By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
LILLE, France – Bogdan Bogdanovic torched South Sudan with 30 points to push Serbia to a difficult win just ahead of the Olympic Games quarterfinals.
The Atlanta Hawks guard tipped his hat off to his opponents for their run in the Olympics and for providing his national team with a useful challenge with the knockout stage at hand.
“Huge challenge for us, great game, great test before quarterfinals,” Bogdanovic said. “Now comes the important game of the tournament. When you win the quarterfinals, you get a chance to fight for the medal, that’s why we are here.”
“They had a huge tournament, respect to them,” Bogdanovic also mentioned speaking about the team of South Sudan. “We know them since the World Cup. They really got better. What Luol Deng does for their basketball federation is amazing. You can see the work is paying off, so hats off to them.”
“They wanted it, they play without fear, they respect their country, they respect everything about it, and they play as a team, so these teams are the toughest teams to beat,” Bogdanovic added.
South Sudan was extremely competitive and dangerous but had no answers to Bogdanovic: 10 out of 14 shots, including 6-9 triples on his way to the 30-piece.
“It was good. We played team basketball. My teammates got me going,” Bogdanovic said when asked how he rates his performance. “I felt good in a couple of shots when I knocked them down, and I kept being aggressive. But we continue to play team basketball, that’s what is the most important for us, and the most important is the win.”
Serbia will face Australia for a spot in the semifinals and the chance to compete for a medal. The two teams also clashed during training camp, in the USA Basketball Showcase in Abu Dhabi.
“It’s going to be a tough one against Australia,” Bogdanovic admitted. “We know them, we play them in Abu Dhabi, I’ll say they are experienced teams, they play together. Another tough team to beat together.”
Bogdanovic is well aware of the strengths of his upcoming opponent and maybe some similarities they have to his own team.
“They play fast, they shoot a lot of threes, they have a lot of great talents in the team,” Bogdanovic said. “Young roster, they know how to play, but also they play without fear. Patty Mills is there with a lot of experience and he’s leading the team for many, many years. So it’s going to be fun and tough at the same time.”
Photo credit: FIBA