Beijing Olympic Games

Updated: 2008-08-16 17:11:16

(BEIJING, August 16) — With close scores throughout the game, Lithuania grabbed the lead with Linas Kleiza’s stunning three-point shots in the last quarter and beat Croatia 86-73 in a group A preliminary match of the Olympic Men’s Basketball tournament on Saturday, August 16.

Lithuania’s Mindauqas Lukauskis was the game’s high-scorer, netting 20 points and giving one assist. Kleiza was hot from behind the arc and contributed 18 points and four rebounds.

Croatia’s biggest scorer was Roko-Leni Ukic, who took 13 points and grabbed four rebounds.

The first three quarters saw the two teams keep close scores all the way, with Croatia leading by a small margin at the close of each of the first three periods 15-13, 45-42 and 62-58.

The last quarter, however, saw Lithuania take charge with four stunning three-point shots from Kleiza. The first basket helped Lithuania pull ahead one point and the second extended its lead, leaving Croatia four points behind. When Croatia later cut the gap from seven to six points, Kleiza’s third three-pointer widened it to nine. His fourth and final three-pointer of the quarter came in the last minute, extending the team’s lead to 15 points to secure its insurmountable advantage. The match ended 86-73 with Lithuania leading13 points.