PIRAEUS (Greece) - After a heavy 29-point defeat, there couldn't have been a better way for the Montenegrin national team to respond. They welcomed the Bahamas to Europe in an emphatic manner, winning 93-80 in comeback fashion.
The story of the game
The Bahamas approached the Acropolis Tournament in Greece in a surprising way, showcasing their flow-motion offense from the very beginning tonight. For example, with a wonderful spin move by AJ Storr, they rapidly gained a seven-point lead at 25-18.
The happiness on the Caribbean national team's faces continued to show as Franco Miller Jr., who would eventually finish the game leading the Bahamas in scoring with 20 points, banked in two straight three-pointers, interrupted only by a perfect trip to the line.
Montenegro seemed stuck, but as the second half began, everything changed. With Deandre Ayton resting on the sideline for the entire second half, the yellow-and-red big men started to push for their team's comeback.
Montenegro quickly answered with an 18-3 run to start the second half, taking a 53-46 lead. From then on, there was no way for the Bahamas to bounce back. Tomorrow, against Greece and possibly Giannis Antetokounmpo, Montenegro will need to show if they have learned how to react, as they head to Valencia for the 2024 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
The player of the game
Two games, two double-doubles: Nikola Vucevic seems ready to unleash his desire to finally bring his country to the Olympic stage this summer. First, he recorded 20 points and 12 rebounds in the loss against Greece.
Tonight, he finished with 15 points and 15 rebounds, making a leadership impact from the very beginning for Montenegro.
Twenty-four-year-old Marko Simonovic, who is poised to take the baton in the future, led his side with 20 points, capitalizing on DeAndre Ayton's absence in the second half.
Kendrick Perry's double-double of 15 points and 11 assists, despite shooting 3/13 from the field and 2/9 from beyond the arc, must also be highlighted. Perry has become crucial for Montenegro's style of play.
The stats of the game
Zero. The points from the field for the Bahamas from Buddy Hield's three-pointer at 9:01 in the third to Hield's driving layup at 3:59. For almost five minutes, the Caribbean team completely lost focus, converting only from the free-throw line and allowing Montenegro to take advantage of the situation. It's easy to say they did.
Another worrying number for Chris DeMarco, who is also an assistant coach for the Golden State Warriors, is his team's 38.5% shooting from the field, heavily affected by a dramatic 8/37 from three-point range. The Bahamas need some adjustments in their shooting.
The takeaways from the game
Reflecting on Eric Gordon's poor 0-point performance after being a key factor in last year's FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament success, the Bahamas can learn from this game to trust the 2005-born V.J. Edgecombe more.
He struggled to adjust in terms of shooting selection but still ended with 11 points and some high-level plays.
Two other young talents to watch this summer are Montenegrin guard Luka Bogavac, born in 2003, and the explosive Franco Miller Jr., who stole the show offensively for his team.
As they prepare to face physical teams like Brazil and Cameroon, Montenegro's frontcourt display seemed on point tonight, especially in containing an NBA player like DeAndre Ayton.
To sum it up, Kendrick Perry must be seriously considering finishing the job for Montenegro this summer. We all saw what he was capable of in the Basketball Champions League with Unicaja Malaga. Why not dream of an Olympic leap?
FIBA