Utah Jazz assistant Igor Kokoskov and Slovenia stunned point guard Ricky Rubio, his Spanish squad and the basketball world in the EuroBasket semifinals.
Heading into their semifinal bout with Spain, Utah Jazz assistant coach Igor Kokoskov and the Slovenian national hoops team had arguably been the story of EuroBasket.
The Slovenians have been playing beyond themselves throughout the tournament, going undefeated in group play, throttling Ukraine in the Round of 16, then withstanding a 34-point outburst from Kristaps Porzingis to sneak by Latvia in the quarterfinals.
It’s been one of the more memorable runs by a team in recent FIBA competition and a testament to Kokoskov’s chops on the sideline. That said, EuroBasket’s most surprising squad and basketball’s hottest coach combined to turn in their best performance yet on Thursday.
Facing Jazz point-man Ricky Rubio and a Spanish team that was considered by many to be the gold medal favorite, Kokoskov’s crew matched their opponents blow for blow out of the gate, then dropped the hammer in the second half to secure a 20-point win over FIBA’s No. 2-ranked team worldwide.
In doing so, they locked up their first-ever appearance in the EuroBasket Final. There they’ll face the winner of Friday’s game between Russia and Serbia.
Although their energy coming out of halftime put them on a path toward victory, Slovenia’s 3-point shooting was the key in building what would become an insurmountable advantage.
Goran Dragic, Anthony Randolph and Klemen Prepelic knocked down three triples apiece and Slovenia hit 14-of-25 from distance overall. Meanwhile, Spain struggled to 39.7 percent from the field and just under 26 percent from 3-point range.
Slovenia was led by Dragic — the odds-on favorite for tourney MVP honors — and Randolph, each of who scored 15 points in the contest. Pau Gasol paced Spain with a game-high 16.
Rubio scored 13 points, dished out three assists and added three steals. However, he was just 1-of-6 from behind the arc and committed four turnovers.
Nevertheless, there are a lot of positives to be gleaned from Rubio’s tourney run. In particular, his shot fell at a higher rate than we’re used to seeing. Through eight games, he hit on 42 percent of his attempts from the field and 38 percent from distance.
If he can carry some of that over into the upcoming NBA campaign, Utah’s next floor general will be a major difference-maker offensively.
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The EuroBasket Final will take place on Sunday; Rubio and Spain will vie for Bronze that same day.