Poland no match for Slovenia, as Luka and Co. claim top spot in the group / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: FIBA Credit FIBA

Slovenia (2-0) displayed a high octane offense for the second straight game and defeated Poland (1-1) 112-77 (29-26, 34-20, 20-14, 29-17). The winners of Group B will most likely face Venezuela in a semifinal matchup on July 3.

Player of the Game EFF 22 Luka Doncic Points 18 Accuracy 6-12 Rebounds 6 Assists 10

Both squads started the game firing long-range shots. Each team attempted 8 3-point shots, Poland connecting on 6, Slovenia – 5. The quarter ended with Slovenia holding a narrow lead 29-26.

Slovenia started the second with a 7-3 run, forcing Poland to call an early timeout. However, things did not improve, as Lukasz Koszarek committed a turnover, A.J. Slaughter missed a 3-point shot, while Slovenia were successful on their offense leading to their first double-digit lead.

Turnovers appeared to be Poland’s main problem. They made 7 mistakes (Slovenia only 3), which led to Slovenia’s 11 points. With three minutes to play in the second, Slovenians made another run fuel by 3-point baskets from Doncic and Dragic. Teams headed into the halftime break with numbers on the scoreboard showing 63-46.

Luka Doncic, who was getting to his spots with relative ease and was once again at the center of Slovenia’s offensive action, had 13 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists in the first half. Mateusz Ponitka was Poland’s offensive leader with 11 points.

Slovenians did not let up in the second half. They continued sharing the ball and hitting the shots as the lead grew up to 21 points (70-49, with 6:06 to play in the third quarter). Again, Poland’s timeout produced limited results, as Slovenia continued to build their lead.

The final quarter appeared to be a formality, as the only relevant question remained – when will Slovenia reach the 100-point mark. They did so onGregor Hrovat's tip-in with 4:59 left to play and cruised to their second victory of the tournament and the first seed in the group.

Slovenia had six players with double-digit scoring, while Doncic registered a near triple-double: 18 points, 6 rebounds, and 10 assists.

Mateusz Ponitka led Poland with 16 points and 7 rebounds.

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