The Olympiacos Piraeus guard poured in 18 points against Australia
Thomas Walkup starred in Greece’s pivotal win
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Facing a must-win game to keep its Olympic hopes alive, Greece was able to count of Thomas Walkup for big plays on both ends of the court on Friday. The Olympiacos Piraeus guard did all he could to lead Greece to its first win of the tournament, 71-77 over Australia at Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille.
Walkup was second on the team in scoring with 18 points after making 4-of-7 three-pointers. He added 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 block for a PIR of 20. His +/- of 15 led all players in the game. On the defensive end, Walkup drew a pair of offensive fouls in the second quarter and hounded the Australia guards from tip to buzzer.
He was at the center of Greece big run to start the second quarter with an assist and 5 points, including a three-pointer to cap a 0-11 run that made it 24-39. Later in the fourth quarter, with the game on the line, Walkup drained a three that made it 70-77 with a little more than a minute t play. On the next possession, Walkup missed a three that would have put the game away, but made up for it immediately by intercepting a Matthew Dellavedova pass.
Walkup is one of five Olympiacos players at the Olympics and three on the Greek roster. He is joined there by Kostas Papanikolaou and Giannoulis Larentzakis, while Filip Petrusev and Nikola Milutinov play for Serbia.