(Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
Team Serbia held a big advantage over Team USA for most of their semifinal men’s basketball game, but Team USA eventually came back and won.
It was a very tough loss for Serbia, and their head coach did not hold back afterward.
According to BasketNews, Svetislav Pesic tore into the referees following the game.
“You know that in Serbia there is a saying that whoever loses has the right to be angry. I’m angry because we didn’t get respect. I have to say that, because the best player in the world shot four free throws in 37 minutes,” Pesic said, referencing the fact that Nikola Jokic did not get many foul calls.
Serbia’s head coach Svetislav Pesic slammed the referees after a loss against Team USA #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/OzLQH0oj1o
— BasketNews (@BasketNews_com) August 8, 2024
Pesic also said that Bogdan Bogdanovic deserved more free throws too.
Though there were other reasons why Serbia failed, the lack of free throws really did hurt them, especially since they lost by just four points (95-91).
They could have closed that gap if they had earned more calls from the refs.
However, Team USA head coach Steve Kerr put together the right game plan as the fourth quarter began.
His team changed its tempo, played better defense, and moved with more speed and authority.
It was yet another example of Kerr allowing his players to show off their skills.
Pesic is disappointed by the results and sad to see his team come so close and not earn a chance to fight for the gold medal.
But he should still be proud of them because they defeated plenty of tough opponents and really gave the Americans a run for their money.
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