FIBA Basketball

    Croatia, Serbia set to write new chapter in rivalry

    RIO DE JANEIRO (Rio 2016 Olympic Games) - Croatia avoided a Quarter-Final with two-time defending champions USA when they defeated Lithuania on Monday night to finish top of Group B.

    RIO DE JANEIRO (Rio 2016 Olympic Games) - Croatia avoided a Quarter-Final with two-time defending champions USA when they defeated Lithuania on Monday night to finish top of Group B.

    What that result did, however, was pit them against Balkan rivals Serbia. Games between Serbia and Croatia, no matter what the sport, are always intense.

    "Serbia/Croatia is a classic the last 25 years and I think it's time for us to do something, to fight 100 percent this game and I think we can beat them." - Croatia star Dario Saric

    There has not been a Serbia v Croatia showdown since the Round of 16 at the 2010 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Turkey. The Serbians scraped a 73-72 win in that game and went on to finish fourth.

    Three players from each of those teams of six years ago are in this Olympics, including two of the best known players in the sport in Milos Teodosic of Serbia and Bojan Bogdanovic of Croatia.

    Bogdanovic played against Serbia in 2010

    What was Croatia's Dario Saric doing in the summer of 2010, when these teams last squared off?

    One of the biggest stars in international basketball now and a player who is set to embark on his NBA career this coming season with the Philadelphia 76ers , Saric played for Croatia's teams at the U16 and U18 European Championships that year.

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