By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
LILLE, France – For 35 minutes it was a dog fight, as South Sudan was playing their last qualification card. Serbia, on the other side, is a medal contender and proved it by taking the 96-85 win.
Thanks to this result Serbia and also Greece qualified for the quarterfinals of the Olympic tournament, leaving South Sudan out.
Bogdan Bogdanovic with 30 points on 10/14 FG and eight assists and Nikola Jokic with a double-double (22 p. 13 r.) led the charge for Serbs, while Vasilje Micic added 15 points and seven assists.
Carlik Jones with 17 points and the duo of Marial Shayok and Nuni Omot with 14 points each led a balanced offensive effort for South Sudan, which put up a valiant fight in the Olympics.
A balanced first half
Serbia started the game leading 12-6, but South Sudan reacted swiftly taking an 18-15 lead thanks to a Nuni Omot shot and two free throws.
Serbia answered back with a three by Ognen Dobric (18-18) and at the end of the first quarter they were up by one (23-22) with Vasilije Micic scoring.
The lead jumped to nine points (34-25) with Bogdanovic scoring five points and Nikola Jovic adding a three for an 8-0 run.
Once again South Sudan came back, tying the score at 39 with a 14-5 run, still, the halftime score was 47-44 in favor of Serbia with Jokic scoring 14 points and Bogdanovic adding 12. Carlik Jones had 10 for South Sudan.
A crazy finish
Serbia opened up the second half pushing the lead to eight (57-49), but South Sudan wasn’t about to surrender.
Former Laker Wenyen Gabriel dunked the ball after an offensive rebound to complete a 9-2 run (59-58) and make it again a one-point game in the 25th minute.
Serbia took the time-out and Bogdan Bogdanovic returned on the court to score two straight threes, reaching 23 points on 8/11 FG and pushing the lead back to seven (65-58).
South Sudan again closed the gap (65-63), only for Serbia to start another run and lead by nine (72-63), while the third quarter ended with the score being 72-67.
The African nation continued their push trimming the lead to one (72-71) and Bogdanovic once again kept Serbia’s distance with big shots (78-71).
That was pretty much the end of it after many ups and downs. South Sudan missed open shots down the stretch, and Serbia got a 13-point lead with four minutes left (87-74) and Micic and Ognen Dobric scoring.
The Serbs led even by 91-74 and the game was over.
Photo credit: FIBA