LIMASSOL (Cyprus) - Bosnia and Herzegovina came to FIBA EuroBasket 2025 without one of their stars in Dzanan Musa.
But the Dragons have been buoyed in Cyprus by their loyal fans, who the players call their sixth man and desperately want to give them a reason to travel to Riga for the Final Phase.
"They were better than us the last few games for all the aspects of them pushing us."
Bosnia and Herzegovina boosted their chances of making the Round of 16 on the fourth day of games in Group C as they upset Greece 80-77 to give them a 2-2 record.
And a massive reason for Aziz Bekir's team getting the victory were the faithful supporters cheering the whole game.
"I like to say they were better than us the last few games for all the aspects of them pushing us. Having the fans behind you the whole game singing, it was a great atmosphere and I am super happy we got a win for them," star big man Jusuf Nurkic said.
The team's point guard John Roberson said the energy is crazy and the fans create a great atmosphere.
"The support and the fans give us the extra boost. They are our sixth man and we really appreciate all the support," Roberson said.
Bosnia and Herzegovina have won two games in Limassol, but they also have struggled at times on the court. Still one thing the team can always know is the fans will be there.
Their main goal in this EuroBasket is to finally advance from the Group Phase - something they have failed to do so in the last nine appearances since doing so in their debut in and finishing eighth.
And veteran forward Adin Vrabac hopes the team can give that achievement to the fans.
"These people who come here to support us deserve more than just today's win (over Greece). They deserve a second round and to go to Riga with us and have the best result in history," Vrabac said.
"We have a good team and we came here without our best player (Musa). But we came here with 3 or 4 thousand people and our fans and this is a win for them," added Kenan Kamenjas.
Bosnia and Herzegovina still have a major task ahead of them as they take on Georgia in the deciding game for who books the remaining Round of 16 tickets.
"I know they will be there for the Georgia game for another boost and we will need them there," Roberson said.
"They deserve a second round and to go to Riga with us and have the best result in history."
Bosnia and Herzegovina have one more major motivation to reach the Round of 16. And that is their absent star Musa, who missed the tournament due to health reasons.
Musa starred for his country at the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Qualifiers; averaging 22.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game. That came after he collected 21.4 points, 3.4 rebounds and 4.0 assists per contest at FIBA EuroBasket 2022.
Nurkic said it's 'super hard' not playing with Musa, who he teams up to form the Dragons' leadership duo.
"We're going to have his back here and he's going to cheer for us."
"When you're missing that big of talent, somebody who can score 20 points in a game, somebody who can make your defense guard him and guard me at the same time, so we know what we're missing, but at the same time through the history of our country when it was the hardest time we come together the biggest," Nurkic said.
"For sure, he's the future and it always sucks to lose someone like that. We are always cheering for each other and we're going to have his back here and he's going to cheer for us."
Nurkic and co. hope they can hear those boisterous fans once more in Riga later this week.
FIBA