Serbia take precious first win

RIO DE JANEIRO (Rio 2016 Olympic Games) - Serbia claimed their first win in the Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament by getting the better of China, 80-72, on Friday afternoon.

The victory, coming after the European champions suffered 3 defeats in a row, saw them improve to 1-3 in Group B. The loss dropped China to 1-3 and they fell to fifth in the group table, outside of the Quarter-Finals places.

Ana Dabovic scored 11 points in the opening period as Serbia took a 24-14 lead. China came back in the second period and edged in front 34-32 but the Serbs quickly regained control and headed into the break up 40-34.

Serbia scored the first 8 points of the second half to increase their advantage to 48-34 and that grew to 66-43 by the end of the third quarter.

China outscored them 29-14 in the final period but it was too little too late.  

Turning Point: Serbia stringed together a 16-0 run spanning the closing stages of the second quarter and the start of the third period.

Stats Don't Lie: China's bench outscored that of Serbia 29-8 but it wasn't enough as the Serb starters proved unstoppable.  

Hero: Sonia Petrovic was inserted into the starting line-up for the second game in a row and the move paid off as she finished with 20 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. Dabovic had a game-high 23 points, matching the amount of points she scored over the course of the first 3 games.

The Bottom Line: China's hopes and chances of advancing to the Quarter-Finals were dealt a severe blow. Serbia now hold the tie-breaker over them if it comes down to it.

FIBA