Serbia captures bronze medal at Olympics

Nikola Jokic posted the fifth triple-double in men’s Olympic basketball history Saturday morning as Serbia defeated Germany in the bronze medal game, writes Sam Amick of The Athletic. The Nuggets star had 19 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists as Serbia prevailed 93-83 in a battle of teams coming off heartbreaking losses in the semifinal round.

Two other NBA players had prominent roles in Serbia’s victory, which brought the nation its second Olympic medal. Hornets guard Vasilije Micic also scored 19 points, while the Hawks’ Bogdan Bogdanovic, Serbia’s captain and career leading scorer in Olympic competition, added 16.

“It was difficult to sleep [after the Team USA loss],” Bogdanovic admitted. “We didn’t sleep that day, that night at all. It was a late game, but the next day, we all wake up and [Serbian coach Svetislav Pesic] was ready with the [team] meeting. He was ready with the same meeting that he did the whole year — a little bit longer, of course. But that was his way. We believed. We didn’t complain. We weren’t late. Yeah, we play together. We win together. We lose together. We are together. We celebrate together.”

Serbia took advantage of hot shooting to build an early lead, making 12 of its first 17 shots. They were up 46-38 at halftime and broke open the game with an 18-7 run in the third quarter that pushed the lead to 19 points. With Dennis Schroder, Franz Wagner and Moritz Wagner all struggling to make shots, the Germans weren’t able to make a serious run after that.

“We weren’t going home without a medal, especially after what happened two days ago,” Filip Petrusev said. “We owed it to ourselves. We owed it to the country, to the people that supported us. Two days ago, the whole country was so proud of us, so we had to bring something home. That was the mentality. You all saw it two days ago against the best team ever [in Team USA], maybe, that needed all kinds of help, and maybe luck a little bit [to win]. … But I just hope this is not our last time altogether. I think this team can … in the future, be even better. This might be one of the best teams Serbia ever had.”

It was a disappointing outcome for Germany, which has still never medaled in Olympic competition. After going unbeaten in last year’s FIBA World Cup, the Germans looked like the most serious challenger to the U.S. through group play, but back-to-back losses mean they’re going home empty-handed.

Despite the outcome, the 30-year-old Schroder told reporters that he’s far from finished with international competition, reports Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.

“Coach, I said I’m going to play until 40,” he said to Gordon Herbert at the post-game press conference. “I don’t know why they’re asking me this. I’m playing until I’m 40. That’s my goal. Hopefully, if I play until 40, my teammates can play until 36-37 and make it special.”

The game may have been Pesic's last Olympics appearance, as his contract as coach of the Serbian national team has expired. Following the game, Kevin Martorano of Sportando relays that he talked about his future, saying he’s unsure what he’ll do next, but he hopes to have a role in continuing to build Serbian basketball in advance of the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.