MKD - Antic proud to show FYR of Macedonia basketball exists

ALYTUS (EuroBasket 2011) - F.Y.R. of Macedonia have been living a dream in Lithuania, as the sensational start of their EuroBasket campaign has been a major talking point.

Having started the tournament on a low note with a close loss to Montenegro, F.Y.R. of Macedonia showed resilience and bounced back taking all four victories since, celebrating each one with emphatically together with a couple of hundred Macedonian fans, who made their way to Lithuania.

"It's an incredible feeling to play with this crowd. The atmosphere is great and we feel like we're playing at home. It's incredible," the team's key big man Pero Antic exclaimed.

He admitted that it feels incredibly good to be able to compete at the highest level and even more so, as the Macedonians had gone largely under the radar before the tournament tipped off.

"It feels great. Especially after people thought that we had the worst ranking in EuroBasket. We proved that we have quality, we have spirit and that the Macedonian heart is very big, that we don't give up," Antic spoke proudly.

Although F.Y.R. of Macedonia's group was labeled as one of the weaker ones, that doesn't take anything away from them, as they took two very sweet victories against the traditional European basketball powerhouses Greece and Croatia to finish first in Group C.

"Nobody even knew half of the players in our team before EuroBasket, as they have been playing in our domestic league, but our heart is big, the will is there and the chemistry is great too, we fight for each other and that's what has helped us so far," Antic added.

F.Y.R. of Macedonia has been living a dream in Lithuania and the chances are that the dream isn't going to end soon, as the Macedonians have put themselves in a very good position to qualify for the final stage, starting the second round with two victories already in their account.

"We'll be taking things step by step, enjoying ourselves and fighting just like we have done so far," Antic cautioned.

"Every day has been a celebration for us. We're extremely happy and proud to have shown that Macedonian basketball exists in Europe."

FIBA