Simone Fontecchio’s record night powers Italy past Bosnia

Sep 1, 2025 2:57 AM

Italy earned a vital victory in their FIBA EuroBasket 2025 campaign, battling past Bosnia and Herzegovina 96-79 in a game that highlighted Simone Fontecchio’s offensive brilliance.

The Italian forward delivered a EuroBasket record-breaking 39 points, lifting his team to a 2-1 record after two consecutive wins, while Bosnia and Herzegovina dropped to 1-2 with back-to-back defeats.

The first half was closely contested, but the game took an unexpected twist early in the third quarter when Italian head coach Gianmarco Pozzecco was ejected following a second technical foul.

Rather than faltering, Italy seemed galvanized. They pulled away in the fourth quarter, building a 79-64 lead. Bosnia made one last push, cutting the gap to 82-77, but the Azzurri answered with a decisive 11-0 run to seal the win.

Fontecchio, who struggled in Italy’s opening game, reminded everyone of his scoring power. He connected on seven three-pointers on his way to 39 points, surpassing Andrea Bargnani’s previous single-game Italian EuroBasket record of 36 points set in 2011 against Latvia.

In addition, he contributed 8 rebounds and 3 assists, proving he was more than just a scorer. Reflecting on his turnaround, Fontecchio admitted he stayed patient despite early frustrations.

“I really wasn’t worried about my performance. Of course I wasn’t happy but I knew it would come at some point so I wasn’t really stressed about it. I was mad a little bit but it’s part of the game, part of life. You cannot always score 40 points or 20 points every game. I am not a machine.”

Pozzecco, despite being sent off, later praised his team’s resilience and Fontecchio’s milestone.

“My players never give up. They play every possession like it’s the last one. We were here a couple days ago and we were talking about a friend of mine (points to Fontecchio) and today he had a record. I am not surprised.”

Italy also benefited from contributions across the roster, with Darius Thompson and Marco Spissu scoring 14 points apiece and combining for 9 assists.

For Bosnia, Jusuf Nurkic posted 21 points and 10 rebounds in a double-double effort, while Edin Atic delivered an all-around performance with 10 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists, and 4 steals.

Statistically, Italy’s shooting from deep made the difference. They connected on 14 of 24 three-pointers, an impressive 58 percent accuracy, while Bosnia struggled with just 5 of 21 from beyond the arc.

For Bosnia and Herzegovina, head coach Aziz Bekir attributed the loss to defensive lapses.

“I believe the game was good. We showed perfect energy but we just made too many mistakes on defense. Those were too much if you want to win this game. Italy is a great team with great shooters.”

Nurkic echoed those sentiments, admitting his side gave Italy too many opportunities.

“To me it was a very good game. After last night and how we played, that is not who we are. That is not what coach wants from us. At the end of the day we showed a better light.

“Unfortunately we gave them so many open looks that we shouldn’t have. Some mistakes opened up their three-point shots, which is how they survive. But they got the win and we are still looking for another win.”

Italy, now 2-1 in the standings, face reigning champions Spain next in what promises to be a challenging encounter. Bosnia and Herzegovina, meanwhile, will try to regroup quickly as they prepare to face undefeated Greece.