Finland does not have the quality of Germany and Lithuania, but for Montenegro like this - weakened, but also anemic, without too much energy and desire - they were classy on the floor of the "Nokia Arena" in Tampere.
Third match, third defeat at Eurobasket - The host easily defeated our basketball players 20:85, with a plus 65..
And, that means that Boško Radović's team has "shot" all the credits and that they no longer have the right to make mistakes if they want to reach Riga and the round of 16 - against their easiest rivals Sweden and Great Britain, but also rivals against whom they will have nothing to look forward to if they play like they have so far.
Everything Montenegro did in the match against Finland happened at the start, and after the first serious series of rivals, it sank...
Led by Andrija Slavković (who scored nine of Montenegro's first 11 points), our national team entered the game well and had a response to the hosts' attacks, so the first quarter was promising after it ended 23:23.
And, when Drobnjak opened the second period with four consecutive points (27:23), it seemed that Radović's team was slowly gaining momentum, but from that moment on, Montenegro seemed to be completely destroyed on offense, while on defense it was difficult to cope with Sasu Salina and the attractions of NBA ace Lauri Markkanen.
Over the next five minutes, our team scored only two points - both by Kyle Olman from penalties - and Finland went on to win by a big margin of 35:28.
Emir Hadžibegović had a chance to reduce the lead to minus four after an offensive rebound - he missed the shot, and Finland "flew" to plus 13 (45:32). Slavković's points and Drobnjak's three-pointer brought Montenegro to a more or less tolerable minus ten before the break (47:37).
However, it was not a sign of Montenegro's improvement in the rest of the game - Markkanen's three points from the free throw line and Edon Madjuni's three-pointer at the very beginning of the third quarter announced the end for Montenegro.
Lasija Tuovi's team knew how to maintain a big lead, until the final plus 22 at the end.
Slavković was the most efficient player on our team with 15 points, Drobnjak scored one point less, Mihailović nine, Simonović and Vučević seven each.
On the other hand, Markkanen reached a double-double - 26 points and 13 rebounds.
THE END - another bad game, another defeat. Montenegro - Finland 65:85, in the 3rd round of EuroBasket.
Sweden and Great Britain remain to be eliminated, but the question is whether Montenegro, with this kind of play, will be able to defeat even the weakest rivals in the group.
Once again, Madžuni's three-pointer, Montenegro is minus 22 (85:63).
There are two minutes left in the game, which has long been decided - Finland leads 82:63.
Jovanović's three-pointer and Simonović's dunk, but the Finns have an answer at any moment, so Montenegro can hardly reduce the deficit. With six minutes left, the home team leads 74:57.
Markanen's three-pointer in the last quarter gave the Finns another maximum plus of 18 (52:70).
End of the third quarter - Finland effortlessly maintains a solid lead, Montenegro seems to have no energy for anything more in this match.
Montenegro - Finland 52:67 with ten minutes left.
Finally Olmen and finally two good attacks from Montenegro in a row - the Turk Telekom basketball player made a three-pointer, and then Drobnjak hit a two-pointer. Our national team is not giving up (52:63).
Another three-pointer by Drobnjak, then a nice breakthrough and layup by Mihailović for a somewhat more bearable 58:45 for Finland.
After Radović's timeout, Montenegro finally made a real move in the second half - Mihailović for Slavković (40:56).
And Jantunen hits from outside the 6,75 line - Finland is on its way to breaking this match long before the end (38:56).
New three-pointer for Finland - Majjuni for 54:37, maximum plus 16 for the host.
The third quarter started with a foul by Hadžibegović on Markanen during a three-pointer - the NBA ace made no mistake. Finland immediately reached the maximum plus 13 (37:50).
At the end of the second quarter, Montenegro went into the break with a minus 10 after a disjointed game during these ten minutes (37:47).
The most efficient player in our team is Slavković with 11 points, Drobnjak added nine, Vučević seven, Hadžibegović five... Vučević and Hadžibegović each collected five rebounds, while Olmen has the same number of assists. However, we are waiting for the points from the new member of Montenegro.
On the other side, Markanen and Salin each scored ten points.
Our national team is not giving up - Slavković scored for two, Drobnjak for three points, so the deficit is now more bearable (37:45). Lassi Tuovi calls for a timeout.
Montenegro could have gone down to minus four after an offensive jump shot by Hadžibegović, but our basketball player missed the shot - after that Finland "flew" to plus 13 (32:45).
Finally a three-pointer and the torture finally ended - Hadžibegović was precise (32:38).
Desperate play by Montenegro in attack - from Drobnjak's points in the first minute of the second quarter, our team scored only two points, both by Olmen from the free throw line - Finland leads 38:29 with four and a half minutes left until the break.
There is no offensive rebound in our team - only one in the first almost 15 minutes, and Finland, after an alley-oop by Markkanen, gets another two points to make it 35:28.
Many mistakes by our guys in a short period, and Finland takes advantage of everything, leading again - after eight consecutive points, the home team is at 31:27.
Bonus video:
