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Venezuela's winning basketball team poised to return to hero's welcome

Xinhua, September 14, 2015 Adjust font size:

Venezuela's national basketball team is poised to return to a hero's welcome Monday after pulling off a spectacular upset to win the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship Saturday.

"The minister of Youth and Sports, Pedro Infante, has invited all Venezuelans to be there when the (team) arrives at the Simon Bolivar International Airport" near the capital Caracas, the Venezuelan News Agency (AVN) reported Sunday.

The team not only made history by winning the regional championship -- organized by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) -- for the first time in its history, but also by defeating favorite Argentina 76-71 to secure a spot at the 2016 Olympic Games.

The final at Mexico City's Palacio de los Deportes had veiwers sitting on the edge of their seats almost from start to finish as the two teams constantly alternated leading the scoreboard.

The Mexican crowd, which had enthusiastically rooted for underdog Venezuela, cheered wildly after the referee's whistle marked the team's win, as team coach Nestor Garcia broke into tears.

"Argentina's fighting spirit allowed them to get within two (points) with 10 seconds left to play, but a pair of free-throws from Dwight Lewis sealed the game and the win for Venezuela, who wrote a new chapter in the country's basketball history," FIBA said of the game, describing it as "an instant classic."

The championship's final standing saw Venezuela in the No. 1 spot, followed by Argentina, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Panama, Uruguay, Brazil and Cuba. Endi