Aleksic Fires Montenegro Past Great Britain

PODGORICA (FIBA EuroBasket Women 2017 Qualifiers) - Montenegro rode to a 78-64 success in Podgorica as a flurry of triples late in the contest from Snezana Aleksic pushed them clear of Great Britain in EuroBasket Women 2017 qualifying Group C.

Turning Point: After Great Britain threatened to overturn a 14-point half-time deficit and trailed only 67-62 with less than four minutes to play, up stepped Snezana Aleksic to nail a trio of scores from behind the three-point line and that took the wind out of the British sails.

Stats Don't Lie: Great Britain lost the battle on the glass 53-32 and Montenegro did a great job with 21 offensive rebounds.

Game Heroes: Angelica Robinson claimed a double-double of 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Aleksic did her talking down the stretch from the perimeter as she ended up with 16 points and backcourt partner Jelena Skerovic rolled back the years with 17 points, seven assists and six rebounds.

The Bottom Line: Montenegro showed why they came so close to clinching a place in the Semi-Finals at EuroBasket Women 2015, as they used their superior inside strength to keep Great Britain at bay - although they needed some late intervention by Aleksic. The visitors gave a glimpse of future potential under new head coach Jose Maria Buceta and anything is possible now they have Johannah Leedham back and she racked up 20 points, 13 boards and five assists.

They Said: "We knew that Great Britain would be a difficult opponent. We were without three main shooters - Milica Jovanovic, Jovana Pasic and Irena Matovic. It's hard to play against zone without a good shooter. Jelena Dubljevic played at the position 'three', and this is not her position. When Great Britain started to play zone, Snezana Aleksic found her spot and hit the decisive three-point shots." - Montenegro head coach Momir Milatovic.

FIBA