Lithuania comfortably defeated Slovenia 100-84 in the FIBA World Cup, securing a place between fifth and eighth in the tournament.
It seemed as if the game against Serbia had never happened, as the Lithuanians built a double-digit lead in the first quarter and demonstrated their potential when given the opportunity. Mindaugas Kuzminskas, along with Margiris Normantas, played exceptionally well, paving the way for the Baltic team with a 12-point lead and 33 points scored in the first quarter. This outcome was somewhat expected, considering Lithuania had an extra day of rest compared to their opponent after their previous defeat.
Slovenia lacked energy in the closing stages of the game
It’s also logical that the team led by Kazys Maksvytis couldn’t maintain the same rhythm in the continuation. Shooting percentages dropped, which can’t be attributed to Slovenia’s more aggressive defense. Luka Doncic scored consecutive points, but even that couldn’t help the “Zmajceki” (Slovenian team) catch up. This was mainly due to poorer shooting percentages (7/21 in the end). That was the case until the third quarter.
Dallas Mavericks’ star, Luka Doncic, was then joined by Mike Tobey to provide assistance. Thanks to them, Slovenia narrowed the gap to just two points – 57:55. However, this was the last push from Aleksander Sekulic’s team. Lithuania followed with a new surge, quickly re-establishing a slightly larger lead and maintaining it until the end.
Lithuania will compete for fifth place against Latvia, who earlier defeated Italy. Italy will be Slovenia’s opponent in the battle for seventh place.
LITHUANIA – SLOVENIAA 100:84 (33:21, 20:22, 22:20, 25:21)
Arena: Mall of Asia arena, Manila;
Referees: Kallio, Bermudez, Batista.
Lithuania: Dimsa 9, Jokubaitis 8, Kuzminskas 14, Sedekerskis 4, Valanciunas 24 (12sk), Bendzius, Brazdeikis 15, Karinauskas (10sk), Maldunas, Motiejunas 4, Normantas 8, Sirvydis 14.
Sloveniaa: Doncic 29, Dragic 12, Nikolic 14, B. Prepelic 3, Tobey 13, Cebasek, Dimec 2, Glas 3, Hrovat 4, K. Prepelic 2, Samar.