LIMASSOL (Cyprus) - Italy earned a crucial victory in their quest to advance from the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 group stage by fighting past Bosnia and Herzegovina 96-79 for their second win as Simone Fontecchio showed what he can do offensively.
Fontecchio poured a EuroBasket record 39 points and Italy improved to 2-1 with back-to-back victories, while Bosnia and Herzegovina have lost two straight games for a 1-2 record.
Turning Point
After a tight first half, Italian head coach Gianmarco Pozzecco was ejected after a second techical foul in the opening minute of the second half. That didn't stop the Azzurri from from pulling away early in the fourth quarter to lead 79-64.
Bosnia and Herzeogovina managed to get the deficit back to 82-77 but Italy punched back with a 11-0 run to decide the game.
TCL Player of the Game
Simone Fontecchio's first game struggles are long forgotten as the Italian marksman drained 7 three-pointers for his 39 points. That broke Italy's single game scoring record, which had previously been Andrea Bargnani at the 2011 EuroBasket against Lavtia. The forward, who scored 14 points in the second game after just four in the opener, also grabbed 8 rebounds and 3 assists.
Darius Thompson and Marco Spissu both scored 14 points and combined for 9 assists for the Italians. Jusuf Nurkic collected a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds in the loss while Edin Atic contributed 10 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists and 4 steals.
Stats Don't Lie
Italy finished an impressive 14 of 24 from three-point range at 58 percent accuracy, while their opponents struggled to find their own effectiveness from deep with just 5 of 21 shooting from beyond the arc.
Bottom Line
Italy can really feel excited about their current status with two wins in this tough group. The next task for Gianmarco Pozzecco's men will be a tough one against reigning champions Spain on Tuesday after they won back-to-back games as well. Things don't get any easier for Bosnia and Herzegovina, who take on undefeated Greece - who qualified as a result of Italy's win.
They Said
"My players never give up. They play every possession like it's the last one. We were here a couple days ago and we were talking about a friend of mine (points to Fontecchio) and today he had a record. I am not surprised." - Gianmarco Pozzecco, Italy
"I really wasn't worried about my performance. Of course I wasn't happy but I knew it would come at some point so I wasn't really stressed about it. I was mad a little bit but it's part of the game, part of life. You cannot always score 40 points or 20 points every game. I am not a machine," - Simone Fontecchio, Italy
"I believe the game was good. We showed perfect energy but we just made too many mistakes on defense. Those were too much if you want to win this game Italy is a great team with great shooters." - Aziz Bekir, Bosnia and Herzegovina
"To me it was a very good game. After last night and how we played, that is not who we are. That is not what coach wants from us. At the end of the day we showed a better light. Unfortunately we gave them so many open looks that we shouldn't have. Some mistakes opened up their three-point shots, which is how they survive. But they got the win and we are still looking for another win." - Jusuf Nurkic, Bosnia and Herzegovina
This game report will be updated in the coming moments. Stay tuned.
For more quotes, tune in to the official post-game press conference!
FIBA