A Josh Giddey-inspired Boomers outfit has made a strong start to their Paris Olympics campaign, defeating bogey team Spain for the first time since the 2000 Games with a 92-80 win in Lille on Saturday night.

It turned out that coach Brian Goorjian drew on one of Australia’s most painful basketball memories, the 2019 World Cup double overtime loss to Spain, to inspire the Boomers to victory.

Speaking to reporters, Goorjian revealed he showed a video of that defeat to his players — both pre-game and during a fourth quarter timeout.

“We showed a little video of the past to have them locked in,” Goorjian said.

“There’s a fear that no matter how much you outwork or outplay, in a three-minute period they can go ‘whack, whack, whack’ and you’re in trouble.”

MATCH CENTRE: Boomers vs Spain score, how it went down

But the Boomers rarely looked to be in too much trouble on Saturday, only trailing at one point and otherwise going on with the job late to seal the 12-point win.

Giddey gave Chicago Bulls fans a brief glimpse into just how good he can be in a more ball-dominant role, scoring 17 points to go with eight rebounds and just as many assists.

The 21-year-old has five turnovers and that had been the issue for Giddey in the warm-up games too, but the Boomers will definitely take it for the time being if it means he continues to play this confident brand of basketball.

Giddey was driving into the paint with little hesitation and finding plenty of success, whether he was laying it in himself or dishing it off to teammates as was the case when he used his size advantage to pass over Lorenzo Brown to a cutting Patty Mills in the second quarter.

Speaking of Mills, the veteran guard continually came up with big plays to help the Boomers home, finishing the game with 19 points.

“It’s the Olympics, I mean what’s there not to like about this?” Mills told Channel Nine.

“You’re here in the trenches with a great bunch of blokes. For me, this is as good as it gets.”

While Mills made a few clutch 3-pointers as Spain threatened Australia’s lead, it was also his willingness to fight and scrap for every possession that stood out.

Take one moment in the fourth quarter, with the Boomers only ahead 73-68 after a Jock Landale miss. Mills, despite finding himself on the floor, threw himself at the ball to secure an offensive rebound and draw a foul.

It was one of the few field goal attempts Landale (+30) missed in Saturday’s game, with the Boomers big man scoring a team-high 20 points to go with nine rebounds, five assists and a steal as the connection with Giddey caused problems for Spain all day.
Dyson Daniels was a menace on the defensive end and also added three triples in the win, scoring 13 points, while Jack McVeigh starred in his Boomers debut with 13 points and seven rebounds.

Josh Green also added his trademark energy and effort on both ends.

Duop Reath was the only Boomer to not see any playing time while Dante Exum (dislocated finger) missed the game and is also expected to be unavailable for Tuesday’s clash with Canada.

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The Boomers led 31-21 after the first quarter, with Giddey (11 points) heavily involved while Landale was also making an impact on both ends to get Australia on top early.

Spain did fight back with a pair of Sergio Llull 3-pointers to open the second quarter on a 6-0 run while Santi Aldama also had his moments, finishing the game on 26 points after going 6-for-8 from downtown.

There was one flashpoint late in the first quarter as Usman Garuba was called for an illegal blocking foul on Josh Green, with both players then coming together.

Garuba was the aggressor on that occasion but it was later ruled Will Magnay would also be hit with an unsportsmanlike foul for his role in what followed.

The Boomers opened the third quarter in emphatic fashion as Daniels used his length to get an early steal which was later turned into a ferocious Landale dunk as Giddey brilliantly threaded the needle.

A Willy Hernangomez 3-point play helped close the gap though and while Daniels answered back with a triple of his own, Spain continued to pressure the Boomers on defence and saw results as Australia’s lead slipped away.

In fact, Spain took the lead for the first point in the game midway through the third quarter as Aldama was left open and drained his fourth 3-pointer of the day.

That put Spain up 56-54 and the Boomers, having looked in control for most of the game up until that point, suddenly looked to be in trouble.

But a clutch Mills 3-pointer, followed by a tough triple from McVeigh, helped re-establish Australia’s lead and by the end of the quarter the Boomers were back ahead 69-60 off the back of a 15-4 run.

Llull kept Spain in the fight early in the fourth quarter with the team’s first eight points of the period and the Boomers’ lead was reduced to six heading into the final 30 seconds.

But an off-balance Mills 3-pointer and Daniels corner triple sealed the victory and a handy bonus to Australia’s points differential.

The Boomers face Canada in their next game of the group stage, with that one scheduled for 9.30pm (AEST) tip-off on Tuesday.

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