Bojan Bogdanovic leads Croatia in scoring in tough loss
By Tony East
A few Indiana Pacers members are playing for their national teams right now. Bojan Bogdanovic is one of them, and he is playing well.
The Indiana Pacers have a few guys playing in the FIBA World Cup qualifiers at the moment. Cory Joseph teed up everyone with a great performance. Ben Moore plays later in the day. And in between, Bojan Bogdanovic put on his multicolored Croatia jersey for a game against Lithuania.
Bogdanovic and his national team ended up losing a tight one 84-83. Domantas Sabonis didn’t play for Lithuania, but NBA player Mindaugas Kuzminskas did.
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Bogdanovic wasn’t the reason that the Croatian team lost. After starting 1/9 from the field, Bojan finished with 22 points on six of 17 shooting. He hit five of his last eight shots on his way to leading the team in scoring. In typical Bojan fashion, over half of his points came from beyond the three-point arc, as he hit 4/9 from long distance in the game.
That wasn’t all the Croatian sensation did. He also added three rebounds and three assists while not missing a single free throw. All of this culminated in Bojan being a +1 in the game. Bogdanovic’s stat line very appropriately reflected the stats he usually puts up with the Pacers.
Three other NBA players suited up for the Croatian national team in Dario Saric, Ivicia Zubac, and Ante Zizic. Those four combined for over 67 percent of Croatia’s points in the loss.
Bogdanovic and Croatia next suit up for a game on Monday, where they will take on Poland. They will look to right the ship in their second game of the month.
The trio of Pacers playing for their international squads in the summer will continue to be fun to watch. Keep checking the site for more updates.