Former Arizona Wildcats players Deandre Ayton and Azuolas Tubelis move closer to qualifying for the Paris Olympics

A pair of former Arizona Wildcats greats are one game away from making the 2024 Paris Olympics with their home countries.

DeAndre Ayton (Bahamas) and Azuolas tubelis (Lithuania) moved one game closer to qualifying for the Olympic Games on Saturday when their teams won the semifinals at their respective FIBA ​​Olympic Qualifying Tournaments (OQT).

Ayton had 24 points and 16 rebounds in the Bahamas’ 89-72 win over Lebanon. Ayton leads Spain’s OQP with 20.3 points and 11 rebounds per game.

The Bahamas will be underdogs when they face host Spain on Sunday afternoon for a spot in the Olympics. Spain is No. 2 in the FIBA ​​world rankings, behind the United States, while the Bahamas are ranked 57th.

Bahamas is not a one-man team. In addition to Ayton, the team also features NBA players. Friend Hield and Eric Gordon.

Ayton spoke of the magnitude of the Bahamas’ journey to the OQT Spain final.

“This is bigger than any Western Conference final, you’re fighting for your country and there are players like us who don’t get paid for this,” Ayton told FIBA.com.

The Bahamas have never qualified for the Olympics.

Later Saturday, Tubelis added two points to Lithuania’s 88-64 win over Italy to advance to the final round of the Puerto Rico OQT. Former Arizona guard Nico Mannion scored six points for Italy.

Lithuania will face the winner of Mexico and host Puerto Rico tomorrow afternoon.

Tubelis entered Saturday averaging 5.3 points for Lithuania. The team is led by a former Tommy Lloyd recruiting at Gonzaga, Damontas Sabonis.

According to FIBA, Lithuania is ranked 10th in the world. Since regaining its independence in 1990, it has become an international powerhouse and has qualified for seven consecutive Olympic Games, between 1992 and 2016. Lithuania did not participate in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.