Basketball, Women’s European Championships: Italy eliminated by Montenegro. Farewell to the Olympic dream

Italy’s journey toWomen’s Eurobasketball it’s already over. At Shlomo Arena in Tel-Aviv the play-off for a place in the quarter-finals against France rewards Montenegro, who beat the Azzurri 63-49. Only Olbis (10 points) in double figures in coach Lardo’s quintet who therefore remains out of the final phase in Ljubljana and consequently is already certain he will not play in the Paris Olympic tournament. It would have been necessary to enter the first six to at least access the pre-Olympic. No way. The last participation in the five circles of women’s Italy is still the one at the 1996 Atalanta Games.

The match never had history: Montenegro took off in the first quarter, closing 22-8 thanks to triples by Jovanovic and taking advantage of the poor shooting percentages of the Azzurre, 2/20 from the field after 10 minutes. The maximum disadvantage at 8-29 in the middle of the second quarter, then a 10-0 inspired by Santucci and Villa deceived us: at the long half-time it went up 35-22 but things didn’t improve as the game went on. Azzurre unable to find the basket with a minimum of regularity (1/17 from 3 at the end) and Montenegro good at maintaining control of the pace and the score. At the beginning of the last quarter, the new maximum lead for Skerovic’s team (52-31), who finished the game without scares.

Coach Lino Lardo’s comment was very bitter: “We took the field with a non-aggressive attitude, I’m very sad because I imagined a different performance and a different result. Montenegro is playing an excellent European Championship and has taken the field with greater intensity, congratulations to them”.