OPQT's: Semi-Finals spots for Turkey and Ukraine, opening wins for Sweden and Croatia

ISTANBUL (Turkiye) - Hosts Turkey are safely into the last four of with the equally flawless Ukraine, while Croatia and Sweden launched their campaigns with major statements.

Let's recap the action on a monster day two of the FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament in Istanbul. 

Turkiye roll past Bulgaria 

 Coming off a demolition of Iceland, Turkiye kept the foot on the gas against Bulgaria to strengthen their favoritism with a convincing 104-66 victory that propelled them into the Semi-Finals

Fuelled by loud fan support, Turkiye came out aggressively with excitement machine Alperen Sengun delivering an emphatic early dunk.  They led by 15 points at the first break and cruised from there. Philadelphia 76ers guard Furkan Korkmaz scored 14 points in less than 18 minutes, while Aleks Simeonov led Bulgaria with 20 points. 

Ukraine down Iceland to advance

Having narrowly defeated Bulgaria in their opener, Ukraine had an easier time against Iceland with an 82-69 victory which cemented their spot in the next phase.

After a tight start, Ukraine pulled away through their strong shooting and hit 11 three-pointers to Iceland's five.

Ukraine held a comfortable buffer for most of the game, but Iceland threatened a late rally - much like Bulgaria a day earlier - until a long-range shot from Olexandr Mishula iced the game.

For the second straight game, Oleksandr Kovliar led Ukraine with 23 points and 10 assists, while center Tryggvi Hlinason was Iceland's best player with 18 points and 9 rebounds.  Ukraine and Turkiye will now fight for top spot in Group C when they clash on Tuesday.

Sweden outlast Netherlands in OT thriller 

In what looks an unpredictable Group D, a vital clash first up loomed between Sweden and Netherlands - teams stocked with young talent. As the lowest ranked team in the draw at 50, Sweden had a point to prove and they skipped away with a 10-2 run after scores were level at half-time. 

The Netherlands were ignited by explosive center Jesse Edwards, who had been plagued by foul trouble in the first half before coming alive with a couple of thunderous dunks in the third.  But Sweden had the answers until they went cold late in regulation as the Netherlands stormed back and forced overtime with a 12-2 run capped by two free throws from Charlon Kloof. 

In a tense extra period, Craig Lecesne hit a clutch three-pointer with a minute left to restore Sweden's lead and they hung on from there to record a pivotal 91-89 victory.  Playmaker Melwin Pantzar paced Sweden with a game-high 28 points, while Edwards lived up to the hype after a slow start to finish with 18 points and 8 rebounds for the Netherlands. 

Croatia start fast to record big win over Belgium

Boasting NBA players Dario Saric and Ivica Zubac, Croatia are the favorite in Group D and loom as host Turkiye's biggest threat for the coveted ticket to the FIBA Olympic  Qualifying Tournaments 2024. They impressed first up with a commanding 86-55 win to suffocate Belgium, who shot just 33% from the field. 

Zubac and Saric started fast with 13 points combined in the first quarter as Croatia gained an early stranglehold to lead 18-8 at the first break.They never let Belgium into the contest as Zubac dominated the paint with 18 points, 14 rebounds and 3 blocks. 

Former NBA player Mario Hezonja was dynamic off the bench with 22 points, nailing six threes, and Saric finished with 17 points.  Meanwhile talented 20-year-old Thijs De Ridder was overmatched in the paint, but tried hard for Belgium and finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds. 

Top Performers

Coming off his best NBA season with the Los Angeles Clippers, Ivica Zubac was unstoppable and his monster performance was punctuated by a trio of thunderous dunks in the third quarter. He finished with the best efficiency on Day Two with 33. 

The speedy Melwin Pantzar was Sweden's hero in their dramatic overtime victory over Netherlands in a crucial result for their tournament hopes. The 23-year-old was dynamic as he constantly pushed the tempo and finished superbly in traffic on several occasions. He tallied 28 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and an efficiency of 31. 

David N'Guessan was electric in defeat for the Netherlands. The 23-year-old underlined why he is rated as a Dutch star of the future with a terrific two-way performance consisting of 17 points, a team-high 9 rebounds and 3 blocks. 

A cold-shooting Iceland had to revert to dumping it low to big man Tryggvi Hlinason, who kept his team afloat against Ukraine. He scored 18 points on 9 of 13 from the field to go along with 9 rebounds in 26 minutes. 

Ukraine power forward Andrii Voinalovych provided support for Oleksandr Kovliar with 18 points and displayed a dangerous inside and outside game, hitting 4 of 6 from three. He also had 7 rebounds to go along with a block and steal in a fine all-round performance. 

Photo of the Day 

We have to circle back to the day's best game, where Sweden was mighty relieved to have escaped with the victory over Netherlands as illustrated in this picture of sharpshooter Craig Lecesne. 

Highlight of the Day

There aren't too many more potent offensive players than Mario Hezonja when he's feeling it and he proved that with a lights out shooting display, including beating the beater to end the third. 

FIBA