Serbia crushes Lithuania, advances to FIBA World Cup semifinals / News - Basketnews.com

Bogdan Bogdanovic leads Serbia past Lithuania in the first FIBA World Cup 2023 quarterfinal with a game-high 21 points.

Credit: FIBA Credit FIBA

Serbia gave Lithuania their first loss in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 and eliminated the Baltic nation from the title contention.

Player of the Game EFF 25 Bogdan Bogdanovic Points 21 Accuracy 9-13 Rebounds 4 Assists 3

Serbia got a cruising 87-68win over Lithuania in the first World Cup quarterfinal and punched their ticket to the tournament semifinals, where Svetislav Pesic's team will meet either Canada or Slovenia.

Atlanta Hawks shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic was an absolute maestro from the very beginning of the game. Bogi scored 18 points in the first half, making 8 field goals in 10 attempts.

He finished the contest with a game-high 21 points (7/9 2PT, 2/4 3PT, 1/2 FT) and has made a three-pointer in each of his 23 FIBA World Cup games, sharing the record for the longest such streak in the competition over the last 30 years with Kirk Penney.

On top of that, Bogdanovic now scored 400+ points in the FIBA World Cup, the 6th player to reach this milestone in the 21st century.

Bogdan Bogdanovic shares inspiring message that calmed him down before Lithuania game Guduric praises Bogdanovic's locker room speech, expects to see Jovic in the EuroLeague

Powered by Bogdanovic, Serbia had an 11-point cushion (49-38) after the first 20 minutes of the game. The Balkan country stuck to its tradition, as it always won when leading by a 10+ margin at half-time in a FIBA World Cup game (14 times after today).

Meanwhile, Serbia's playmaker Stefan Jovic became the X factor in the second half by making three triples in the third quarter. He inspired Serbia to a 20-point lead before the last tally.

Serbia maintained their substantial advantage in the last 10 minutes, making the period a mere formality.

'NBA player for a reason': Filip Petrusev on his best NT night and crazy Aleksa

Serbia: Bogdan Bogdanovic 21 (4 REB), Filip Petrusev 17 (6 REB), Stefan Jovic 11 (5 AST).

Lithuania: Tadas Sedekerskis 14 (9 REB), Rokas Jokubaitis 13 (9 AST), Ignas Brazdeikis 11, Jonas Valanciunas 11.

Game highlights:

Like what we are doing? Support us by becoming BN+ member.