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23 June, 2016
03 July
13 Dzanan Musa (BIH), 8 Dragan Elkaz (AUS)
29/06/2016
News
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Big game Dragan comes through this time for Australia

ZARAGOZA (2016 FIBA U17 World Championship) - Dragan Elkaz was expected to be a nice role player for the Australia team at the 2016 FIBA U17 World Championship. But few thought he could explode like he has in Zaragoza, twice pouring in 17 points in a fourth quarter.

Elkaz's second final frame outburst came in Australia's thrilling 75-72 Round of 16 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina as he nailed four three-pointers in the quarter en route to 25 points for the game.

"It was the best game I've played in my life," Elkaz said. "This is the best, playing for my team and my country is the best feeling ever."

When asked about his fourth quarter, Elkaz modestly said: "I was doing anything I could to help my team out. It just worked out and we came out with a win."

It was actually the second time in Zaragoza that Elkaz went off for 17 points in the fourth quarter, as he did so on his way to finishing with 22 total points against Canada on Day 1 of the tournament. However, on that occasion, the Sydney native's scoring outburst was not enough as the North Americans won 81-78

"It was kind of like the fourth quarter against Canada, so I decided to be aggressive and take some outside shots and drive and find my teammates," Elkaz said. "It was an amazing game. We were trying to play with our heads. Even though [Bosnia and Herzegovina's Dzanan] Musa was playing pretty good we managed to pull it out. The team has played amazing in the close minutes." 

The victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina keeps alive Australia's hopes of reaching the Final for a third straight time at the U17 Worlds. They now have a Quarter-Final date against tournament hosts Spain on Thursday. 

"If we play like this or better I think we can reach the Final," Elkaz said. 

But take away the big fourth quarters of those two games and the 1.92m guard has tallied just 17 points in the other 14 quarters, including zero points against China in 24 minutes. So, what exactly is Elkaz?

"He's not a high-level talent. I get he's done this twice, but he's still one of the mid-level guys on the team," said Olgun Uluc, a leading basketball reporter on Australian basketball. "He's a streaky shooter. He's just happened to do this twice in four games."

Regardless of how long and if Elkaz can keep this up, he has already etched his name in the history books of this competition. He also has sprouted a number of gifs of fire-breathing dragons on social media and has green and gold fans abuzz with the Aussies' chances. The question is what exactly fans should expect from Dragan. 

FIBA