FIBA World Championships Preview: Serbia-Croatia
Serbia and Croatia will open the Round-of-16 phase of the 2010 FIBA World Championships when they face each other at the Sinan Erdem Dome in Istanbul tomorrow.
The two countries used to compete together as Yugoslavia in the past but will now take each other on as independent nations.
Serbia topped Group A with a record of 4-1. The Serbians defeated Argentina 84-82 in their final game on Thursday to seize the top spot in the pool. Serbia's only defeat was a double-overtime loss to Germany on the second day of competition.
The Serbians played without key players Nenad Krstic and Milos Teodosic, who were suspended by FIBA due to their involvement in a brawl against Greece during a tune-up game last month.
Serbia, coached by Dusan Ivkovic, kicked off the tournament with a 94-44 demolition of African champions Angola. Aleksandar Rasic stepped up in the absence of Krstic and Teodosic, firing a game-high 22 points to lead the Serbians to victory.
Dusko Savanovic had 13 points and seven rebounds while young forward Milan Macvan contributed 11 off the bench.
Kosta Perovic was the top performer in Serbia's next game with 20 points but the squad lost to Germany, 81-82, in double overtime.
The Serbians welcomed back starting guard Teodosic as they bounced back with a 112-69 shellacking of Jordan in their third game. Savanovic and Marko Keselj topscored for the squad with 21 points each. Perovic added 20 points and grabbed six rebounds.
Krstic returned to action in Serbia's game against Australia and the Oklahoma City Thunder centre immediately made his presence felt. He scored 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Serbians to an easy 94-79 victory.
Teodosic, who plays for Greek club Olympiacos, led the squad with 19 points. Novica Velickovic also made his presence felt, scoring 18 points and hauling down nine rebounds. Krstic again had a solid performance of 18 points and eight rebounds against the Argentines. But it was Savanovic who top-scored for the squad with 19 points.
While Serbia was impressive in the group stage, Croatia had a roller-coaster ride. The Croatians were crushed by the United States, 78-106, in their opening Group B game. Bojan Bogdanovic was the top performer for Josip Vrankovic's squad with 17 points. Marko Popovic added 16 points while Ante Tomic had 12 points and eight rebounds.
The Croatians bounced back with a 75-54 rout of Iran in their second outing. Bogdanovic and Roko Ukic led the team with 13 points each. Croatia suffered another defeat in their next game, this time against Slovenia. Ukic was the top scorer with 20 points in their 84-91 loss. The Croatians notched their second victory with an 84-64 win over Tunisia.
Bogdanovic led the team with 19 points. Popovic added 16 points while Tomic contributed 15. The celebration, however, was short-lived as Croatia bowed to Brazil, 74-92, in their final group game to finish in fourth spot with a 2-3 record. Popovic was the best performer against the Brazilians with 15 points.
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