Ireland U18 beaten 90-47 by Serbia in FIBA Challengers

Serbia pull away in final quarter to seal victory

Ireland were beaten 90-47 by Serbia in their fourth Group B game of the FIBA Challengers 2021.

There were plenty of impressive performance - Kara McCleane with four points, six rebounds, five assists and six steals caught the eye, as did Lucy Coogan with an 18-point haul.

Ireland started brightly Sinead Keane’s layup in the final minute saw Tommy O’Mahony’s side trail by just four points, before Serbia added another two through a layup of their own from Bojana Talijan, to give Serbia a 24-18 lead at the end of the quarter.

The second quarter belonged to Serbia and they opened up a 49-26 advantage by the half-time break.

Ireland responded impressively in the third quarter, outscoring their opponents 14-11 to reduce the deficit to 60-40 going into the final quarter.

Serbia pulled away in the final quarter to seal victory. Ireland will face Hungary in their final game of the tournament at 10.30am Irish time.

Ireland: Emma Glavin (6), Sinead Keane (5), Rebecca Anne Hynes, Ellie Glavin, Hazel Finn (4), Maria Alice Kealy (3), Kara McCleane (4), Paris McCarthy, Ella O’Donnell, Shannon Cunningham (2), Sarah Hickey (5), Lucy Coogan (18).

Serbia: Sara Vasiljevic (3), Andela Matic (6), Jana Milinkovic Savic (4), Marina Marcetic (5), Jovana Spasovski (12), Anja Bukvic (11), Dunja Zecevic (2), Bojana Talijan (9), Jovana Boricic (13), Dunja Prodanovic (3), Nevena Rosic (22), Miljana Cacic.