Earlier today, Angola defeated Australia 91-83 in their Group D clash at the FIBA World Cup. So what, right? Well, according to Phoenix Suns and Slovenia guard Goran Dragic, this match wasn’t exactly on the level. Sometime after the final whistle, Dragic, whose team is also in Group D and handed Australia their only loss of the tournament so far, tweeted that the game between Australia and Angola was fixed and FIBA should take action. What??
Here’s why Dragic was prompted to make such a statement: Before the game today, Australia had already qualified for the knockout stage, and a loss against Angola would’ve guaranteed that they wouldn’t have to play the United States in the quarterfinals should both teams advance to that stage. Also, the Aussies played many of their backups today, which only fuels Dragic’s post-match fire.
Dragic’s Slovenia is currently undefeated and sit first in Group D, which leads up to believe that maybe they should’ve pulled a page from Australia’s book if it meant not playing the United States. In all seriousness, though, match-fixing is a terrible stain on any sport, and will hopefully be dealt with if proven true in this instance.
[via For The Win]