2013 EuroBasket: Croatia, Lithuania enter semis

Croatia and Lithuania entered the semi-final of the 38th edition of the FIBA Europe championship for Men (also known as 2013 EuroBasket), which is being held in Slovenia.

Croatia cruised past Ukraine 84-72 in their quarterfinal encounter to enter the semi-final of the 2013 EuroBasket for the first time in 18 years.

The first quarter ended in a tie with both teams scoring 22 points each, while Croatia took the second quarter 29-13. Ukraine took the third quarter 26-19 but Croatia took the last quarter 14-11 to win the match.

Eugene Jeter netted 19 points for Ukraine while Krunoslav Simon netted a game-high 23 points for the winners.

In the other quarterfinal of the championship, Lithuania marched mast Italy 81-77 to grab the final spot in the last four.

In a competitive match, Lithuania took the first quarter 22-15, while Italy took the second quarter 24-18. After the break Italy took the third quarter 19-17 but Lithuania held their nerve and took the last quarter 24-19 to seal the win.

Marco Belinelli netted game-high 22 points for Italy while Renaldas Seibutis and Mantas Kalnietis netted 17 points each for the winners.

With the entry to the semi-finals of the championship, Lithuania and Croatia booked their spots for the 2014 FIBA World Cup. Spain will face France and Lithuania will play Croatia in the semis

The top six teams from the 2013 EuroBasket – excluding Spain, as they have already qualified as hosts – have qualified for the 2014 FIBA World Cup.