European Women Basketball Chapion defeated Senegal with 95:88 and will play against Australia to qualify for semifinal.

Women Basketball National Team of Serbia defeated the Champion of Africa, national team of Senegal with 95:88 (27:15, 28:28, 21:23, 19:22) in the game of the last group round at the Olympic tournament in Rio. Our players have registered the second triumph in a row, and they have qualified for quarter final where their opponent will be national team of Australia.

As it has been expected , Serbian girls played tough and in physical terms strong game with the national team of Senegal. They have controlled the score from the very beginning, as in the first quarter they reached two digit advance , and in the middle of the second quarter they were ahead with maximal difference of 20 points (47:27) after a point scored by Ana Dabovic. The champion of Africa managed later to catch up in result owing to the fantastic game of Astu Traore , but they did not endanger the advantage of our girls in any moment.

Senegal was ahead in rebound (31-25), but it also lost more balls (16-7), but our players had 11 stolen balls compared to only to stolen balls on the part of their tonight’s rivals.

Girls selected by Marina Maljkovic were calm on the free throw line (18-20), and the three point field goals were , in the most part of the game, over 50 percent , but at the end it was on the satisfactory 41 percent (9-22).

Sonja Petrovic , the most effective player in the national team of Serbia, scored 20 points ,
7 assistances, 4 rebound and 3 steals. . In terms of scored points, two digit scores in Serbian team were achieved by Jelena Milovanovic with 18 points, and Ana Dabovic and Danielle Page with 15 points each. Ana Dabovic had 8 assistances, and Page had eight rebounds. Astu Traore was brilliant in Senegal team and she has scored 30 points, with eight rebound and 3 assistances.

Our national team will on Tuesday play against Australia to qualify for semifinals and to fight for a medal.

Marina Maljkovic
– Qualification for quarter final at the Olympic games is historical success of Serbia and above all a huge result of this generation, that has gathered several years ago and does its job fantastically. Maybe there is a sadness caused by the game where we were defeated by Canada, but we do not want to look into the past, only into the future. Australia is big favorite, but I think we have a chance and according to that we are going to prepare for that quarter final duel. We shall learn from Turkey and Japan, and they have played on one ball. This huge success will carry along with adrenaline and we will attack Australia, as our men did in their game with United States.
SENEGAL – SERBIA 88:95 (15:27), 28:28, 23:21, 22:19)

SENEGAL : Thiam , Aya Tratore, 12, Dieme, Dieng 11, Diouf 3, Wane, Astu tratore 30, Diarra 5, Sy 3, Toure 6, Rosche 2, Fall 16

SERBIA : Radocaj 6, Petrovic 20, Cadjo 2, Krnjic 2, Jovanovic 7, Milovanovic 18, butulija 8, Crvendakic , Stankovic 2, M. Dabovic, A.Dabovic 15, Page 15

Full statistics of this game can be seen on the link
http://www.fiba.com/olympicswomen/2016/1408/Senegal-Serbia#|tab=boxscore_statistics

Photo: FIBA