Game Summary

Turning point: Trailing 39-29 at half time, Great Britain went on a small run early in the third quarter, getting within 41-35 on a made free-throw by Pops Mensah-Bonsu. But Serbia responded immediately with a 17-6 run to end the quarter. Captain Nenad Krstic accounted for the last six points of that spurt to help his team take a commanding 58-44 advantage heading into the final frame where they put the finishing touches.

Hero: Krstic. Serbia's veteran player was inspirational in the win over Spain on Monday but was a non-factor in the loss to Slovenia. He showed why he is the team's leader by bouncing back and providing another leading performance in a decisive game on Wednesday.

Stats: Great Britain committed 27 fouls, which resulted in 35 free-throw attempts for Serbia. That won't please head coach Chris Finch too much as he thought the 30 fouls and 40 free-throws his team conceded to Spain on Tuesday were way too much.

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Serbia clinched the final spot on offer for the Qualifying Round of the EuroBasket from Group C with a clinical 77-59 win over Great Britain.

Nenad Kirstic and Milenko Tepic each poured in 17 points for the Blues, with Nate Reinking scoring a game-high 21 in defeat for Britain.

"With this win we go through to the Qualifying Round with two points and also we have two days to rest and prepare well for our next game," Serbia's Milos Teodosic said.

"We mustn't get too excited because there are more games to come. But we are satisfied with the win."

The Serbs, whose main aim at this event is to claim a top-six finish and reach the FIBA World Championship, didn't have it all their own way against Chris Finch's team.

Leading 39-29 at half-time, Serbia saw their advantage cut to five as the Brits made the first two baskets of the third quarter.

But they weren't able to sustain the comeback.

After Teodosic drilled a jump shot for Serbia, Pops Mensah-Bonsu made just one of two free-throws to make it 41-35.

Dusan Ivkovic's team responded with a 9-2 spurt for a 50-38 lead with 4:29 remaining in the quarter and they were ahead by double digits the rest of the way.

While Britain got Andy Betts back for the contest after he sat out Tuesday's narrow defeat to Spain, they lost promising young forward Joel Freeland to a back injury in the second quarter.

"I want to congratulate Great Britain because they played very well in a tough game," Ivkovic said. "I want to congratulate my players because they dictated the pace of the game for the full 40 minutes."

The Blues only hit four of their 22 shots from long range but 19-of-32 (59%) shooting inside the arc and a 27 of 35 (77%) night at the charity stripe propelled them to victory.

Britain hurt their own cause by missing eight of their 16 free-throws and shot only 42% (18 of 43) inside the arc.

Serbia out-rebounded Britain 37-28

"Serbia's determination and experience were key," Finch said.

"They played as we expected - physically. It bothered us a bit but that's how the game is. We didn't have enough answers tonight."

Dusan Ivkovic (Serbia Coach):

"Congratulations for Great Britain team, with them our group was very tough. This game required absolute concentration from my team; it was a key for the win. Other key were the rebounds and we did very well controlling it. I want also to congratulate my players and my staff; we qualified for second round and now have two days for rest and preparation."

Chris Finch (Great Britain Coach):

"Obviously Serbia was a better team, they were more experienced, with more determination. They were very physical and I think it bothered us. Tonight we didn't have answers. We can improve on many levels."

Milos Teodosic (Serbia Guard):

"It was a very important win and a tough game, we knew that with Great Britain we can't have any bad minutes. We are satisfied with advancing to second phase with two points, but we can't be too much happy about it."

Andrew Sullivan (Great Britain Forward):

"Both teams played hard and every player competed during this game. We tried to stay with the opponents, but weren't able in the end. We can't be happy with our results, but we leave with our heads high."

Quite simply, it's do or die for Great Britain. They need to beat Serbia in the final game of EuroBasket Group C just to stand a chance of booking a place in the Qualifying Round. If they lose, they go home.

A win for Serbia would see them automatically through to the next stage with a 2-1 mark. A loss would see a tie with Great Britain and maybe even Spain (should they lose to Slovenia) which would then require to look at the results between those teams to determine which two advance.

The Brits will be upbeat after an inspiring comeback against Spain on Tuesday. They got off to the worst possible start, trailing 12-0 and committing eight fouls in the first seven minutes. But they dusted themselves off and gradually worked their way back into the game.

A 14-0 run spanning the late part of the third quarter and early final frame saw them take their first lead, 68-66. They were up by as many as four, 73-69, when Jarrett Hart hit from downtown with five minutes left to play. But Spain, led by Pau Gasol, rallied back and after he hit the go-ahead three-pointer, they closed out the game.

Meanwhile Serbia were a shadow of the team that stunned Spain on Monday. They never led against Slovenia and shot just 35 percent through the first three quarters.

No doubt Dusan Ivkovic's side will hope to rediscover their glorious form from Monday night.

Head-to-head: These two teams have never met before. England have played three games against Yugoslavia and lost all of them.

Key match-up: How the backcourt players perform will play a big part in the outcome of this game. Great Britain's guards have been heavily criticised but yet they were the ones who spearheaded the furious comeback that almost saw them stun world champions Spain. Hart, Mike Lenzly and Nate Reinkin's three-point bombs gave their opponents a real fright. If they can stay out of foul trouble - starter Reinkin lasted only 36 seconds in the first quarter after picking up two quick ones - and hit their open shots, they will be doing their part.

Serbia's Milos Teodosic was the only bright spot in the defeat to Slovenia. He had 14 points and six assists but will need his backcourt partner Milenko Tepic to step it up a notch. Ivan Paunic can also be a key contributor off the bench.

X-factor: Nenad Krstic. As good as Serbia's captain was in leading his team to victory over Spain on Monday with 17 points and six rebounds, he was equally as bad against Slovenia. The 2.13m center played only 13 minutes and had just two points and two rebounds.

Stats: 53 - The number of fouls these two teams combined for on Tuesday. Great Britain committed 30 fouls, resulting in 40 free-throw attempts for Spain. Serbia were whistled for 23 fouls as that's all they could do to slow down Slovenia's frenetic pace.

Sounding-off: "This is it, we have one last chance (to book a place in the Qualifying Round) so we have to give it all we've got and really go for it. The way we played against Spain, it's encouraging ahead of this do-or-die game. We're improving with each and every passing game and that's really nice to see. Hopefully we can cap that off with a win." - Nate Reinking.