FIBA

Serbia overcame adversity to defeat Latvia 84-80 in Riga, even without team captain Bogdan Bogdanovic, who was sidelined due to a hamstring injury.

Nikola Jokic led the way, racking up 39 points and 10 rebounds, while earning MVP chants from Serbian fans in a hostile crowd of 11,000. The win secures Serbia’s spot in the Round of 16, improving their Group A record to 3-0, while Latvia fell to 1-2.

Serbia maintained a double-digit lead for most of the game, thanks to the outside shooting of left-handed trio Marko Guduric, Aleksa Avramovic, and Ognjen Dobric, who combined for six three-pointers.

But Latvia kept the pressure on late, with Davis Bertans hitting a deep triple to cut the gap to four points at 75-79. Jokic responded with his own three-pointer, but Latvia’s quick 5-0 run, finished with a corner shot from Arturs Kurucs, brought the arena to life.

With 82-80 and under a minute remaining, Jokic drew a foul and made both free throws, sealing the victory.

Latvia’s defensive strategy focused on containing Jokic, rotating him through defenders Andrejs Grazulis, Kristaps Porzingis, Rolands Smits, and Klavs Cavars. Despite a nasty fall in the first half that caused his elbow to bleed, Jokic returned to dominate.

He scored 19 points in the first half, 28 by the end of the third quarter, and finished with 39 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists, surpassing his previous national team career-high of 32 points against Italy in 2022.

Serbia’s dominance inside the paint was clear, winning 42-22 in points scored, a key factor in their success without Bogdanovic. Filip Petrusev also contributed 12 points, responding after his disqualification in the previous game against Portugal.

For Latvia, the loss came with positives, as their offense finally showed some of the flow fans remembered from 2023. They now prepare for upcoming games against Portugal and Czechia in the remaining Group A schedule.

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