Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

2018 U20 European Championship

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • 2018 U20 European Championship


  • #2

    Comment


    • #3
      Despite sitting his first NCAA season out (redshirting at Purdue), 6'4" SG Sasha Stefanovic ('98) is invited to try out for the U20 Serbia national team for the 2018 European Championship. In 1983, his dad Ljubisha better known as Lou Stefanovic tried out for Yugoslavia's U20 team that would compete at the World University Games.

      Footage of his dad Lou playing for Crvena Zvezda Belgrade against Drazen Petrovic's Cibona Zagreb in Yugoslavian League (1985/86).

      Comment


      • #4
        Sources say 6'7" freshman SF Ryan Stipanovich ('98) is no longer part of Bradley (NCAA D1) basketball program and that he is pursuing other opportunities outside of basketball. The kid missed 2 games in February for unspecified medical reason. Too bad, he had the potential to play overseas in a mid level league after his college career or perhaps even at Eurocup/Euroleague level with a Serbian passport.

        Comment


        • #5
          Even without Dzanan Musa, Bosnia and Herzegovina could have had an interesting U20 squad. Unfortunately for them, their basketball federation suffer from a lack of financial resources.

          6'11" Luka Garza ('98) - Iowa NCAA
          6'10" Vanja Gazibegovic ('99) - Spartak Subotica (Serbia)
          6'10" Amel Kuljuhovic ('99) - Lake Land NJCAA
          7'0" Semin Burko ('99) - Beko Belgrade (Serbia)
          6'9" Nikola Maric ('98) - Leotar Trebinje
          6'9" Njegos Sikiras ('99) - Fuenlabrada (Spain)
          6'8" Sasa Gazibegovic ('99) - Spartak Subotica (Serbia)
          6'7" Srdjan Kocic ('99) - Buducnost Podgorica (Montenegro)
          6'7" Aljosa Jankovic ('99) - Igokea Aleksandrovac
          6'6" Nemanja Nikolic ('98) - Igokea Aleksandrovac
          6'2" Darko Talic ('98) - Kakanj
          6'2" Sani Campara ('99) - Palencia (Spain)

          Comment


          • #6
            List of players selected by head coach Vlada Jovanovic for the final training camp set to begin in early June.

            Aleksa Uskokovic (FMP)
            Boriša Simanic (FMP)
            Novak Music (Mega)
            Mihailo Jovicic (Mega)
            Andrija Marjanovic (Mega)
            Nikola Miskovic (Mega)
            Vuk Vulikic (Dynamic)
            Milos Glisic (Dynamic)
            Dusan Beslac (Dinamik)
            Tadija Tadic (Partizan)
            Aleksandar Aranitovic (Partizan)
            Stefan Momirov (Vrsac)
            Stefan Djordjević (Vrsac)
            Aleksa Radanov (Crvena zvezda)
            Ranko Simovic (Crvena zvezda)
            Aleksa Stepanovic (Spars Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina)
            Haris Cucovic (Ilirija Ljubljana, Slovenia)
            Mihajlo Jerkovic (Venice, Italy)
            Nenad Simic (Trapani, Italy)
            Danilo Petrovic (Ortona, Italy)
            Filip Pavicevic (Ortona, Italy)
            Matija Radovic (Hofstra NCAA, USA)
            Luka Vasic (Charlotte NCAA, USA)
            Marko Vukojcic (DME Academy, Prep School USA)

            Comment


            • #7
              24-player list selected by MKD head coach Nikola Vasilev for the final training camp set to begin on June 1st.

              Hristijan Radiceski (Crn Drim)
              Nenad Dimitrijevic (Joventud Badalona, Spain)
              Tomislav Petrov (Kozuv)
              Efremovski Viktor (Rabotnicki)
              Filip Gjoreski (Vardar)
              Nikola Kicev (Feni)
              Damjan Krstevski (Rabotnicki)
              Aleksandar Arsovski (FPM Academy)
              Petar Prentovic (Vardar)
              Ranko Mamuzic (Kozuv)
              Petar Ognjenovic (Kumanovo)
              Nikola Zarevski (Sokoli)
              Gabriel Koskoski (Crn Drim)
              Nikola Shopov (Karpos Sokoli)
              Josif Naumoski (Karpos Sokoli)
              Elvis Hot (Vardar)
              Leonid Todorovski (MZT)
              Ivan Volkanovski (Vardar)
              Mile Stanimirovic (Vardar)
              Aleksandar Jovanovski (FMP Academy)
              Konstantin Martinovski (FMP Academy)
              Gjorgji Georgievski (Kumanovo)
              Georgi Ristovski (FMP Academy)
              Vladimir Jovanovic (Kumanovo)

              One of last year's best player Pavle Mihajlovski is missing. Not a single kid of Macedonian origin from Australia, Canada and Serbia on the list. At least four players from these countries could have strengthened MKD final 12-player squad.

              Comment


              • #8
                List of players selected by head coach Dusan Dubljevic for U20 Montenegro training camp. The main absentees are the starting PG Ognjen Carapic (injury), back up PG Jovan Vojinovic (injury), starting SF Dino Radoncic (on senior NT roster) & back PF Jakov Milosevic (injury).

                Nikola Vujovic
                Milic Starovlah
                Andrija Slavkovic
                Vladan Kaludjerovic
                Milos Kostic
                Vuk Popovic
                Milan Hajdukovic
                Janko Cepic
                Matija Jokic
                Milos Popovic
                Marko Simonovic
                Bogoslav Bozovic
                Nikola Paraca
                Pavle Jovicevic
                Radule Raspopovic
                Bogdan Bojic

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by serbianhoops View Post
                  List of players selected by head coach Vlada Jovanovic for the final training camp set to begin in early June.

                  Aleksa Uskokovic (FMP)
                  Borisa Simanic (FMP)
                  Novak Music (Mega)
                  Mihailo Jovicic (Mega)
                  Andrija Marjanovic (Mega)
                  Nikola Miskovic (Mega)
                  Vuk Vulikic (Dynamic)
                  Milos Glisic (Dynamic)
                  Dusan Beslac (Dinamik)
                  Tadija Tadic (Partizan)
                  Aleksandar Aranitovic (Partizan)
                  Stefan Momirov (Vrsac)
                  Stefan Djordjević (Vrsac)
                  Aleksa Radanov (Crvena zvezda)
                  Ranko Simovic (Crvena zvezda)
                  Aleksa Stepanovic (Spars Sarajevo, Bosnia)
                  Haris Cucovic (Ilirija Ljubljana, Slovenia)
                  Mihajlo Jerkovic (Venice, Italy)
                  Nenad Simic (Trapani, Italy)
                  Danilo Petrovic (Ortona, Italy)
                  Filip Pavicevic (Ortona, Italy)
                  Matija Radovic (Hofstra NCAA, USA)
                  Luka Vasic (Charlotte NCAA, USA)
                  Marko Vukojcic (DME Academy, Prep School USA)
                  Purdue redshirt freshman Sasha Stefanovic heads to Serbia this week to try out for the Serbia U-20 National Team.

                  Basketball opportunity connects Sasha Stefanovic with his roots

                  Sasha Stefanovic seems to remember like it was yesterday, watching as the Yugoslavian National Team defeated the U.S. at the FIBA World Championships in Indianapolis.

                  It wasn’t yesterday, though.

                  It was 2002, and Stefanovic was 4 years old.

                  But that day forged an important and multi-layered memory for the American kid of Serbian descent, on one hand providing a measure of basketball inspiration and on another crystalizing the pride Stefanovic holds for his bloodlines, his connection to the country from which his family came, yet one he himself has never set foot in.

                  That will change this weekend, as Purdue’s redshirt freshman and his father, Lou, will board a flight from Chicago to New York, then connect on to Belgrade, the capital of Serbia.

                  A decade-and-a-half after seeing in person the Eastern European country compete for the final time under the Yugoslavian flag, Stefanovic will himself try out for the opportunity to represent Serbia in this summer’s European Under-20 World Championships in Chemnitz, Germany.

                  Stefanovic is fourth generation born in the U.S. to Lou and his wife, Helen, who was born in the United States of Macedonian descent.

                  He’s never visited the country his grandparents emigrated from years and years ago. He barely speaks the language, if at all.

                  Yet, he’s clearly taken his heritage to heart, claiming dual citizenship a few years ago.

                  "We're very prideful people and we like to let people know where we're from,” Stefanovic said. “We take pride in representing a small country in Eastern Europe and being known as a tough people. It's an honor to be where I'm from.”

                  He’s taken that lineage to heart and been eager to parlay it into basketball opportunities.

                  A few years ago, before he enrolled at Purdue, Stefanovic traveled to Denver to participate in a showcase of sorts for Serbian players in the U.S., an entry-level opportunity for consideration for the national team program, starting with last summer’s World University Games in Taipei.

                  Stefanovic probably could have had a spot on that team, Lou Stefanovic said. The problem, if you want to call it that: Purdue was representing the U.S. in that event.

                  He didn't — or couldn't — pursue that opportunity, but more lie ahead, starting now, as Stefanovic will be one of 25 players vying for a dozen roster spots on the Under-20 European World Championships team.

                  He'll inevitably be one of the youngest players there, one of only a few amateurs, and speaking only English, he'll deal with a significant language barrier.

                  "I've always said, 'You have to feel uncomfortable before you make strides,'" Lou Stefanovic said. "That's with anything in life. He may have to be uncomfortable."

                  The deck may be stacked to some extent against the younger Stefanovic, but the Serbian program is clearly invested in him, so much so that while in the U.S. earlier this spring to visit with some of his NBA players, national team coach Sasha Djordjevic spent the majority of a Sunday in West Lafayette, visiting with a player who's not even officially appeared in a college game yet.

                  "How he looks at it is, 'I'm the head coach of the national team, and whether it's the World University team or the U20s or the U18s or U16s, it all feeds up to the national team and I'm projecting players out, too, for 2020, 2024, 2028 and on down the line,'" Lou Stefanovic said. "It's a succession plan for the national team, and he said, 'We think he has an opportunity to be amongst some of those players as we continue this process and see how he develops."

                  Lou Stefanovic knows Djordjevic dating back to their days as rivals on the Serbian pro circuit, Stefanovic starring for Crvena Zvezda ("Red Star") and Djordjevic for Partizan.

                  "It's like a Purdue-Indiana rivalry between the two teams," Lou Stefanovic said.

                  Lou Stefanovic was born in Aleksinac, a town in what's now known as Southern Serbia, about two hours from the capital.

                  He moved to Northwest Indiana with his parents, Zoran and Ljiljana, as a child, starred at Merrillville High School, then Illinois State, before returning to his home country to play professionally, the country the youngest of his two sons will visit for the first time beginning this weekend, seeing some sights for a day or so, then immersing himself into the basketball culture of the country of his family's beginnings.

                  And quite a basketball culture it is, especially considering Serbia's a country of only about seven million people these days.

                  According to RealGM, the country has produced 26 NBA players dating back to the '40s, including a number of prominent names. The biggest-name coach in the NBA, Gregg Popovich, is of Serbian descent and came up through Merrillville High School, years before Lou Stefanovic did the same.

                  And Serbia, no matter what flag it's competed under throughout modern history, has enjoyed meaningful success on the international stage.

                  "If you go back and look at their historic performance, they're probably one of the top five programs in the world at every age group — 16, 18, University," Lou Stefanovic said. "However you stack it up, they're a top-five program worldwide, and in some cases second behind the U.S. You can have all kinds of arguments about who's in what position in the world but no one would argue they're top five.

                  "It's really all about teamwork for them. There are certain shortcomings they're going to have, but they're all about great team chemistry, great team basketball, being great teammates, and they're very offensive-minded and very skilled."

                  Sasha Stefanovic, to this point in his playing career, has fit that very mold, perhaps in some small way a product of his idols.

                  He grew up in the shadows of Chicago's skyline, the epicenter of Michael Jordan's influence. These days, kids grow up in awe of Kobe, or LeBron, or Durant, and so on.

                  But for him, growing up in Crown Point, there was one star above all others: Peja Stojakovic, the vaguely Larry Bird-like Yugoslavian national who starred in the NBA throughout the 2000s; once made that legendary full-court behind-the-back pass and that driving baseline jumper over the back of the backboard that Stefanovic says he's tried to emulate so many times in his life; and struck a chord with that little boy in the crowd on Sept. 5 of '02, in then-Conseco Fieldhouse, when he scored 20 in an 81-78 win over the United States in an event that shook USA Basketball to its core.

                  Now, Stefanovic has a chance to follow in his idol's footsteps, whether it be now or sometime down the line, all while strengthening a connection to a family heritage that's meant a great deal to him.

                  "I'm for sure going in trying to be one of the best players in the camp and not leaving it up to chance," Sasha Stefanovic said. "But ultimately me just being invited to this camp is a dream on its own, me getting to represent where my family comes from and my heritage.

                  "Being invited as one of the top 25 under-20 players in Serbia is a big deal to me. I'm going in trying to make that team, but just getting to go is a blessing."

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    U20 Republic of Northern Macedonia lost 2 friendlies at home against U20 Hungary.

                    1st game (50-67)
                    Macedonian Super Liga, Friendly game M20, Check out the full statistics here


                    2nd game (80-82)
                    Macedonian Super Liga, Friendly game M20, Check out the full statistics here

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by serbianhoops View Post
                      U20 Republic of Northern Macedonia lost 2 friendlies at home against U20 Hungary.

                      1st game (50-67)
                      Macedonian Super Liga, Friendly game M20, Check out the full statistics here


                      2nd game (80-82)
                      http://www.fibalivestats.com/u/MSL/885207/
                      Efremovski, one of my favorite players. A pure shooter, a great one. Bad for him, is the only thing he can do

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Pirot-native 6'7" swingman Martin Sotirov (1999) who plays for serbian 2nd division side Konstantin Nis will play for Bulgaria U20 national team.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Arnoldas Kulboka and Tadas Sedekerskis won't help Lithuania. Final roster TBA in few days
                          The Moon Is A SCAM(http://www.revisionism.nl/Moon/The-Mad-Revisionist.htm)!

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Serbia won the Turgut Atakol tournament played in Istanbul, preceding Turkey, Italy and Lithuania, all tied 3-2, France (2-3) and Montenegro (1-4).


                            Russia beat Latvia in two friendlies played in Riga.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Davide Moretti (188 cm, Texas Tech) added to Italian team.
                              Final roster also includes:
                              Michele Antelli (184, PG, Agribertocchi Orzinuovi)
                              Matteo Berti (211, F/C, Segafredo Bologna)
                              Lorenzo Bucarelli (195, SF, Pasta Cellino Cagliari)
                              Guglielmo Caruso (205, F/C, Cuore Basket Napoli)
                              Davide Denegri (184, PG, Novipiù Casalemonferrato)
                              Omar Dieng (200, FW, Scaligera Basket Verona)
                              Alessandro Lever (206, F/C, Grand Canyon University)
                              Andrea Mezzanotte (207, FW, Remer Treviglio)
                              Tommaso Oxilia (200, SF, Assigeco Casalpusterlengo)
                              Alessandro Pajola (193, G, Segafredo Bologna)
                              Alessandro Simioni (204, C, “A. Costa” Imola Basket)

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X

                              Debug Information