Most of the people of Slovenia’s basketball team charged in the direction of Luka Doncic moments after the closing buzzer sounded Sunday, sure to get him onto their shoulders and lift their simplest player across the court docket in event.
How becoming.
He lifted them, so they lifted him.
Doncic and Slovenia are headed to the Olympics for the major time, after winning 96-85 at Lithuania on Sunday to clinch a draw within the Tokyo Video games. Doncic — the MVP of the match in Kaunas, Lithuania — became once merely good: 31 functions, 11 rebounds and 13 assists, the major triple-double by any player in any of the four Olympic qualifying tournaments that had been performed within the past week to resolve the final four groups within the Olympic subject.
“I don’t care relating to the MVP,” Doncic talked about. “We won here. We’re going to the Olympics, the major time in our nation. It’s supreme. I center of attention on every child dreams about being within the Olympics. I did, too. So, here we’re. We fought with out a doubt, with out a doubt laborious and I center of attention on we deserve to be here.”
The game became once tied 52-52 at halftime, and Slovenia opened the third on an 11-2 trail. Lithuania come what would possibly closed within 71-69, but a 14-0 trail by Slovenia put Doncic’s club as much as the mark for pleasing.
And when the previous few seconds ticked away, Doncic threw his arms skyward in event.
“We’re making history for our nation,” Doncic talked about. “We are able to factual jog up from here.”
Lithuania became once judicious one of 4 nations taking part in host to Olympic qualifiers that ended Sunday, all four being winner-take-all occasions, one team from every subject making the Tokyo subject.
And all four dwelling groups, which figured to like fundamental advantages by being at dwelling, fell short of the Olympics. Slovenia beat Lithuania within the closing, Croatia and Canada lost semifinal video games — and Serbia, the reigning Olympic silver medalists, had been shy in a regional closing Sunday by Italy.
“A distinguished disappointment,” Lithuania coach Darius Maskoliunas talked about. “We lost at dwelling. We anticipated a higher result.”
Slovenia will be positioned in Neighborhood C for the Tokyo Video games, judicious one of many three four-team groups at the Olympics. Slovenia will play Argentina on July 26, Japan on July 29 and reigning World Cup champion Spain on Aug. 1. The conclude two groups in every community, plus two wild-cards, will get the Olympic quarterfinals.
“It’s factual judicious one of basically the most easy emotions,” Doncic talked about. “We worked laborious for this.”
Vlatko Cancar scored 18 for Slovenia, which obtained 16 from Jaka Blazic and 13 from Mike Tobey.
Jonas Valanciunas, Arnas Butkevicius and Mantas Kalnietis every scored 14 for Lithuania, which would possibly omit the Olympics for the major time since getting its independence from the Soviet Union; it had been to every of the past seven Olympics, starting in 1992.
Eimantas Bendzius scored 11 and Marius Grigonis added 10 for Lithuania.
BELGRADE, SERBIA REGION
ITALY 102, SERBIA 95
Italy went into Serbia and pulled off a stunner, taking away the team that finished second within the relieve of the U.S. at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Video games.
Nico Mannion scored 24 functions, Achille Polonara scored 22 and Italy reached the Olympics for the major time since the 2004 Athens Video games — main by as many as 24 earlier than a shy area in Belgrade.
Simone Fontecchio scored 21, Stefano Tonut added 15 and Alessandro Pajola added 10 for Italy. The Italians will be Neighborhood B at the Tokyo Olympics, facing Germany — one more winner on Sunday — on July 25, Australia on July 28 and Nigeria on July 31.
Danilo Andjusic scored 27 for Serbia, whereas Filip Petrusev scored 22 and Ognjen Dobric added 17.
SPLIT, CROATIA REGION
GERMANY 75, BRAZIL 64
Moritz Wagner scored 28 functions and Germany is headed relieve to the Olympics for the major time since 2008, after topping Brazil to have interaction the qualifying match in Damage up, Croatia.
Robin Benzing scored 13 functions and Maodo Lo scored 10 for Germany, which is seeking its first Olympic males’s basketball medal.
Germany will be in Neighborhood B at the Tokyo Video games, facing Italy on July 25, Nigeria on July 28 and Australia on July 31.
Anderson Varejao scored 14 functions and Alex Garcia finished with 10 for Brazil.
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