Romania Made To Rue Costly Errors
The two-pronged attack of Marica Gajic and Dragana Svitlica lifted BIH to their first victory of the FIBA EuroBasket Women 2017 Qualifiers, a 77-63 Group H triumph against ROU on Wednesday.
MUNICH (FIBA EuroBasket Women 2017 Qualifiers) - The two-pronged attack of Marica Gajic and Dragana Svitlica lifted Bosnia and Herzegovina to their first victory of the FIBA EuroBasket Women 2017 Qualifiers, a 77-63 Group H triumph against Romania on Wednesday.
Turning Point: The hosts began to believe this contest was turning in their favour during the third period. They held Romania to just eight points during the quarter - one fewer than Gajic managed on her own - and then gave themselves a double-digit advantage going into the final 10 minutes.
Stats Don't Lie: Romania committed 26 turnovers, but it was Bosnia and Herzegovina's ability to make them pay for those errors, with 20 points, that proved the difference. Romania had just four points from turnovers.
Game Heroes: Svitlica was a fine foil for Gajic contributing 20 points, but it was the the small forward who rose above all others with her 23 points coming off 60% shooting in under 20 minutes of action.
The Bottom Line: Romania missed the chance to capitalise on Turkey's defeat to Israel and while Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a 1-3 record, have left themselves too much to do, the qualification picture is now far from clear in the positions above them.
FIBA