Australian guard Joe Ingles is adamant the Boomers still have the belief they can be an Olympic medal contender despite suffering back-to-back losses. The Boomers' disappointing start to the tournament continued when they lost 82-70 to powerhouse Spain.
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They are still searching for their first win of the Games and are fighting just to get through to the next stage.
Brett Brown’s team started the tournament with high hopes of breaking through for their first Olympic medal. But those hopes are fading fast.
The Boomers can advance if they beat the lower-ranked China and Great Britain with a clash against Russia to decide whether Australia will take on the United States in the next round.
They were never expected to beat world No.2 Spain, but the 12-point defeat leaves them hanging dangerously close to elimination.Ingles top scored with 12 points as the Boomers rallied late.
‘‘We do believe in ourselves, we missed a lot of shots that we would usually make,’’ Ingles said.
‘‘You’ve got to back yourself, we’ll play the same we way we do every game.
‘‘When we missed our shots, [Spain] rammed it down our throats on the way back. We’ll learn from that ... I don’t believe we’re far off, we’ll be right.’’
The Boomers will have to improve their shooting if they want to move forward in the competition.They hit four of 24 three-point attempts.
Spain also dominated the rebounding - helped by Los Angeles Lakers star Pau Gasol and brother Marc.
They grabbed almost 20 more rebounds than the Boomers, who are without injured centre Andrew Bogut.
"I'm really proud of our guys, but the game escaped us," Australian coach Brett Brown said.
"We came in here to win and we now have to get back on the winning side of things to get on the right track.
‘‘My job is to help our players feel good about themselves, get them open shots and create an atmosphere where they are aggressive.
"The Boomers raced out of the blocks in the first quarter and stormed to an unexpected lead against a powerful Spain side.
But with Pau and Marc Gasol and Rudy Fernandez, Spain was always going to launch a comeback.It all went horribly wrong for the Boomers at the start of the second half.
The Boomers must have left their game plan, skill, execution and enthusiasm in the changerooms because they returned to the court bereft of any confidence.
Spain first went on a 12-2 run to establish a comfortable lead. That lead quickly ballooned to 23 and despite a late fight, Spain was never in danger of losing.
The Boomers' next game is against China on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Elizabeth Cambage is getting bashed and belted in her Olympic Games debut and the 203-centimetre centre has the black eye to prove it.
Despite being one of the tallest players in the competition, Cambage is fighting her way through a brutal Olympic initiation. At times she was in tears on the bench as the Opals lost to France 74-70 on Monday.
Belinda Snell gave the Opals a chance to win when she nailed a long-range shot from inside her own half to level the score and send the game into overtime.
But the Opals couldn't continue their comeback as they lost their first Olympic preliminary-round match since 1996.
