Serbian basketball players defeated South Sudan 96:85 in the final match of Group C at the Olympic Games, progressing from second place to the quarterfinals. Our selection went on to become the best second-placed team, and will face Australia in the semi-finals.

It was not simple, but most importantly, the aim was met. Serbian basketball players overcame South Sudan’s resistance in the fourth quarter and advanced. And from another location. South Sudan’s appearance at the Olympics is over.

And the opponents tormented Serbia for a long time; they were in the game for nearly three and a half quarters, always breathing down the Serbian basketball players’ necks, which took a long time to break free. And once that happened, there was no turning back for the opponent.

Because the “eagles” climbed to plus 17 in the fourth quarter, their opponent attempted to come back and threaten, but only got to minus eight. Serbia’s response was led by Bogdan Bogdanović, who became the team’s all-time leading scorer.

And he will have the opportunity to add to his point total on Tuesday, when he faces Australia in the Olympic quarterfinals.

South Sudanese players performed well in the final 10 minutes, solving the opening two assaults and rapidly reducing their deficit to one point. Aleksa Avramović, who was halfway from the free throw line, briefly slowed the mini-rush before Bogdanović made a double for 75:71.

Bogdan Bogdanović’s three-pointer increased the lead to seven points (78:71), as expected. Is this the declaration of South Sudan’s “breakup”? It appears that it was not, or at least not yet, because the opponent answered – Shajok remained on the shot and cut the lead to 78:74.

Micić hit a three-pointer after an assist from Jokić, and Petrushev placed the ball in the basket after a “steal” by Gudurić, bringing the score to 83:74 with less than six minutes remaining. Svetislav Pešić’s squad continued to score with Vasa Micić, resulting in a double-digit lead for the first time in the contest (85:74).

After Dobrić’s points, we punished South Sudan for their blunders, resulting in a final score of 87:74. Serbia gained a fresh lead (91:74) with to Jokić and Micić’s under-the-basket scoring after the opponent team stopped playing.

As if the “eagles” felt the match was won, they relaxed. The opponents punished this with the triples of Omoto and Jones, reducing the margin to 91:80 and forcing Pešić to start the team with a time-out. Bogdan Bogdanović, the highest scorer in our national team’s history, led the team to a 96:85 victory against their rivals.

Our players performed well in the second half and swiftly increased their lead to plus seven. Micić’s rashness resulted in a 51:47 advantage, which Šejok reduced. Bogdan Bogdanović scored under a foul and added a free throw, bringing the score to 54:47.

The opponent attempted to respond with a penalty shot, but Vasa Micić’s three-pointer fell short at 57:49.