dream Team II", who beat Russia 137–91 in the Final. The United States finished with a perfect 8–0 record (8 wins and 0 losses). The bronze medal was won by Croatia who beat Greece 78–60 in the bronze-medal game.

Venues

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Three stadia were used during the tournament:

Toronto Hamilton
SkyDome Maple Leaf Gardens Copps Coliseum
Capacity: 28,708 Capacity: 16,538 Capacity: 18,436
     

Qualification

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There were 16 teams taking part in the 1994 World Cup of Basketball. After the 1992 Olympics, the continental allocation for FIBA Americas was reduced by one when the United States won the Olympic tournament, automatically qualifying them for the 1994 World Cup.

Qualified teams

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Means of qualification Date Venue Berths Teams qualified
Host 1   Canada
1992 Olympic men's basketball tournament July 26–August 8, 1992   Barcelona 1   United States
1993 FIBA Oceania Championship June 7–10, 1993   Auckland 1   Australia
EuroBasket 1993 June 22–July 4, 1993   Berlin, Karlsruhe and Munich 5   Germany
  Russia
  Croatia
  Greece
  Spain
1993 Tournament of the Americas August 28–September 5, 1993   San Juan 4   Puerto Rico
  Argentina
  Brazil
  Cuba
FIBA Africa Championship 1993 September 18–28, 1993   Nairobi 2   Angola
  Egypt
1993 ABC Championship November 12–21, 1993   Jakarta 2   China
  North Korea
  South Korea *
Total 16

*   North Korea withdrew from the tournament,   South Korea replaced them.

Draw

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Group A Group B Group C Group D

  Brazil
  China
  Spain
  United States

  Australia
  Croatia
  Cuba
  South Korea

  Angola
  Argentina
  Canada
  Russia

  Germany
  Greece
  Egypt
  Puerto Rico

Preliminary round

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The top two teams from each group remain in medal contention.

Group A

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Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1   United States 3 3 0 352 259 +93 6 Quarterfinal round
2   China 3 2 1 252 301 −49 5
3   Spain 3 1 2 249 260 −11 4 9th–16th classification round
4   Brazil 3 0 3 242 275 −33 3
Source: FIBA archive
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal average; 4) head-to-head number of points scored.
August 4
China   97–93 (OT)   Brazil
Scoring by half: 38-30, 39-47 Overtime: 20-16
August 4
United States   115–100   Spain
Scoring by half: 59-51, 56-49
August 5
Brazil   67–73   Spain
Scoring by half: 36-30, 31-43
August 5
United States   132–77   China
Scoring by half: 71-38, 61-39
August 7
Spain   76–78   China
Scoring by half: 46-31, 30-47
August 7
United States   105–82   Brazil
Scoring by half: 48-36, 57-46

Group B

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Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1   Croatia 3 3 0 272 187 +85 6 Quarterfinal round
2   Australia 3 2 1 249 255 −6 5
3   Cuba 3 1 2 244 257 −13 4 9th–16th classification round
4   South Korea 3 0 3 217 283 −66 3
Source: FIBA archive
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal average; 4) head-to-head number of points scored.
August 4
Croatia   85–65   Cuba
Scoring by half: 45-27, 40-38
August 4
Australia   87–85   South Korea
Scoring by half: 59-44, 28-41
August 5
Croatia   104–53   South Korea
Scoring by half: 52-30, 52-23
August 5
Cuba   87–93   Australia
Scoring by half: 42-42, 45-51
August 6
Cuba   92–79   South Korea
Scoring by half: 46-44, 46-35
August 6
Croatia   83–69   Australia
Scoring by half: 43-39, 40-30

Group C

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Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1   Russia 3 3 0 251 187 +64 6 Quarterfinal round
2   Canada (H) 3 2 1 240 198 +42 5
3   Argentina 3 1 2 204 234 −30 4 9th–16th classification round
4   Angola 3 0 3 168 244 −76 3
Source: FIBA archive
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal average; 4) head-to-head number of points scored.
(H) Hosts
August 4
Canada   83–52   Angola
Scoring by half: 39-30, 44-22
August 4
Russia   84–64   Argentina
Scoring by half: 38-31, 46-33
August 5
Canada   91–73   Argentina
Scoring by half: 30-30, 61-43
August 5
Russia   94–57   Angola
Scoring by half: 46-21, 48-36
August 6
Argentina   67–59   Angola
Scoring by half: 36-34, 31-25
August 6
Russia   73–66   Canada
Scoring by half: 36-41, 37-25

Group D

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Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1   Greece 3 2 1 201 183 +18 5[a] Quarterfinal round
2   Puerto Rico 3 2 1 248 219 +29 5[a]
3   Germany 3 2 1 217 198 +19 5[a] 9th–16th classification round
4   Egypt 3 0 3 183 249 −66 3
Source: FIBA archive
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal average; 4) head-to-head number of points scored.
Notes:
  1. ^ a b c Head-to-head record: Greece 1–1 (1.02 GAvg), Puerto Rico 1–1 (1.01 GAvg), Germany 1–1 (0.98 GAvg)
August 4
Puerto Rico   102–74   Egypt
Scoring by half: 48-35, 54-39
August 4
Greece   68–58   Germany
Scoring by half: 31-35, 37-23
August 5
Greece   69–53   Egypt
Scoring by half: 37-28, 32-25
August 5
Puerto Rico   74–81   Germany
Scoring by half: 42-41, 32-40
August 7
Puerto Rico   72–64   Greece
Scoring by half: 35-39, 37-25
August 7
Germany   78–56   Egypt
Scoring by half: 39-28, 39-28

Quarterfinal round

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The top two finishers from Groups I and II advance to the final round.

Group I

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Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1   United States 3 3 0 375 251 +124 6 Semifinals
2   Russia 3 2 1 298 272 +26 5
3   Australia 3 1 2 244 314 −70 4 5th–8th classification round
4   Puerto Rico 3 0 3 249 329 −80 3
Source: FIBA archive
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal average; 4) head-to-head number of points scored.
August 9
Russia   101–85   Puerto Rico
Scoring by half: 51-47, 50-38
August 9
United States   130–74   Australia
Scoring by half: 62-48, 68-26
August 10
Australia   76–103   Russia
Scoring by half: 30-55, 46-48
August 10
Puerto Rico   83–134   United States
Scoring by half: 25-62, 58-72
August 11
Australia   94–81   Puerto Rico
Scoring by half: 51-41, 43-40
August 12
United States   111–94   Russia
Scoring by half: 52-44, 59-50

Group II

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Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1   Croatia 3 3 0 278 189 +89 6 Semifinals
2   Greece 3 2 1 206 213 −7 5
3   Canada (H) 3 1 2 222 224 −2 4 5th–8th classification round
4   China 3 0 3 192 272 −80 3
Source: FIBA archive
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal average; 4) head-to-head number of points scored.
(H) Hosts
August 8
Croatia   105–73   China
Scoring by half: 61-41, 44-32
August 8
Greece   74–71   Canada
Scoring by half: 40-34, 34-37
August 10
Canada   61–92   Croatia
Scoring by half: 30-45, 31-47
August 10
China   61–77   Greece
Scoring by half: 30-35, 31-42
August 11
China   58–90   Canada
Scoring by half: 37-43, 21-47
August 12
Croatia   81–55   Greece
Scoring by half: 38-29, 43-26

9th–16th classification

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Quarterfinal round

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Group III

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Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1   Spain 3 3 0 264 179 +85 6 9th–12th classification round
2   Argentina 3 2 1 266 221 +45 5
3   South Korea 3 1 2 229 284 −55 4 13th–16th classification round
4   Egypt 3 0 3 199 274 −75 3
Source: FIBA archive
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal average; 4) head-to-head number of points scored.
August 8
Spain   98–57   South Korea
Scoring by half: 53-39, 45-18
August 8
Argentina   91–66   Egypt
Scoring by half: 52-30, 39-36
August 9
Egypt   52–94   Spain
Scoring by half: 18-40, 34-54
August 9
South Korea   83–105   Argentina
Scoring by half: 45-50, 38-55
August 11
Spain   72–70   Argentina
Scoring by half: 37-34, 35-36
August 11
South Korea   89–81   Egypt
Scoring by half: 49-34, 40-47

Group IV

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Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1   Germany 3 3 0 268 226 +42 6 9th–12th classification round
2   Brazil 3 1 2 236 251 −15 4[a]
3   Cuba 3 1 2 225 239 −14 4[a] 13th–16th classification round
4   Angola 3 1 2 226 239 −13 4[a]
Source: FIBA archive
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal average; 4) head-to-head number of points scored.
Notes:
  1. ^ a b c Head-to-head record: Brazil 1–1 (1.03 GAvg), Cuba 1–1 (0.99 GAvg), Angola 1–1 (0.98 GAvg)
August 8
Cuba   76–82   Brazil
Scoring by half: 39-35, 37-47
August 8
Germany   86–76   Angola
Scoring by half: 32-45, 54-31
August 9
Angola   71–75   Cuba
Scoring by half: 39-38, 32-37
August 9
Brazil   76–96   Germany
Scoring by half: 49-48, 27-48
August 11
Cuba   74–86   Germany
Scoring by half: 34-47, 40-39
August 11
Brazil   78–79   Angola
Scoring by half: 44-52, 34-27

13th–16th classification

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Semifinals13th place game
 
      
 
 
 
 
  South Korea 75
 
 
 
  Angola71
 
  South Korea 76
 
 
 
  Egypt69
 
  Egypt 69
 
 
  Cuba54
 
15th place game
 
 
 
 
 
  Angola 67
 
 
  Cuba75

Semifinals

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August 12
South Korea   75–71   Angola
Scoring by half: 47-46, 28-25
August 12
Cuba   54–69   Egypt
Scoring by half: 28-34, 26-35

Fifteenth place playoff

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August 13
Angola   67–75   Cuba
Scoring by half: 38-40, 29-35

Thirteenth place playoff

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August 13
South Korea   76–69   Egypt
Scoring by half: 41-35, 35-34

9th–12th classification

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Semifinals9th place game
 
      
 
 
 
 
  Spain 90
 
 
 
  Brazil85
 
  Spain 65
 
 
 
  Argentina74
 
  Argentina 85
 
 
  Germany71
 
11th place game
 
 
 
 
 
  Brazil 93
 
 
  Germany71

Semifinals

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August 12
Spain   90–85   Brazil
Scoring by half: 43-34, 47-51
August 12
Germany   71–85   Argentina
Scoring by half: 41-44, 30-41

Eleventh place playoff

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August 13
Brazil   93–71   Germany
Scoring by half: 48-42, 45-29

Ninth place playoff

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August 13
Spain   65–74   Argentina
Scoring by half: 25-39, 40-35

5th–8th classification

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Semifinals5th place game
 
      
 
 
 
 
  Australia 95
 
 
 
  China57
 
  Australia 96
 
 
 
  Puerto Rico83
 
  Puerto Rico 85
 
 
  Canada82
 
7th place game
 
 
 
 
 
  China 76
 
 
  Canada104

Semifinals

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August 13
Australia   95–57   China
Scoring by half: 44-27, 51-30
August 13
Canada   82–85   Puerto Rico
Scoring by half: 47-48, 35-37

Seventh place playoff

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August 14
China   76–104   Canada
Scoring by half: 41-51, 35-53

Fifth place playoff

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August 14
Australia   96–83   Puerto Rico
Scoring by half: 57-47, 39-36

Final round

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SemifinalsFinal
 
      
 
 
 
 
  Russia 66
 
 
 
  Croatia64
 
  Russia91
 
 
 
  United States137
 
  Greece58
 
 
  United States97
 
Third place game
 
 
 
 
 
  Croatia 78
 
 
  Greece60

Semifinals

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August 13
United States   97–58   Greece
Scoring by half: 40-30, 57-28
August 13
Croatia   64–66   Russia
Scoring by half: 22-31, 42-35

Third place playoff

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August 14
Greece   60–78   Croatia
Scoring by half: 32-36, 28-42

Final

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August 14
16:00
United States   137–91   Russia
Scoring by half: 73–40, 64–51
Pts: Wilkins 20
Rebs: Johnson 11
Asts: Dumars, Price 5
Pts: Babkov 22
Rebs: Kisurin 7
Asts: Bazarevich 7
SkyDome, Toronto
Attendance: 32.616
Referees: Wiesław Zych (POL), Isaac Glass (URU)

Awards

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 1994 FIBA World Championship winner 
 
United States
Third title
MVP
  Shaquille O'Neal

All-Tournament Team

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O'Neal, who had a sponsorship deal with Pepsi, declined to accept the MVP award and sent Shawn Kemp in his stead as the award, which was sponsored by Coca-Cola, was a bottle of Coke encased in glass atop a wooden base.[4][5]

Top scorers (ppg)

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Source:[6]

  1.   Andrew Gaze 23.9
  2.   Dino Rađa 22.4
  3.   Arijan Komazec 19.4
  4.   Hur Jae 19.4
  5.   Paolo de Almeida 19.4
  6.   Moon Kyung-Eun 19
  7.   Richard Matienzo 18.8
  8.   Shaquille O'Neal 18
  9.   Marcelo Nicola 17.7
  10.   Reggie Miller 17.1

Final standings

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1994 FIBA World Championship final rankings.
Rank Team Record
1   United States 8–0
2   Russia 6–2
3   Croatia 7–1
4   Greece 4–4
5   Australia 5–3
6   Puerto Rico 3–5
7   Canada 4–4
8   China 2–6
9   Argentina 5–3
10   Spain 5–3
11   Brazil 2–6
12   Germany 5–3
13   South Korea 3–5
14   Egypt 1–7
15   Cuba 3–5
16   Angola 1–7

References

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  1. ^ The New York Times, BASKETBALL; Dream Team Ends Its Sequel Predictably
  2. ^ a b The New York Times, Sports of The Times; Toronto, Dream Team, The World
  3. ^ "Why Can Pros Complete in International Events". Archived from the original on January 20, 2015.
  4. ^ "Soda wars fizzle as O'Neal declines to accept award". The Orlando Sentinel. August 15, 1994. p. B2. Retrieved December 15, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. 
  5. ^ "USAB: A Look Back at the USA Men's 1994 World Championship Gold Medal". Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved July 24, 2015.
  6. ^ Statistics
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