HANG TIME, N.J. — Serbia and Croatia earned bids to the 2016 Olympics on Saturday, winning their respective qualifying tournaments.
Serbia cruised to a 108-77 victory over Puerto Rico after a 37-11 first quarter on its home floor. They were led by the Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic (23 points, eight rebounds, six assists) and Bogdan Bogdanovic(26 points, eight assists, 6-for-10 from 3-point range), whose draft rights are held by the Sacramento Kings. Jokic was named the tournament MVP.
After leading Italy by as many as nine points in the first half and by six with less than four minutes to go,Croatia needed overtime to punch its ticket. The Brooklyn Nets’ Bojan Bogdanovic led all scorers with 26 points and hit the biggest shot of the night, a right-wing three with 1:14 left in OT off some nice ball movement. Philadelphia 76ers draftee Dario Saric was named tournament MVP and had 18 points, 13 rebounds and a big steal in the final minute.
Danilo Gallinari and Marco Belinelli combined to shoot just 9-for-28 for Italy. Gallinari fouled out in regulation and Italy (coached by Spurs assistant Ettore Messina) was left with little offensive firepower in the extra period.
The final spot in the Olympic field will be determined in the Philippines on Sunday (9 a.m. ET on Watch ESPN), when Canada and France face off.
Two of the qualifying tournament winners will be played in Group A with Australia, China, the United States and Venezuela. One will be placed in Group B with Argentina, Brazil, Lithuania, Nigeria and Spain. The Olympic basketball competition tips off on Saturday, Aug. 6. The U.S. will be looking to extend its 45-game winning streak and earn its third straight Olympic gold.
