LUKA Doncic was a man on a mission in Slovenia’s opening win over Venezuela, 100-85, at the 2023 Fiba Basketball World Cup in Okinawa, Japan on Saturday.
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As arguably the biggest NBA star to grace this year’s global showpiece, Doncic lived up to the billing with a tournament-best 37-point output in his debut.
The Dallas Mavericks talisman took matters into his own hands from the get-go with 14 of Slovenia’s 21 points, matching Venezuela’s total first frame output.
And even with five Venezuelans in double figures, Slovenia did not miss a beat and led by as much as 19 in the final frame.
Mike Tobey (21 points) and Klemen Prepelic (18 points) helped form the world No. 7 side’s lethal scoring trio alongside Doncic.
After missing out on a World Cup berth in 2019, Doncic & Co. kept Slovenia’s perfect win streak in tournament openers intact since debuting in 2006.
Slovenia plays Georgia while Venezuela faces Cape Verde as Group F action continues on Monday.
The scores:
Slovenia (100) - Doncic 37, Tobey 21, K. Prepelic 18, Nikolic 8, B. Prepelic 5, Blazic 4, Cebasek 3, Dragic 2, Dimec 2, Hrovat 0, Samar DNP, Glas DNP.
Venezuela (85) - Sojo 16, Zamora 12, Guillent 12, Materan 11, Carrera 10, Colmenares 6, Vargas 5, Chourio 5, Cubillan 3, Ruiz 3, Graterol 2, Sifontes 0.
Quarterscores: 31-33; 56-51; 78-63; 100-85.
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