Giannis vs. Luka in the Olympic qualification tournament semifinal

The Slovenian basketball team suffered a tough loss against Croatia at the beginning of the Olympic Games qualification tournament. However, they bounced back with an impressive 104-78 victory against New Zealand, securing a spot in the semifinals. Croatia leads the group, followed by Slovenia in second place. Despite their win against Croatia, New Zealand will not advance to the next round.

Greece is the first in the second group, and the Dominican Republic is the second, so the tournament’s hosts, Greece, Slovenia, Croatia, and the Dominican Republic, will play in the semifinals.

Getting the task done against the Kiwies

The highest-scoring Slovenians were Luka Dončić, with 36 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists; Još Nibo, with 20 points and 10 rebounds; Gregor Hrovat, with 14; and Klemen Prepelić, with 10 points. Shea Ili scored 28 points with New Zealand and 10 rebounds, Izayah Mauriohooho-Le afa 12, and Flynn Cameroon 8.

Slovenia needed to win by at least ten points for second place and by 28 points for first place. They started the match aggressively, showing much more energy than in their previous game against Croatia. After the first half, they were leading 27-9. However, New Zealand didn’t give up, and by the end of the second half, Slovenia scored 46-39. At that point, New Zealand was in the semifinals. Luka Dončić scored 19 points, and Šea Ili scored 16 for Slovenia.

During the third part, Slovenia again managed to gain a huge capital—60:43. New Zealand again had to look for a solution to stop the onslaught of rivals. Before the last quarter, the scoreboard read 77:55 for Slovenia, and the dilemma was—can the Slovenians reach plus 28 and first place in the group? They could, but Luka Dončić missed one of three free throws for plus 28. Slovenia had another attack for plus 28, but Nibo and then Dončić didn’t hit.

Luka’s semifinal clash with his idol - Spanoulis

The Greek basketball team proved itself a strong favorite by defeating Egypt with a score of 93:71 in the second match of the group stage of the qualifying duel for placement at the Olympic Games. Giannis Antetokounmpo, although not playing against Egypt, showed determination to lead Greece to its first Olympic berth since 2008.

Giannis and fellow NBA All-Star Luka Doncic will lead their squads. The winner will advance to Sunday’s final, which will determine a berth in the Paris Olympics. The loser will be eliminated and go on a deserved summer break.

Luka Doncic idolizes Vassilis Spanoulis, the coach of the Greece national team, and this is what he had to say when the famous Olympiakos player was retiring: “Spanoulis was my idol since I was little. I was watching him. It was kind of sad seeing him retiring. That’s why I wear No 7. I mean, I couldn’t wear No 7, cause it was already taken, so I took 77. He was really, really big time for me.”