Basketball in Olympics

The basketball competitions of the 29th Olympic Games will be held at Wukesong Indoor Stadium in Beijing from August 9-24, 2008.

The Teams
Group A forms of Iran, Lithuania, Argentina, Russia and Australia. Group B consists of China, Qualifier B, Qualifier C, Angola, Spain and USA.

Events
Basketball Men and Basketball Women

Schedule of Competition
Preliminary matches of both the groups will start on August 10 and continue till August 18. The second stage will be Knockout Stage. Four Quarterfinals will be held on August 20. The Semifinals will take place on August 22 and the Finals on August 24.

9 August 2008, Saturday
Women's Preliminaries Matches

10 August 2008, Sunday
Men's Preliminaries Matches

11 August 2008, Monday
Women's Preliminaries Matches

12 August 2008, Tuesday
Men's Preliminaries Matches

13 August 2008, Wednesday
Women's Preliminaries Matches

14 August 2008, Thursday
Men's Preliminaries Matches

15 August 2008, Friday
Women's Preliminaries Matches

16 August 2008, Saturday
Men's Preliminaries Matches

17 August 2008, Sunday
Women's Preliminaries Matches

18 August 2008, Monday
Men's Preliminaries Matches

19 August 2008, Tuesday
Women's Quarterfinals

20 August 2008, Wednesday
Men's Quarterfinals

21 August 2008, Thursday
Women's Semifinals

22 August 2008, Friday
Men's Semifinals

23 August 2008, Saturday
Women's Bronze Medal Match, Women's Gold Medal Match, Women's Medal Ceremony

24 August 2008, Sunday
Men's Bronze Medal Match, Men's Gold Medal Match, Men's Medal Ceremony

Athlete Quota
144 men (12 teams of 12 players each)
144 women (12 teams of 12 players each)
Total number of athletes is 288.

Number of Players
A basketball team is made of five players playing on the court and five players sitting on the bench. These players can be used for substitution during the game period.

Positions
Each player is assigned a position when playing. This position is usually determined by the height of the player.

Points
A player makes points when he manages to put the ball into the basket. Scoring a basket ups the team score by 3, 2 or 1 point. If the player is able to shoot from outside of the 3 points line, his team gets 3 points. In another case, 2 points are given. If shooting is done from the free throw line, 1 point is awarded.

Fouls
A foul is committed by a player of one team against a player of other team. Basketball is basically a near non-contact game. A foul is committed if this basic rule is violated. Fouls are of two types. The first ones are called defensive fouls while the other ones are offensive fouls. Defenders must not block, push, trip, strike or hold the player in possession of the ball. If they do any of these activities, it results in defensive foul. If a player charges into a stationary defender the result is offensive foul.