Luka Doncic delivered another historic performance, scoring 42 points to propel Slovenia past Italy 84-77 in the Round of 16 at EuroBasket 2025.
The Los Angeles star, who briefly exited after a hard fall in the opening minute, returned to dominate, adding 10 rebounds and 3 steals while shooting 11-of-19 from the field and 15-of-16 at the line.
Slovenia raced ahead 32-13 early, but Italy stormed back, cutting the deficit to just three in the final minutes. Doncic’s composure at the line sealed the win as he sank four free throws in crunch time.
“Italy played tough, but we stayed together. That’s what matters,” Doncic said after the game, via Eurohoops. “Since the beginning of the European Championship, we believe. Now we move on, we believe. We have a tough match against Germany waiting for us. We have to believe.”
Doncic’s 42-point outburst was his fourth 30+ game of the tournament, leaving him one shy of Nikos Galis’ 1989 record of five in a single EuroBasket. He already leads the event in scoring, assists, and efficiency.
Klemen Prepelic added 11 points, and Alen Omic contributed 7 points with 7 rebounds for Slovenia. Simone Fontecchio led Italy with 22 points.
Rebounding proved decisive, as Slovenia won the battle on the glass 38-32 and secured 15 offensive rebounds that turned into 16 second-chance points.
This victory secured Slovenia’s eighth quarter-final appearance in the last nine EuroBasket tournaments. Their next opponent will be Germany, who entered the knockout stage undefeated and eliminated Portugal 85-58 in their Round of 16 matchup.
Italy’s loss ended a run of four consecutive quarter-final appearances, despite their earlier group stage win over Spain.
Doncic’s tournament numbers underscore his dominance: he is averaging 34.0 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 7.2 assists per game on 46.2 percent shooting. His free-throw accuracy has also been elite, converting 89.2 percent from the line.
Slovenia, who last captured the EuroBasket title in 2017, will now face world champions Germany in one of the most anticipated clashes of the quarter-final stage.
“Everybody plays together and we get along well,” Doncic said, praising Slovenia’s team chemistry despite occasional on-court arguments. “On the court, we just want to help each other. So, congratulations to the guys again.”
