Norveška – Hrvatska 68:101 (21:20, 39:51, 51:78)

NORWAY – CROATIA 68:101 (21:20, 18:31, 12:27, 17:23)

NORWAY: Odfjell, Blatančić, Espe, Frey, Nordheim, Mjoes, Bergseng, Staff, Savić, Kruse, Borg, Lange

CROATIA: Smith, Kalajžić, Krajnović, Hezonja, Šarić, Radovčić, Ružić, Matković, Badžim, Drežnjak, Škara, Nakić

In the first match of the pre-qualifiers for the 2027 World Cup to be held in Qatar, the Croatian national basketball team defeated Norway in Bergen with a score of 101-68.

The first quarter went in favor of the home team (21-20), who at one point had a nine-point lead (15-6). Krešimir Radovčić brought Croatia back into the lead early in the second quarter (21-22), a lead they did not relinquish for the rest of the game. With his third three-pointer, Toni Nakić took the Croats to +10 (25-35) in the 13th minute, and two minutes later it was +15 (25-40). In a short time, the Norwegians reduced the deficit to eight points (33-41), but thanks to three-pointers from Roko Badžim and Matea Drežnjak, the teams went into halftime with a double-digit lead (39-51).

In the first five minutes of the second half, Mario Hezonja (6 points) and Dario Šarić (7 points) combined for 13 points, and with help from Jaleen Smith (2 points) and Matea Drežnjak (3 points), they steered the game into calm waters, giving Croatia an insurmountable lead (41-69). By the end of the third quarter, Croatia was ahead by 27 points (51-78). In the final period, the Croatian lead grew to +36 (65-101), and the game ended with a +33 margin (68-101).

Mario Hezonja was the standout player of the match with 27 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. Roko Badžim hit four three-pointers out of six attempts and was the second-highest scorer for Croatia with 15 points (4 rebounds, two assists). Toni Nakić scored 13 points (three-pointers 3/6, 4 rebounds), and Dario Šarić added 10 points (8 rebounds, five assists).

Already on Saturday, August 9, the Croats will face the second pre-qualifier match. In Opatija, Tomica Mijatović’s squad will host Denmark. The game starts at 8:30 PM. Tickets are available through the Core Event system.

The broadcast will be on MaxSport television.

Pre-qualification matches for the 2027 World Cup

• August 6: Norway – Croatia (68:101)
• August 9: Croatia – Denmark (8:30 PM, Opatija)
• August 16: Croatia – Norway (8:30 PM, Opatija)
• August 20: Denmark – Croatia (7:00 PM, Farum)

SOURCE: Croatian Basketball Federation