Much to the surprise of the other teams taking part in the European Basketball Championship, the Macedonian basketball team placed fourth at EuroBasket 2011. Their outstanding performance in Lithuania was the best finish ever for the Macedonian national team.
After defeating teams from Greece, Finland, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Macedonian team entered the second round of the championship, where it played against Georgia, Slovenia and Russia. They lost a heart breaker to Russia, but still managed to win a place in the knockout rounds.
Macedonia moved on to the quarterfinals where they defeated Lithuania, the tournament host, gaining a spot in the final four. The surprisingly good Macedonians lost to eventual champion Spain, then again to Russia in the consolation game, ending in 4th place for the tournament overall.
The Macedonians may not have won the whole thing, but they might as well have. Taking fourth place is quite the triumph for a small country like Macedonia, and their team was treated to a champion’s welcome on their return home. Over 100,000 people came out in downtown Skopje to celebrate their newly proclaimed national heroes.
Here are a few details about the players on the Macedonian national team:
- Pero Antic, the team captain. Instrumental in the success of his team, he averaged over 18 points per game. His 8.8 rebounds per game was third best in the tournament.
- Lester Bo McCalebb, a naturalized Macedonian citizen originally from the USA. One of the top players in the tournament, he averaged about 21.4 points per game. He scored 1/3 of all the points scored by the Macedonian squad.
- Todor Gechevski, a veteran Macedonian basketball player and winner of numerous awards. Used his experience well to make a difference on both ends of the court. Tenth in blocked shots for the tournament.
- Vlado Ilievski played more minutes than anyone else on the team. His three point basket in the waning moments of the quarterfinal against Lithuania won Macedonia the victory and a spot in the semi-finals.
- Vojdan and Damjan Stojanovski, twin brothers from Skopje. Vojdan’s 5 three point baskets were crucial in the quarter final against Lithuania. Damjan was a solid contributor, sinking a flawless 6 free throws during the tournament.
- Predrag Samardzinski, At 7 feet 1 inch the tallest member of the squad. Had 10 rebounds in the victory against Lithuania.
- Gjorgji Chekovski, a reliable back up player. What he gives up in height to taller opponents he makes up for with aggressive play.
- Dimitar Mirakovski, a native of Strumica, he didn’t see much action during the tournament. A valuable back up player with the ability to score.
- Vrbica Stefanov, Director of the Macedonian national team. Deserves a lot of credit for building the team and getting them the right coaching to produce an outstanding result.
Macedonia’s strong finish at Eurobasket 2011 qualified them for the FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament, to be held at a yet to be determined site from 2 July to 8 July 2012.
Stay tuned!
Image courtesy of www.fiba.com
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