Brazil and Argentina meet again in the Round of 16 of the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup and Tiago Splitter knows well the euphoria of moving forward to this stage of the competition as well as the feeling of being denied a place in the Quarter-Finals.

Brazil finished their Group A campaign with a 4-1 record and grabbed second place honours in Granada, advance for the elimination phase, which will take place in Madrid.

Although Splitter is satisfied with what they've achieved so far at Spain 2014, he warns that it is time for Brazil to step up defensively and avoid early disappointment because they are aiming for the Semi- Finals.

"This is the most important moment of the championship," he said on Thursday following Brazil's128-65 win over Egypt.  

"This is the moment when we usually stumble with very complicated and uncharacteristic games. We'll take each game at a time with a winning mindset."

"We have to play well, and see films of our opponents and find answers to what they do best."

Four years ago, Brazil made it to the next round with a 3-2 record, but when they took on arch rivals Argentina and the dream of advancing in the competition ended with a 93-89 defeat.  

A team might have a poor offensive game, but if you play consistent defense you end up winning games. - Splitter

Brazil's Group Phase campaign was marked by an 82-63 defeat to hosts Spain, although they bounced back two days later, upsetting Serbia to guarantee a second place in the pool.

The 2.11m center explains that his team faced some inconsistent runs. 

From now on there is no room for inconsistency.

"We have to avoid these oscillations and try to play with intensity for 40 minutes because we want to make it to the Semi-Finals, at least," he said.

(Source: 2014 FIBA Official Website)