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Spain trounces Argentina to win 2nd FIBA World Cup gold medal

HECTOR RETAMAL / AFP / Getty

Spain won the FIBA World Cup for the second time in its history after defeating Argentina 95-75 in Sunday's final.

Ricky Rubio led La Roja in scoring with 20 points and also chipped in with seven rebounds and three assists. The Phoenix Suns guard was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament.

Center Marc Gasol, who, with Rubio, was named to the competition's All-Star Five, finished with 14 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, three blocks, and two steals in 25 minutes.

The Toronto Raptors center was instrumental defensively, assisting in keeping Argentina star Luis Scola scoreless in the first half. Scola, who was arguably Argentina's best player of the tournament and scored 32 points in the team's semifinal victory over France, didn't record a field goal until the 5:37 mark in the fourth quarter.

Gabriel Deck had a game-high 24 points in the loss for the South Americans, who are still searching for another gold medal at the event since winning the inaugural edition in 1950.

The Spaniards won their first World Cup in 2006, but are back on top after settling for sixth and fifth place in 2010 and 2014, respectively.

Spain jumped out to a 14-2 lead just four minutes into the first quarter. Though the Argentinians quickly responded with an 11-0 run of their own, they were never able to take the lead.

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