SERBIAN SPORT

Serbia & Montenegro captured their first U20 European Championships title since 1998 as it beat tournament hosts Turkey 64-58.
Tadija Dragicevic made a free throw with 15 seconds left to give Serbia & Montenegro a four-point lead, and Nikola Pekovic dunked just before the final buzzer for the final score-line.
The Serbs took bronze in 2005 in Brno, Czech Republic - the country's first U20 medal since the 1998 gold as Yugoslavia in Trapani, Italy. But Dragicevic and company did the job on Sunday in Izmir.
Dragicevic and Pekovic each had 18 points to lead the Balkan powers while Milenko Tepic added 13 points.
Boris Bakic scored just six points in 34 minutes, but he had seven rebounds and seven assists.
Ersan Ilyasova led all scorers with 21 while adding six rebounds and two blocked shots. But the budding NBA star also committed six turnovers.
Cenk Akyol added 13 points while center Ogus Savas had a nightmare performance of just five points on a 2-13 shooting night. Savas did grab a game-high 13 rebounds.
One of Turkey's biggest problems came at the free throw line, where they hit just 9 of 20 shots.
Serbia & Montenegro began pulling away in the first quarter, opening a seven-point lead before the period ended with Miroslav Nikolic's team ahead 20-16.
Midway through the second quarter, Ivan Maras hit a three-pointer to open an 11-point bulge - 31-20. The Turks closed the deficit to 33-28 at halftime.
With the Serbs leading 38-30 early in the second half, Akyol and Ilyasova took over the game, combining for all 15 points in a 15-4 run to open a 45-42 lead. The teams entered the final 10 minutes even at 45-45.
Ilyasova's basket midway through the fourth made it 55-53 for Serbia & Montenegro. But Tepic scored three straight baskets to off-set all five of Savas' points as the Serbs led 61-58 with 46 seconds remaining.
Dragicevic stepped up to the line and made one of two free throws with 15 seconds left to make it a two-possession game. And after Ilyasova missed a three-pointer with 5 seconds left, Pekovic dunked home the final basket of the championships.
4. Tadija Dragićević, 28. 1.1986, 203 cm, krilo, Crvena zvezda
5. Milenko Tepić, 27. 2. 1987, 200 cm, bek/krilo, Partizan
6. Boris Bakić, 23. 5. 1986, 193 cm, bek, Partizan
7. Novica Veličković, 5.10. 1986, 205 cm, krilo/centar, Partizan
8. Dragan Labović, 20. 4.1987, 207 cm, krilo, Borac
9. Nenad Mijatović, 22.1.1987, 194 cm, bek, Budućnost
10. Branko Jerominov, 1. 2. 1987, 187 cm, bek, Hemofarm
11. Miljan Rakić, 14. 5.1986, 193 cm, bek, Hemofarm
12. Nikola Peković, 3. 1.1986, 208 cm, centar, Partizan
13. Ivan Paunić, 27. 1. 1987, 193 cm, bek, Vojvodina
14. Nikola Dragović, 20.12. 1987, 193 cm, krilo, no club
15. Ivan Maraš, 20. 4.1986, 206 cm, centar, Budućnost
Coach: Miroslav-Muta Nikolić, Hemofarm
Coach helper: Dejan Mijatović, OKK Beograd

Great Serbian tennis player won his first ATP title! In final of Amersfort at the other site of the net was Nicolas Massu. He catch a tartal Djokovic who show with his maestral game that he is player for big deals. He start the match great leading 3-0 and 4-1, but Chilean get back to 4-4. Little collapse in the Nole’s game could cost him a lot, but our young lion make it to tie brake. Bad start for Novak but he wake up with serie of 4 point in the road and the end of first set for comfortable end of the match. In the second set with 2 brakes from both players it’s 2-2 and than Nole’s going with .5-3 for Novak with few brake chances but he won this tournament at his serve, with aces. Amersfort is won!!! Sure this is just begin of 19 years old Serbian, that expedition to top of the ATP list stub with great games at big tournaments and all the people think he’ll have great future. Next tournament where he can won another title is in Croatia(Umag) where he is No. 3 seed.Best think about Novak Djokovic is his fighting spirit and of course big talent, that’s why he will won many tournaments.
GOOD LUCK

That night Belgrade was host of spectacle that never had been seen in the world of basketball. Belgrade is one of the rarely places in planet where this kind of happening can give the best from themselves, because it make and affirm persons like Aleksandar Sasha Djordjevic, because know to appreciate their and others value, because know basketball game like know their language.
At the age of 38, player which all the people admired 2 decenniums finished career, arranger and leading role in many unforgettable basketball scenes for what he got lot of Oscars (4 gold medal, silver and bronze with national team,title of champion of Europe with Partizan, 3 cups of Korac…).He became the legend , accompanied in game with more than 50 well know players and 8000 supporters at tribunes of Pionir.
In time in which we assimilate that our public (mostly football) whiffed our canticle,that courts in all the world are places where lot of primitive calculation happens, that sport is more and more going out of it insides, we were witness of event in which triumph delight, inspired with charisma of unique player and spirit of time in which Yugoslavian basketball was serious threaded from American NBA empire.Can anyone be cold when on the court are Djordjevic, Divac, Kukoc, Paspalj, Radja, Danilovic…
Croatian basketball player Toni Kukoc and Dina Radja and their relationship with public was like time stopped 1991 when they played last time in Pionir as players of Split’s Pop 84.They got same ovations as our best basketball players. And Radja was afraid of being vespered...
Djordjevic apply that night to all the generation but and to veterans that, how he sad, deserve more applauses than him.
If someone will judge about dimension by 'who is coming to celebration', than he is Goliath,but in his career he could take sympathies as David(188 cm) who's with his knowledge and bravery suppled the titans. After all, he decently sad that he don't suspect that lot of his guests could make spectacle, if they decide to organize retiring match. That night in hall Pionir Djordjevic brote first win for UNICEF 'team' witch he is ambassador for Serbia and Montenegro. All the money for that match and from auction from 'Hyatt Regency Hotel' was intended for 'School without violence'. That is just continuance humanity work, after work in 'Group 7', individually(he helped kids' homes in Bijela and Sremska Kamenica, Red Cross Belgrade, Institute for mother and child in New Belgrade, Serbian Orthodox church, jeopardized basketball players...).
Looking from skilled angle, player that 'understand better with the ball' from anyone else, his technique don't have anything + or -,his shot is synonym for ideal, he knew so much secrets from that game that was some kind of coach at court. His 'School of basketball' ,at CD let as a behest to FIBA and kids whom he is a idol.
Let's see what his coaches say about him:
Bozidar Maljkovic: 'He had so good viewing of game that he could see what color of socks wear supporter from last chain'.
Zoran Slavnic: 'In him are united all perfection of big basketball player in witch is assign creativity.'
Sergio Scariolo: 'He is one of the biggest person from basketball world that I know'.
Zelimir Obradovic: 'He is one of the best our basketball player'.
And this is what told him Zoran Moka Slavnic: When you stop playing be or coach or nothing in basketball, because all other is funny.
He heard him good, and now he is coach of Armani Jeans Milano, just year after he played his last season in same club. After one year he was close to lead the team passing the group in Euroleague but he don't do it,in quarter final of Italian cup his team lost from Napoli, and in Italian league they lost from Beneton (champion) in first round of play off after 5 series. After first season he was pretty good, but this is just start.
GOOD LUCK

The Euroleague mourns the passing of Boban Jankovic and extends its condolences to his family, friends, teammates and associates. Mr. Jankovic, a European basketball legend, passed away on Thursday. Jankovic, age 43, died on a boat on his way to the Rhodes island in Greece. He suffered a heart attack near to the Syros island and the captain stopped there to take him to hospital, after more than a decade paralyzed in a wheelchair. It all happened in 1993, when he was playing for Panionios, as he disagreed with a referee decision midway through a game against Panathinaikos and crashed his head against the basket structure, which paralyzed him. Boban's jersey was retired that season. Born on December 15, 1963, he joined Crvena Zvezda at age 16. He played 326 games for Zvezda during 12 seasons before moving to Vojvodina and making it to Panionios in 1992. He was a regular member of the Yugoslavian national team at all ages, and was a candidate to play the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona. One of his best game came against Virtus Roma in 1992, in which Panionios needed to overcome a 30-point deficit from the first leg of a Korac Cup two-way elimination round. Panionios won by 32 points and he scored 41 points that day, earning the nickname of "the Bomber". He was averaging 20.8 points and 3.8 assists in the 1993 Korac Cup before the accident. Jankovic will be buried in Athens on Saturday and all expenses will be covered by the Municipality of Nea Smirni, where Panionios is based. His son Vladimir, age 16, is a member of Panionios' cadet team and has alreayd playd for the Greek cadet national team.