Slovenia suffers dramatic overtime loss in World Cup qualifier
A rejuvenated Slovenia suffered a dramatic overtime loss in their opening qualifier for the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup.
They conceded 93:94 to Estonia after being seconds away from winning twice, CE Report quotes The Slovenia Times.
Slovenia entered qualifying in Koper with a hugely revamped roster in comparison to the squad from this year's EuroBasket, missing NBA superstar Luka Dončić and several other key players.
Estonia had the lead for most of the game, leading by 11 points (69:58) in their biggest advantage at the start of the final quarter.
But Slovenia managed to close the gap, and with six seconds of regulation play left, the youngest debutant in the national team, 17-year-old prospect Stefan Joksimović got the go-ahead bucket at 79-77 to the delight of the home crowd.
Estonia forced overtime with a basket by their top scorer, Henri Drell.
In overtime, Slovenia led by four points (93:89) with 18 seconds left. However, Estonia punished the home team for their mistakes, scoring five points in three seconds, with Kristian Kullamae scoring the crucial three-pointer (93:94).
Slovenia had one last shot. The team's top scorer, Gregor Hrovat saw his three-pointer fall short, while Alen Omić's tip-in came after the final buzzer.
Hrovat, the team captain, notched up 11 of his 23 points in overtime. Žiga Samar and Miha Cerkvenik each scored 15 points, and Joksimović, who turned 17 less than two weeks ago, chalked up 9 points in almost 22 minutes on the court.
Slovenia's head coach Aleksander Sekulić said the game was a real test for the revamped team, especially as they faced an opponent who plays very aggressive basketball.
"We had victory within our grasp twice, but we made too many mistakes and let two important points slip away. We have a lot of problems in the team, Rok Radović came sick, and Gregor Hrovat will not be going with us to Sweden because he has to return to his club in France," he said ahead of the upcoming qualifier against Sweden in Göteborg on 1 December.
"It's hard to say anything sensible after such a defeat," the team captain said.
He took part of the responsibility for the poorly played finish.
"We are a young team that is still learning and making mistakes. It's certainly difficult to start the qualifiers this way, but we still have five games ahead of us, which we must play as well as possible."
Slovenia need to finish in the top 3 in the group that also features the Czech Republic to make it to the second round and continue fighting for one of the 12 berths available to the teams from Europe. The qualifiers will continue in February 2026.
Photo: Slovenian Basketball Association Facebook profile
