Juancho Hernangómez has a legitimate reason to feel like he’s on top of the world Sunday.
The Nuggets forward and Spain secured a commanding 95-75 win over Argentina in the FIBA World Cup final, securing La Roja’s second Gold Medal in the competition. It was Hernangómez’s first-ever gold and he scored 11 points and grabbed five boards in the rout. Phoenix Suns guard Ricky Rubio led Spain with 20 points, seven rebounds and three dimes while Toronto Raptors center Marc Gasol had 14 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Argentina was led by Real Madrid’s Gabriel Deck, who had a game-high 24 points.
Spain jumped out to a nine-point lead after the first quarter and never looked back. The game was decided on the glass as the Argentines had no answer for Spain’s prowess on the boards. La Roja had a 47-27 advantage in rebounds, including 13-5 on the offensive glass. As a result, Spain had higher percentage looks at the rim and shot 47.7 percent from the floor as opposed to Argentina’s 36.1 percent.
Hernangómez returns to the Mile High City as a world champion and more importantly, showed some impressive strides in his development. The forward was often the third option for his national team on offense and played solid defense throughout the tournament. He finishes the World Cup having averaged 10.5 points and 5.4 rebounds on 57.7 percent shooting – including a stellar 44.4 percent from downtown.