Jusuf Nurkic propels Bosnia and Herzegovina to victory over Rudy Gobert, Evan Fournier and France.
The FIBA World Cup 2023 Qualifiers continued on Saturday as Window 4 of the tournament draws to a close for the European and African regions – the only groups in action on the day.
The European teams who played today will not resume playing until the next Round 2 window, which will start at a later date yet to be determined. All clubs in the African region will play their last game of Window 4 on Sunday.
The match of the day saw a Bosnia and Herzegovina side led by Jusuf Nurkic upset the France side of Rudy Gobert and Evan Fournier in a double-overtime thriller. The match continued with the theme of hotly contested European qualifiers, including the explosive duel in Serbia’s extra-time win over Greece on Thursday.
Here are Saturday’s standout performances:
Bosnia and Herzegovina 96, France 90
Blazers striker Jusuf Nurkic scored a team-best 21 points and landed nine boards to help Bosnia and Herzegovina outlast France in a double OT thriller. On the other side, Knicks guard Evan Fournier was down a game-high 24 points, and Timberwolves All-Star Rudy Gobert feasted inside, racking up 14 rebounds and two blocks to go with his 10 points. Bosnia and Herzegovina won the second overtime period 13-7 to claim victory.
🤯 Jusuf Nurkic just dropped the hammer @FIBAWC qualified! pic.twitter.com/4RHA5TQiSs
—NBA (@NBA) August 27, 2022
Lithuania 90, Montenegro 73
Kings big man Domantas Sabonis did a bit of everything for Lithuania, picking up 15 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in the victory. Pelicans center Jonas Valanciunas had 12 points and 14 boards. After a back and forth in the first half, Lithuania took control of things in the third quarter, outscoring Montenegro 32-15 in the period.
Italy 91, Georgia 84
Simone Fontecchio – a free agent added to the Jazz – shone for Italy with a game-high 21 points and 8 rebounds. Celtics forward Danilo Gallinari produced off the bench with 17 effective points on his own, before leaving with a left knee injury. Italy finished the match on a 9-2 series after Georgia Thaddus McFadden sank a 3-pointer to tie the game at 82 with just over two minutes remaining.
Nigeria 89, Guinea 70
😤 GIVE ME THAT! 🔥@CallMe_NonStop set the tone on both sides! #FIBAWC X @NigeriaBasket | #WinForNigeria pic.twitter.com/BVEnkAubJc
— FIBA Basketball World Cup (@FIBAWC) August 27, 2022
Nigeria bounced back strongly against Guinea after Friday’s loss to Cote d’Ivoire. Kings forward Chimezie Metu and Suns guard Josh Okogie combined for 22 points, 14 boards and 10 assists in the blowout victory. The D’Tigers came out clicking on all cylinders, winning the first quarter 24-15 and never looking back. Nigeria wrapped up Window 4 action against Angola on Sunday.
Iceland 91, Ukraine 88
Raptors fullback Svi Mykhailiuk’s 19 points weren’t enough to help Ukraine secure a narrow win over Iceland. Ukraine won the fourth quarter by eight points to send it into extra time, but Iceland finished the game on an 11-6 run in the final three minutes of OT.
