Lithuania vs Serbia Basketball Preview: Prediction, odds, and more for the FIBA World Cup 2023
The FIBA World Cup 2023 has been full of excitement and intense moments. It looks set to get even better with the quarter-finals starting on September 5.
One of the most exciting games in the quarter-finals will be Lithuania vs. Serbia. Both teams will look to win this game and the winner will go on to face the winner of the Canada vs. Slovenia game in a semi-finals matchup.
Lithuania vs. Serbia: Team rosters
Lithuania roster
- Margiris Normantas
- Tadas Sedekerskis
- Ignas Brazdeikis
- Gabrielius Maldunas
- Rokas Jokubaitis
- Jonas Valanciunas
- Mindaugas Kuzminskas
- Donatas Motiejunas
- Eimantas Bendzius
- Vaidas Kariniauskas
- Tomas Dimsa
- Deividas Sirvydis
Serbia roster
- Filip Petrusev
- Nikola Jovic
- Bogdan Bogdanovic
- Vanja Marinkovic
- Ognjen Dobric
- Dusan Ristic
- Marko Guduric
- Stefan Jovic
- Dejan Davidovic
- Borisa Simanic
- Aleksa Avramovic
- Nikola Milutinov
Lithuania vs. Serbia: Odds & prediction
Moneyline: Lithuania (+100) vs. Serbia (-105)
Spread: Lithuania (-1/-112) vs. Serbia (+1/-106)
Lithuania has been the biggest surprise of the 2023 FIBA World Cup. They are not only undefeated in the tournament but have also covered their point spread in all five wins.
Lithuania's most recent win came against Team USA, which was rather unexpected given that Team USA is the favorite to win the World Cup.
Jonas Valanciunas and Rokas Jokubaitis have been the key players for Lithuania. Valanciunas is the lead scorer (13.6 PPG) and rebounder (9.2 RPG) for Lithuania. Jokubaitis is the primary playmaker and the assist leader (5.6 APG). Together, Valanciunas and Jokubaitis also lead the efficiency per game for Lithuania.
It will be rather challenging for Serbia to overcome Lithuania, who are shooting exceptionally well from beyond the arc and making 46.4% of their three-pointers.
That said, Serbia has had a lot of success in the FIBA World Cup 2023, having only lost one close game to Italy 78-76. They have a ton of talent on their roster, including Bogdan Bogdanovic (18.4 PPG and 5.2 APG), Nikola Milutinov (14.0 PPG, 9.6 RPG), Nikola Jovic (11.2 PPG) and Stefan Jovic (7.0 APG).
Lithuania vs. Serbia will be an intense battle between Jonas Valanciunas and Nikola Milutinov. The player who wins this individual battle, especially on the rebounding end, might end up winning the game.
Ultimately, the Lithuania roster is coming off an impressive win against the USA, which will do wonders for their morale in the quarter-finals. Expect a close game with Lithuania just about scraping it.
Lithuania vs. Serbia, FIBA World Cup: Game details
Teams: Lithuania vs. Serbia
Date & Time: Tuesday, September 5, 2023, 4:45 a.m. ET.
Location: Mall of Asia Arena, Manila, Philippines