Serbia solidified its position in the second round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 with a comprehensive 115-83 victory over South Sudan on Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
The Eagles advanced from Group B with an unblemished 3-0 record, previously defeating China 105-63 and Puerto Rico 94-77.
In the next phase, Serbia will move to Group I, where they are scheduled to face Italy on Friday and the Dominican Republic on Sunday.
The three-time EuroBasket champions displayed utter dominance against the tournament debutants.
South Sudan never managed to seize the lead during the contest, while Serbia established a commanding advantage of up to 32 points, largely due to Dustan Ristic’s three-point shot in the final 10 seconds of the game.
Coach Svetislav Pesic praised the team’s outstanding performance, stating, “An excellent performance from our team, congratulations, from the first minute until the end of the game. There was high concentration, especially in transition defense.
“For us, it was a very intriguing game. As I’ve mentioned before, it’s not more or less important. I want to reiterate, this is an official game. This is the World Cup. Winning every game is important,” he continued.
Nikola Jovic led Serbia with 25 points, maintaining a perfect shooting record from the field while Bogdan Bogdanovic contributed 23 points and nine assists.
“I’d like to highlight Bogdan (Bogdanovic), who played against a physically imposing team with exceptional athleticism, offensive rebounds, and a very clear offensive concept,” said Pesic.
Nikola Milutinov recorded 17 points and 10 rebounds. Ognjen Dobric and Marko Guduric scored 12 and 11 points respectively. Vanja Marinkovic also added 10 points to the Serbian team’s effort.
On the other hand, the Bright Stars of South Sudan dropped to a 1-2 record but still have a chance to advance to the next round, provided that China defeats Puerto Rico by 34 points or less.
South Sudan, who will join China, the Philippines, and Angola in the classification phase, was led by Dut Jok Kacuol, who contributed 21 points, followed by Nuni Omot with 17 points.
Marial Shayok and Majok Deng recorded 12 and 10 points respectively for the African nation.
The Scores:
Serbia 115 – N Jovic 25, Bogdanovic 23, Milutinov 17, Dobric 12, Guduric 11, Marinkovic 10, Davidovac 8, Ristic 5, S Jovic 4, Simanic 0, Petrusev 0, Avramovic 0.
South Sudan 83 – Kacuol 21, Omot 17, Shayok 12, Deng 10, Kuany 6, Dech 5, Gabriel 4, Jones 3, Acuoth 3, Maluach 2, Madut 0, Bar 0.
Quarterscores: 30-20, 56-39, 83-65, 115-83
