MNE - Montenegro's dreams will have to wait

JESENICE (EuroBasket/FIBA Basketball World Cup) - Montenegro will have to put aside their EuroBasket ambitions for four more years, after a 77-70 overtime loss to Lithuania on Sunday put the Balkan side out of contention for a spot in Round 2.

Led by the naturalized American point guard and national team debutant Tyrese Rice, the small nation opened the tournament by defeating The Former Yugoslav Republic Of Macedonia (MKD), but then went on to lose three very close games.

Montenegro's rising star, 22-year-old Nikola Vucevic, was rather frank in summarizing the reasons for the downfall - the team was simply too young to cope with the pressure involved in late game situations.

"I think it was mostly because of the lack of experience. We were right there in games until the very end," said the Orland Magic big man.

"We fought hard, but the one thing we lacked was experience - we made some bad decisions, took some quick shots and didn't play smart on offense."

Vucevic didn't manage to earn the trust of head coach Luka Pavicevic and had to settle for a minor role, with minutes hard to come by in the deep Montenegrin front court.

"I didn't get to play a lot. I think with the minutes I played, I've been playing okay. Had the coach given me more minutes, I would've definitely played better, because I'm in good shape and I feel great," said Vucevic, who averaged 6.8 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.0 blocks in less than 14 minutes per game.

The impressive Montenegrin frontcourt could have been even stronger, if Nikola Pekovic's contract negotiations with the Minnesota Timberwolves would have finished in time for him to join the squad.

"Nikola is one of the best centers in the world and his absence had a very big impact," said Vucevic.

"We all know how good of a player he is. The situation was that we couldn't wait for him, but hopefully he can be there next time."

Although Montenegro failed to reach their goal of advancing to Round 2, Vucevic is optimistic about what's in store for the young group of players forming the core of the national team.

"I think we have a bright future, because most of the guys in the team are not older than 24 or 25. So we're going to be here as a team for the years to come. And the longer we're together, the better we'll be as a team," he said with a subtle smile on his face.

Montenegro will hope to finish the tournament on a positive note in their last game against Serbia on Monday night.

With qualification out of the question, it's all about pride for the young Montenegrins, who will all go out on the court to prove their worth.

FIBA