CARACAS (FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament) - EuroBasket bronze medallists Russia eased their way into the Quarter-Finals thanks to a comfortable win over Afrobasket runners up Angola with a solid all-round display that denies the Africans a sixth consecutive Olympic appearance.

Leading for all but one minute of the first quarter, headcoach David Blatt gave all but injured Timofey Mozgov and reserve guard Dmitriy Khvostov at least one quarter's game time.

Perennial Go to man Andrei Kirilenko (14 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists) was once again irresistible, pouring in nine first quarter points to help build a lead from which the Angolans never looked likely to come back.

With Kirilenko involved in almost every play, Vitaliy Fridzon (18 points) and Alexander Kaun (17) provided much of what remained of the scoring with Mozgov absence barely noticeable.

In spite of a powerful showing by Eduardo Mingas (20) and solid displays by guards Armando Costa (10) and Carlos Morais (14) the Angolans struggled to cope with the the strong Russian low post play.

In game that will be remembered for some great inside play and some very mediocre three point shooting, the Russians once again lived up to their reputation of one of the best defensive units and most tactically solid teams in international basketball.

FIBA