Greece and Serbia could face sanctions after their game in the Acropolis Tournament in Athens on Thursday was abandoned after players from both sides were involved in a mass brawl which saw Greece centre Ioannis Bourousis cut in the head after being struck with a chair.

Greece was leading the game 74-73 when the fights broke out. It seemed to be sparked by an exchange between Antonis Fotsis and Milos Teodosic.

The Panathinaikos forward said something to the Olympiakos guard and the latter responded by aiming a punch at the Greek player.

This prompted other players to get involved with Serbia’s Nenad Krstic taking a starring role. The 27-year-old threw punches at Sofoklis Schortsanitis and then threw a chair at Bourousis as he attempted to break up the fight. Bourousis suffered a cut to his head.

Schortsanitis also appeared to aim punches of his own at Serbian players and Fotsis had to be held back by four team-mates as he went in search of revenge.

Earlier, Serbia and Olympiakos coach Dusan Ivkovic was banished from the bench for arguing with the referees.

It was a sad end to what had been Greece’s most competitive game in the tournament.

Now, both sides must wait to see if FIBA takes any action ahead of the World Basketball Championships later this month.

Greece 96 – Slovenia 72

Greece fired in an array of three-point shots and at one point threatened to run away with its second Acropolis Tournament match, building a 58-26 half-time lead before Slovenia came back.

Nick Calathes led Greece with 16 points, while Schortsanitis shook off any effects of a finger injury suffered against Canada to pour in 15 points.

Gaspar Vidmar had 17 points to lead Slovenia who were without both Primoz Brezec and Bostjan Nachbar through injury.

The Slovenes’ full-court pressure and some sloppy play from Greece allowed them to close within 63-44 midway through the third quarter, but the Greeks shifted a gear, taking a 79-48 lead into the final period before closing out the match by a healthy 24 points.

Greece 123 – Canada 49

Greece handed Canada a harsh lesson in the opening game of the Acropolis Tournament in Athens as they thrashed the visiting team 123-49.

Canada’s preparations for the FIBA World Championship had looked to be going well with a couple of victories over France at home last week.

But their first game in Europe this summer was a very different story as Greece stormed into a 27-6 lead and just kept building.

There was never any let up from the hosts, who scored 39 points in the final period to put an exclamation mark on a massive win.

Schortsanitis led the way with 24 points but also hurt his hand in the game, while Konstantinos Vasileiadis had 14.

Canada appeared tired from their long journey, and Greece showed no mercy.

“After their two victories in Canada over France, we were ready for a difficult game,” Greece coach Jonas Kazlauskas said. “But after a long journey, and adjusting to the time difference, it was difficult for our opponents to cope.

“We got off to a good start thanks to good concentration and excellent defence.”

The Greece coach was particularly pleased with the way his team stayed focused even as the game turned into a blow-out.

“I am pleased with the way we played, especially on defence, as that set up easy baskets for us. We are realists and we know that you won’t play like this or have a win like this every day.”

Kazlauskas admitted he did not yet know the nature of Schortsanitis’ injury.

“Sofoklis was hurt in Cyprus (earlier this summer) but had recovered well,” he said. “He has hit the same hand, but it is too early to say yet. I cannot speak with certainty about the seriousness of the injury.”

Kazlauskas also admitted that Bouousis’ continuing injury trouble is becoming a major concern.

“Ioannis is continuing to work out on his own, but I still cannot be sure he will be ready to help us in Turkey,” he said.

Canada looked shell-shocked by the end of the game, but coach Leo Rautins was hoping a good night’s rest would fix much of what was wrong with his team.

“It was a tough game against a very strong Greece team, after a long day of travel.” he said.