65-72: Spain falls to Serbia and will fight for bronze in the European under-20

Spain could not overcome an intractable Serbia in the semi-finals of the men’s under-20 European Championship held in Ljubljana and is left out of the fight for gold. The national team, led by Carles Framewas surpassed (65-72) by the physical power and effectiveness of the Serbian team, which dominated the scoreboard for much of the match.

The match started with great intensity from both teams, but Serbia soon took the initiative. With a fast and vertical game, the Serbs managed to open a gap on the scoreboard at the end of the first quarter (11-25). Despite the efforts of Spain to shorten distances, Serbia They maintained their lead at halftime (28-42).

The second half was an ordeal for Spain. Serbialed by a Nikola Dzepina stellar (22 points and 5 blocks), extended his advantage to 19 points. Spain tried to react in the last quarter, but the Serbian defense and its success in the outside shot (with triples by Aleksa Stanojevic and his own Dzepina) thwarted any attempt at a comeback.

iker Garmendia (17 points) and Jorge carot (10 points and 5 rebounds) were the top scorers of Spainwhile on the part of Serbia stood out Dzepina and Andrej Lucic (20 points and 3 rebounds).

With this defeat, Spain He says goodbye to the dream of gold and will have to settle for fighting for the bronze medal in the match that will face him France. For its part, Serbia the title of European champion will be played against Slovenia.