Greece’s journey in the FIBA World Cup came to a close on Sunday (local time) as they faced Montenegro in their final Group J encounter.

Already eliminated from the quarterfinals contention, Greece aimed to salvage their campaign with a win.

However, it was Montenegro who emerged victorious, defeating Greece 73-69 in a game characterised by intense spurts of action.

The Montenegrins started the game with a burst of energy, quickly establishing a lead that Greece struggled to overcome.

At one point, Montenegro enjoyed a 14-point advantage, with the score line reading 60-46 early in the fourth quarter. Greece fought valiantly to narrow the gap, but their late comeback attempt fell short.

Montenegro’s dominance in the paint was a key factor, with 40 of their points coming from inside. Greece, on the other hand, found themselves missing some key players, including Thanasis Antetokounmpo due to a foot injury and Dinos Mitoglou.

Giannis Antetokounmpo, still recovering from knee surgery, was also absent, along with veteran guards Nick Calathes and Kostas Sloukas, guard Tyler Dorsey, and forward Kostas Antetokounmpo.

Ioannis Papapetrou led the Greek team in scoring with 16 points, followed closely by Lefteris Bochoridis and Kostas Papanikolaou, who contributed 13 points each.

Montenegro’s Nikola Vucevic was the standout performer for his team, with 19 points, including a crucial six-point streak that secured the victory for Montenegro when Greece had closed the gap to 58-62.

Dino Radoncic also made a significant impact with 12 points.

Despite the loss, Greece managed to secure the 15th place in the tournament, thanks to a three-pointer at the end literally when the buzzer went off, and they edged out Georgia in point differential.

However, this performance marks Greece’s worst-ever result in the FIBA World Cup since their first qualification in 1986.

Looking ahead, Greece still has a chance to secure a spot in the 2024 Paris Olympics through one of four Olympic qualifying tournaments scheduled from July 2 to 7.

Reports by FIBA suggest that coach Dimitris Itoudis will not lead Greece in these qualifiers, with former star player Vassilis Spanoulis rumoured as the most likely replacement.

Greece remains determined to bounce back from this disappointing World Cup campaign and aims to make its presence felt on the international basketball stage in the future.

Watch the Greece vs Montenegro match highlights here.