27 Jul
    4 Aug 2024

    Kostic the double overtime hero for Serbia, sets title showdown with Germany

    Review
    Serbia are one win away from defending their title after late heroics.

    Another 40-point effort from Ben Saraf ends in heartbreak as the Final is confirmed.

    TAMPERE (Finland) - The Final of the FIBA U18 EuroBasket 2024 is set and Serbia will look to defend the title all after knocking down Israel in the incredible double overtime drama. Germany fill out the other Final spot after defeating Slovenia.

    Stay up to date with the tournament and check out the latest results, group standings and competition system for all the information you need.

    Key Storylines

    • Andrej Kostic sinks game-winning three pointer at end of double overtime to push Serbia over Israel;

    • Slovenia had the lead at the half, but ultimately fell with 20-point difference to Germany;

    • Denmark, Finland relegated; Spain and Croatia will battle it out for survival.

    Semi-Finals

    Serbia and Israel have played a game that will be retold over and over in months ahead. The 2023 champions pulled out an incredible 115-114 success in double overtime after all the drama and turnarounds with Andrej Kostic's three-pointer at the buzzer sealing the win.

    Israel had the lead at the half-time break, but their opponents turned it around and had a cushion as big as nine points with under five minutes to go. The drama ensued with Israel's five unanswered points in the last 29 seconds pushing the game into the overtime.

    There, a new thriller emerged as Luka Markovic hit a three-pointer to give Serbia lead just nine seconds to go. However, Markovic earned himself a technical in the celebration process so Israel pulled even, and then Ben Saraf and Aleksa Dimitrijevic exchanged points for the second extra period.

    Israel had a five-point lead with just under a minute on the clock, but Drezgic pulled Serbia closer with a layup followed by a three. And when Omer Mayer - who had 31 points - missed one of two free throws, Kostic was able to make the decisive shot to snatch victory.

    There was no stopping Anderson against Slovenia.

    Earlier, it was a close first half and then one-way traffic for Germany who defeated Slovenia 88-68 for a chance at their first title. An 11-0 run at the start of the third put them in control and they never looked back.

    Christian Anderson was the leading force with 25 points, as Hannes Steinbach added a double-double of 10 points and 11 rebounds. Slovenia will have to satisfy themselves with a chance to add their second bronze in the competition's history.

    Top Performers

    As Serbia will look to defend the gold, Savo Drezgic is surely the Semi-Finals hero. The guard shined in the clutch and recorded a near triple-double of 35 points, 12 assists and 8 rebounds for the highest efficiency of the day with 43.

    Aleksa Dimitrijevic certainly has played his part in Serbia's quest to defend the title. A big double-double of 16 points, 14 rebounds and 5 assists was only amplified with crucial free throws at the end of the first overtime.

    Even though Israel came up short narrowly in the Semi-Finals, Ben Saraf did all he could with the scoring machine providing another 40-point game at the event - also adding 8 steals and 6 rebounds, but couldn't help to avoid the heartbreak at the end.

    Spain have had a disappointing tournament, but still for now avoided relegation with a six-point win over Finland. Hugo Gonzalez stepped up at the crucial moment with 30 points, 8 rebounds, 4 steals.

    Meanwhile, Julius Price provided a big performance, albeit in Sweden's loss to Lithuania in Classification 5-8. Price found his way into the Top Perfomers lineup again after he put up 34 points on six threes, also adding 5 rebounds and 5 assists,

    Results of the Day

    Semi-Finals

    Germany 88-68 Slovenia Serbia 115-114 Israel

    Classification 5-8

    Lithuania 89-80 Sweden Belgium 80-73 France

    Classification 9-12

    Greece 81-61 Türkiye Italy 67-59 Latvia

    Classification 13-16

    Denmark 82-102 Croatia Finland 65-71 Spain

    The Final

    Germany vs Serbia

    Third Place Game

    Slovenia vs Israel

    Classification Games

    Latvia vs Türkiye Denmark vs Finland Croatia vs Spain Italy vs Greece Lithuania vs France Sweden vs Belgium

    FIBA

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