Topic, Bosnjakovic outduel Mara and Co as Serbia dethrone Spain

NIS (Serbia) - Hosts Serbia treated their home fans to a title at the FIBA U18 European Championship 2023 after they defeated Spain 81-71 in the Final on Sunday, as Nikola Topic outdueled fellow MVP candidate Aday Mara of Spain.

Serbia never let Spain get too comfortable, as they held the lead for the entire second half. Tournament MVP Topic scored a game-high 24 points along with 8 assists, 3 rebounds and 3 steals for the winners, as Mitar Bosnjakovic added 21 points and 7 rebounds.

Mario Saint-Supery had a team-high 17 points for Spain, Hugo Gonzalez scored 16 points and grabbed 7 boards, while Mara was held to 12 points and 7 rebounds in 38 minutes of action.

Spain turned the ball over 14 times, allowing Serbia to outscore them 20-5 in points from turnovers.

Key Storylines

- Serbia claim fifth FIBA U18 European Championship crown
- Nikola Topic named MVP to headline All-Star Five
- Germany finish in third place for first-ever podium finish in the U18 category
- Denmark defeat Poland to keep spot in Division A

Top Performers

Shachar Doron posted the best efficiency of the final day with 29 in Israel's loss against Turkey after recording 26 points, 8 assists and 7 rebounds while shooting 50 percent from the field.

The second-best efficiency of 25 came from Denmark's Johan Munch who helped his team stay in Division A with their win over Poland thanks to his 17-point, 15-rebound double-double and 2 steals on 5-of-9 shooting overall and 2-of-3 from three-point.

There was also an efficiency of 25 for William Holmstrom of Sweden who closed his tournament with 27 points and 3 assists off the bench. He knocked down 8-of-15 shots overall and 6-of-12 three-pointers.

Serbia's Nikola Topic was instrumental in his team winning the gold medal, as he rounded out his tournament with 24 points, 8 assists, 3 rebounds and 3 steals, making 9-of-16 shots for an efficiency of 24.

The fifth best efficiency of 23 was produced by Emre Tunca who claimed his spot as a top performer after finishing with 19 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds, also making the game-winning shot with 3.1 seconds remaining to lift Turkey over Israel for 5th place.

Results of the Day

Final

Spain 71-81 Serbia

Third Place Game

France 59-67 Germany

Classification Games

Turkey 90-88 Israel
Slovenia 62-66 Greece
Italy 76-61 Croatia
Lithuania 82-79 Sweden
Poland 87-102 Denmark
Czech Republic 76-81 Finland

FIBA