Watch: Ivica Zubac and Dario Saric get into wild bar brawl in Athens after Croatia-Greece game
Croatian center Ivica Zubac and Dario Saric fell to Greece in their Olympic qualifying game on Sunday and found themselves defending against even more trouble later that night at a bar near Athens. In a video obtained by TMZ Sports, Saric was brought to the ground and Zubac suffered a bloodied knee at one point in a brawl with local patrons hours after their game.
The clip begins with the 7-foot Zubac in an altercation with at least one person and then shows Saric speeding in behind him to offer some assistance before quickly backing out of the scuffle. The video then skips to show the 6-10 Saric on the ground in what appears to be a chokehold.
Within the group, a few loud people manage to quell the situation. It's unclear if they are security or just others partying at the Bolivar Beach Bar early Monday morning. A man in a black shirt is seen picking up Saric as the crowd disperses.
Croatia to miss out on Paris Olympics after loss to Greece, Antetokounmpo
The 2024 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament took place on Sunday, with eight teams vying for the four remaining spots in the Paris Olympics this summer.
One spot came down to either Greece or Croatia, which faced off in Piraeus, Greece on Sunday. Antetokounmpo and Greece came out victorious behind his 23 points and booked their first trip to the Olympics in 16 years.
Both Zubac and Saric played well in the 80-69 loss for Croatia, but couldn't contain Antetokounmpo and fellow Greek center Georgios Papagiannis, who nailed 5 of 8 shots from 3-point range. Zubac finished with 19 points and 13 rebounds, while Saric added 14 points and 12 rebounds.
They received help from teammates Mario Hezonja and Mateo Dreznjak, who scored 15 points apiece, but trailed the entire contest while Greek point guard Nick Calathes dominated the pace of play and flow of the game with his 11 assists. Croatia committed 11 turnovers and was just slightly less polished than Greece.
The last time Greece made the Olympics was in 2008, when they finished in fifth place. They’ll be slotted into a loaded Group A alongside Australia, Canada and Spain, each team filled with NBA talent. They play their first game against Canada on July 27.
In the other qualifying games, Puerto Rico topped Lithuania 79-68, Spain beat the Bahamas 86-78 and Brazil stomped Latvia 94-69.