Probably even to basketball fans with less interest, it is obvious that the Serbs were far from being crushed 104:78 by the Latvians in the first game. While we have played against the Latvians almost 50 times, we have tested our strength against the Serbs 15 times (and including the joint Serbia and Montenegro period – 18). The ratio is also unfavorable for Lithuania: 5 wins and 10 losses. However, we have not met the Serbian youth team on our path for quite a long time: the last time we played against them was back in 2018.
Read more Due to a fatal accident in Riga, train traffic was disrupted
Since Serbia and Montenegro separated and became independent states, we did not have to wait long for the first duel with the Serbs. Already in 2007, the Lithuanian and Serbian under-20 teams clashed at the European Championship, and they did so for nine consecutive European Championships – the Serbs could not be avoided. Moreover, in the Old Continent’s championships, the Serbs were played 10 times in nine years – and in the 2011 championship held in Bilbao (Spain), Lithuania had to fight Serbia twice.
The majority of duels with Serbia took place in official tournaments – Lithuanian and Serbian paths crossed only four times in friendly matches. From 2015 to 2018, one of the stages of the Lithuanian youth team’s preparation for the European Championship was an international tournament in Istanbul (Turkey), in which the Serbian under-20s also participated. By the way, the Serbs lost to the Lithuanians three times out of four there.
Several times, the Serbs had to be fought in the playoffs at the highest level. In 2008, the Lithuanian and Serbian under-20 teams met in the final of the European Championship! Supported by the Lithuanian-dominated stands (the championship was held in the Latvian capital Riga), our team, although trailing for most of the game, reduced the opponents’ lead to one point (78:79) halfway through the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, the last step could not be taken, and they had to settle for silver – 89:96. The most productive players in the Lithuanian team were Donatas Motiejūnas and Martynas Gecevičius, each scoring 16 points (the latter was also included in the symbolic championship five), Vytenis Lipkevičius added 12 points, and Šarūnas Vasiliauskas (13 points) and Žygimantas Janavičius (12 points, 7 assists) excellently led the attacks and attacked the basket themselves.
A particularly sweet revenge was achieved in 2012. The golden Lithuanian youth team (although already without Jonas Valančiūnas) met old rivals in the semifinals. Before that duel, the Lithuanians had won four out of seven games in the mentioned European Championship, while the Serbs swept one opponent after another and came to the semifinals not knowing what it meant to lose. The Lithuanians introduced them to this feeling in the sweetest way for us. After a very dramatic fight, the Lithuanian under-20s won 73:68 and advanced to the final, where they defeated the French 50:49 and won the European champion title! And the mentioned duel with Serbia perfectly showed what a harmonious team mechanism Kazys Maksvytis and company had built. The team had no clear leader, but five players scored double-digit points – Žygimantas Skučas, Vytenis Čižauskas, Paulius Vaitiekūnas, Arnas Butkevičius, and Edgaras Ulanovas (who was also selected to the best players’ five of the championship).
True, it was very close that these Serbian and Lithuanian under-20 teams would have fought in the B division that year… In the 2011 European Championship group stage, Lithuanians and Serbs took the last places in their groups and, together with their fate brothers from Austria and Croatia, decided who would be and who would not – according to the then European Championship regulations, the teams that took the last places in the first stage had to play each other twice. In such a mini-tournament, the two better teams would keep their places in the A division, and the two worse would drop down to the B division. The Serbs performed much more confidently here, beating the Lithuanians twice (95:64 and 75:67), while our team was under pressure until the last day of the championship. Everything was put on a single card and the last championship game against Austria. If the Lithuanians had lost it, they would have had to say goodbye to the A division. However, they managed to avoid a complete fiasco and beat the Austrians 78:65. This opened the way to stay in the elite and create the 2012 story.
In the first stage of the European Championship, in the group matches, the Lithuanian and Serbian under-20 teams faced each other twice. So far, the score in this category is tied – 1:1. In 2010 in Crikvenica (Croatia), the Serbs were stronger (80:69), in 2013 in Tallinn (Estonia) – the Lithuanians (68:64). It is obvious that after the upcoming game, one team will take the lead in the history of duels in the group stage. The only question is – which one?
The biggest winning margin – 13 points (78:65, friendly match before the 2017 European Championship)
The smallest winning margin – 4 points (2013 European Championship, 68:64; 2018 friendly match, 84:80)
The biggest losing margin – 31 points (2011 European Championship, 64:95)
The smallest losing margin – 4 points (66:70, friendly match before the 2015 European Championship)
Read more Farmers: there will be no blueberry harvest, rain is rotting strawberries, hard to mow
Complete list of mutual duels:
- 2007-07-12 Gorizia (Italy). Lithuania – Serbia 76:94 (European Championship)
- 2008-08-10 Riga (Latvia). Lithuania – Serbia 86:96 (European Championship)
- 2009-07-20 Rhodes (Greece). Lithuania – Serbia 67:76 (European Championship)
- 2010-07-09 Crikvenica (Croatia). Lithuania – Serbia 69:80 (European Championship)
- 2011-07-18 Bilbao (Spain). Lithuania – Serbia 64:95 (European Championship)
- 2011-07-22 Bilbao (Spain). Lithuania – Serbia 67:75 (European Championship)
- 2012-07-21 Ljubljana (Slovenia). Lithuania – Serbia 73:68 (European Championship)
- 2013-07-09 Tallinn (Estonia). Lithuania – Serbia 68:64 (European Championship)
- 2014-07-16 Heraklion (Greece). Lithuania – Serbia 54:73 (European Championship)
- 2015-06-27 Istanbul (Turkey). Lithuania – Serbia 66:70 (friendly)
- 2015-07-17 Lignano Sabbiadoro (Italy). Lithuania – Serbia 69:82 (European Championship)
- 2016-07-05 Istanbul (Turkey). Lithuania – Serbia 70:62 (friendly)
- 2017-07-06 Istanbul (Turkey). Lithuania – Serbia 78:65 (friendly)
- 2017-07-23 Heraklion (Greece). Lithuania – Serbia 86:102 (European Championship)
- 2018-07-05 Istanbul (Turkey). Lithuania – Serbia 84:80 (friendly)
