THE SPORTS GROUND CONVINCING VICTORY AWAY FROM CYPRUS, 40 POINTS MARIJA HEZONJE

In the last match of the EuroBasket 2025 qualifiers, Croatia defeated Cyprus 104:67 on the road in Nicosia.

After the first four Croatian attacks ended with 3-pointers (two each by Jaleen Smith and Mario Hezonja), it was clear that the match would be a one-way street. The individual quality of Marija Hezonja stood out, the jumping supremacy brought the Croats three possessions of the ball already in the first quarter, which together with Dominik Mavra’s two three-pointers was enough for +12 after ten minutes of play (26:14).

An inspired Mavra opened the second quarter with an assist for Krešimir Ljubičić, and then connected five points for 33:17 in the 14th minute of the game. Two minutes later it was 41:17. Hezonja scored two three-pointers, and David Škara made two shots for a high +24. At halftime, it was 48:25 with 17 points, five rebounds, and five assists from Marija Hezonja, 11 points, four rebounds, and three assists from Dominik Mavra.

After his fourth three-pointer, Croatia went to +30 (63:33) in the 25th minute, and entered the last quarter with a score of 74:43. In that moment, Hezonja had 28 points, nine rebounds and six assists. After that, coach Josip Sesar gave more space in the game to players from the bench. But that didn’t change the balance of power on the court. Moreover, the advantage grew to +39 after the first points in the representative jersey of Antoni Sikirić (87:48), and then to 40 (99:59). Finished 104:67.

Croatia shot 50 percent for three points (17/34), had an advantage in rebounding (41:34), and had 13 more assists than Cyprus (34:21).

Mario Hezonja returned to the game in the middle of the last quarter and continued his outstanding performance. He finished the game with 40 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists. In addition to 14 points, Dominik Mavra had four rebounds and five assists, and Krešimir Ljubičić had 13 points, seven rebounds, and three assists.

During the match I was genuinely sad. When I see how we play and the way we play, I remember the game in Zadar with the French, which we lost by only three points to the team that played in the final of the Olympic Games… I think it is satisfactory, and we have done many good things since I took over the national team, from those pre-qualifications to these two summer tournaments. Even in these qualifiers for EuroBasket, we had good moments and played well, but those five minutes against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Sarajevo determined everything and closed our way. As far as this game is concerned, we played well and with attitude. The boys didn’t need to be particularly motivated; I only told them one sentence during training: every game for the national team is played at the same level as if it were a final. They did it brilliantly. They preserved their pride and showed they could react well even when they were not good. With this window, when we analyze these two games with France and Cyprus, we can be delighted with how we played and presented ourselves. In Jazine, we were not even lucky to hit some shots. I’m confident with everything we did, except for those five minutes in Sarajevo – Josip Sesar, Croatia Head Coach

SOURCE: Croatian Basketball Federation