Montenegro displayed composure under pressure as they defeated Greece, 73-69, and exited the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 with a win on Sunday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Trailing by as much as 14 points in the fourth quarter, Greece fought back thanks to the efforts of Georgios Papagiannis, Thomas Walkup, and Lefteris Bochoridis, pulling within four with 2:47 to go, making the score 58-62.
However, Black Mountains’ star Nikola Vucevic scored three consecutive baskets to extend their lead to 10 with 49 seconds remaining.
“We played tonight with the same energy as in the game against the United States. What’s important is that we secured three victories in this World Cup,” said head coach Bosko Radovic.
Greek forward Kostas Papanikolaou hit back-to-back triples to narrow the gap to four points once again with 16 seconds left, making it 64-68. Bojan Dubjlevic and Dino Radoncic then sealed the victory for the Montenegrin squad.
Vucevic led the way for the Black Mountains with 19 points and seven rebounds, while Radoncic contributed 12 points.
Ioannis Papapetrou scored 16 points on 16 shots for Greece. Papanikolaou and Bochoridis each added 13 points, while Walkup managed 11 points along with six assists.
Montenegro’s naturalized player, Kendrick Perry, did not play and was not in uniform. Greece’s Thanasis Antetokounmpo was also in street clothes.
The Black Mountains finished with a 3-2 win-loss record in Group J, while Hellas fell to 2-3.
The Scores:
Montenegro 73 – Vucevic 19, Radoncic 12, Mihailovic 10, Radovic 8, Ivanovic 7, Popovic 5, Drobnjak 4, Dubjlevic 4, Simonovic 2, Slavkovic 2.
Greece 69 – Papapetrou 16, Bochoridis 13, Papanikolaou 13, Walkup 11, Rogkavopoulos 7, Papagiannis 5, Chatzidakis 2, Lountzis 2, Larentzakis 0, Moraitis 0.
Quarterscores: 19-14, 36-30, 50-42, 73-69.
