Gold medal favourites Serbia & Montenegro stormed into the final of the Umcor U18 European Championship Women on Saturday.
The 2005 champions were in dominant mood against the Czechs and romped to a 81-48 victory.
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Sonja Petrovic | ||||
Sonja Petrovic overcame a tough start (0/4 shooting in the opening minutes) to tally 19 points and 10 rebounds, while center Jelena Milovanovic provided an intimidating inside presence with 14 points, 16 rebounds and 3 blocks.
Despite the final scoreline, Serbia & Montenegro did not have everything their own way.
Czech Republic have been nothing if not tenacious throughout this tournament, as witnessed by their come-from-behind victory against France to qualify for the semi-finals.
The Czechs found themselves down 9-2 after just 3 minutes, but fought back to 17-11 by the end of the quarter.
A 12-4 run at the start of the second gave Serbia & Montengro a 16-point lead, 31-15 and the game looked to be already out of reach. However, the Czechs fought back once again to 34-29 at the end of the half.
Czech Republic needed a strong third quarter to have any hopes of winning the game, but Serbia & Montenegro were in no mood to allow a comeback.
A 5-point lead quickly turned into double figures and at the 30-minute mark, Serbia & Montenegro led 57-42.
Serbia & Montenegro will play the winner of Spain-Sweden in Sunday's final, while Czech Republic will play for the bronze medal.