ISTANBUL (Turkey) - Croatia avoided any slip-ups and took care of business in downing Sweden 87-72 to become the first non-host team to book their spot at the FIBA EuroBasket 2022.

Croatia showed their strength on Gameday 3 of the European Qualifiers with a convincing win over Turkey and then made sure there were no surprises on Gameday 4 for a 4-0 record in Group D. Sweden did pull within 10 points with just more than two minutes to play, but in the end, Croatia were too good and prevailed and will be joining the co-hosting quartet of Czech Republic, Georgia, Germany and Italy. 

Turning Point: With the game knotted 16-16, Croatia held Sweden scoreless for nearly four minutes and Roko Rogic drained two three-pointers in a 16-5 surge spanning the first two quarters to put the Croatians ahead 32-21. Filip Kruslin added two three-pointers over the rest of the first half as Croatia pushed the lead out to 17 points and were never challenged in the second half.

Game Hero: Pavle Marcinkovic was a model of efficiency for Hrvatska as he poured in a team-high 20 points while hitting 7-of-9 shots, including 5-of-6 three-pointers and 1-of-2 free throws, to go with 8 rebounds - 5 of them from the offensive glass, 2 steals and 1 block for an efficiency of 29.

Stats Don't Lie: Croatia were the better shooting team from the outside - 30 percent to 42 percent - and Sweden didn't help their cause by making just 7-of-15 free throws. But Croatia dominated the rebounding battle - 40 to 30.

Bottom Line: Croatia have already locked up a spot at the 2022 spectacle and can go relaxed into the third window and their games against Netherlands and Turkey. Sweden dropped to 1-3 and face a tough challenge to get to FIBA EuroBasket 2022.

They Said:

 
FIBA