ZAGREB (FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 European Qualifiers) - After a somewhat labored 75-70 defeat of Romania in Turin on Game Day 1, Italy celebrated an impressive 80-64 road win over Croatia to head into the winter with two victories in Group D.

On Sunday, they came storming back from an early 12-point deficit with a magnificent performance, condemning Croatia to their second successive defeat after a 68-61 setback in the Netherlands.

Turning point: The end of the second quarter and the beginning of the third. Trailing 28-17 midway through the second period, Italy seemed to move up two gears and turned the game on its head as Amedeo Della Valle buried 11 points in the third period, including a trifecta of three-pointers which sent Croatia reeling. That got his team-mates going as Italy rained shots from behind the arc from all angles to take a 53-38 lead.

Game hero: Della Valle finished with a game-high 25 points. He will be grateful, though, that Alessandro Gentile kept Italy afloat in the opening exchanges when the visitors were on the back foot. Gentile scored his team's opening 10 points before Della Valle took over the mantle and traced the path to victory.

Stats don't lie: The Italians sank 12 three-pointers from 28 attempts while Croatia managed only five from 20, underlining the gulf in class on the night as far as long-range artillery was concerned. The Italians also took better care of the ball, turning it over only 9 times, compared to 16 for the home side. Croatia dominated the boards as center Darko Planinic stood out for the home team with 20 points and 10 rebounds, but to no avail.

Game notes: After making a promising start peppered by fast-breaks stemming from tough defense, Croatia fell apart as Italy found their range from behind the arc. Croatia's offense came to a screeching halt and Italy's 18-4 run in the second quarter turned the tide for good. Della Valle's heroics instilled confidence into the rest of the team and they simply couldn't miss from long range when the chips were down. Awudu Abass scored 13 points as he nailed a treble of three-pointers from as many attempts to complement Della Valle's effervescent display.

They said: "We had a very good game and having conceded 23 points in the first quarter, we played much better defense in the second period when we confined Croatia to just nine points. It was a team effort and I am very happy how my players responded after a poor start to the game." - Italy coach Romeo Sacchetti.

"We lost to a better team. They made a lot of perimeter shots and it was tough to come back after they took the lead in the second quarter." - Croatia coach Ivica Skelin.

FIBA