Italy and Serbia cruised into the championship games of Olympic qualifying tournaments on Friday, moving a win away from a place in the basketball field in Rio.Danilo Gallinari of the Denver Nuggets scored 15 points as the Italians beat Mexico 79-54 in Turin, Italy. They will face Croatia, which knocked off Greece, in Saturdays final.Italy hasnt reached the Olympics since winning a silver medal in 2004.Bogdan Bogdanovic had 21 points and eight rebounds, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic added 19 points and eight boards, and Serbia routed the Czech Republic 96-72.The Serbians, who won a silver medal two years ago in the Basketball World Cup, will host Puerto Rico on Saturday in Belgrade, Serbia.The three qualifying tournaments are determining the final three spots in the Olympics. The semifinals in Manila, Philippines, are Saturday, when France meets Turkey and Canada plays New Zealand.A look at Fridays four games:TURIN, ITALYCROATIA 66, GREECE 61Bojan Bogdanovic of the Brooklyn Nets scored 20 points and Croatia shut down Greece star Giannis Antetokounmpo in the first semifinal.Dario Saric, a former lottery pick of the Philadelphia 76ers, added 16 points and eight rebounds.Antetokounmpo, the rising Milwaukee Bucks star, was held to nine points. He missed all seven 3-point attempts and finished 3-for-14 from the field.ITALY 79, MEXICO 54Nicolo Melli scored 14 points for the Italians, who got 12 from Marco Belinelli, who was recently traded to the Charlotte Hornets.Italys victory set up a rematch with Croatia, which it beat 67-60 in group play.Francisco Cruz scored 20 points for Mexico, which played the tournament without top big man Gustavo Ayon.BELGRADE, SERBIAPUERTO RICO 77, LATVIA 70Renaldo Balkman had a tiebreaking follow shot with 1:08 left as the Puerto Ricans ousted previously unbeaten Latvia.John Holland scored 15 points and former NBA guard Carlos Arroyo had 14 for Puerto Rico, making a 3-pointer that provided a five-point lead with 35 seconds remaining. Backcourt mate J.J. Barea of the Dallas Mavericks also finished with 14 points.Jannis Timma led Latvia with 16 points.SERBIA 96, CZECH REPUBLIC 72Milos Teodosic scored 14 of his 16 points in the third quarter, helping Serbia outscore the Czechs 51-36 in the second half. The star guard added six assists and three steals as Serbia shot nearly 55 percent.Tomas Satoransky had 14 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for the Czech Republic. Jan Vesely chipped in 12 points. Slater Koekkoek Jersey .Y. - Free agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, fresh off winning the World Series with Boston, reached agreement with the rival New York Yankees on a seven-year contract worth about $153 million, a person familiar with the negotiations said Tuesday night. Frank Brimsek Jersey .Y. - Jerome Samson scored once in regulation and again in the shootout as the St. https://www.cheapblackhawks.com/2077b-dylan-strome-jersey-blackhawks.html . Ancelotti says Ronaldo has recovered from a hamstring injury but "but he doesnt feel comfortable yet so we wont risk him." Madrid is third in the Spanish league, six points behind leader Barcelona, going into Saturdays game against Valladolid. Lionel Conacher Jersey . -- On the field, it was business as usual for Jameis Winston and No. Al Rollins Jersey . Tevez, who has had conflicts with coaches in the past, has not been called up since Sabella was named coach in 2011. Argentina boasts Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuain, Sergio Aguero, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Angel Di Maria. COLUMBIA, Mo. -- North Carolina Central brought heavy hearts into Mizzou Arena Monday night.Patrick Cole had 17 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists and Pablo Rivas scored 16 points on 6-for-6 shooting to help the Eagles defeat Missouri 62-52.North Carolina Central University chancellor Debra Saunders-White died of cancer Saturday at age 59. She was the first female chancellor in school history, and as coach LeVelle Moton described, the biggest cheerleader for the basketball program.She was the best chancellor on the planet, the best person on the planet, Moton said. She was a fighter and I knew she would want us to fight for her and try to pay homage and honor this game for her.NC Central (4-2), a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, never trailed and led 24-20 at halftime. The Eagles seemed to stymie any momentum Missouri could muster over the course of its stagnant offensive performance.Missouri (3-3) made 17 of 68 field goal attempts, shooting just 17.1 percent in the first half. It was the Tigers lowest scoring output since losing to then-No. 13 Arizona on Dec. 13, 2015.Terrence Phillips led Missouri with 17 points despite playing only 21 minutes due to foul trouble. He was 6-for-10 from the field but fouled out with 2:34 seconds remaining.We held them to 25 percent shooting and I thought that was the difference in the game, Moton said. We had Phillips in foul trouble, I think hes the heart and soul of the team. As hes out there, you can just see they have a different swagger about themselves. Fortunately, he fouled out, and at the right time.The abysmal offense was on display from the opening tip, as Missouri missed six shots and grabbed five offensive rebounds on its first possession. The Tigers went on to miss their first nine shots, most of which were put-back attempts, and finished 11-for-20 from the free throw line.I dont know what it is, we jusst cant get off to a good start, Phillips said.dddddddddddd We started 0-for-9 and I think seven of those were layups, point blank layups, and I couldnt believe we were missing them. Im telling guys, `just keep shooting, those shots are going to fall and they just kind of never did for us.Im not sure Ive ever seen something like I just saw, as far as missing so many shots at the basket, Missouri coach Kim Anderson said. I dont have an explanation.Phillips hit a 3-pointer to open the second half, but the Eagles answered with an 8-0 run and maintained momentum for the duration of the half. Missouri trailed 54-50 with 1:38 seconds remaining, but the Eagles closed on an 8-2 run.TIP-INSNC Central starts five graduate seniors, making it the most experienced starting lineup in the country.Missouri forward Reed Nikko did not play after spraining his left ankle against Northwestern State. ... Forward Will Ransom was scoreless on 0-for-2 shooting, but grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked a team-high four shots. ... Missouri announced it will redshirt freshman Jakoby Kemp.BIG PICTURENC Central: Missouri was one of two Power 5 schools on the Eagles schedule. Ohio State defeated the Eagles 69-63 on Nov. 14 in Columbus. NC Central opens conference play at home against Maryland Eastern Shore on Jan. 7.Missouri: The Tigers have struggled with slow starts this season. Missouri trailed No. 7 Xavier 9-3 early before an eventual one-point overtime loss and trailed Northwestern State 14-9 before pulling away to an 84-60 win. The Tigers also defeated Tulane 67-62 on Nov. 20 despite trailing by as many as 12 points in the first half.UP NEXTNC Central hosts Southern Wesleyan Thursday.Missouri hosts Western Kentucky on Saturday in the first meeting between the schools. ' ' '