Those missed free throws in overtime against the U.S. seemed costly for Turkey when Tuesday’s game ultimately ended in a defeat, but not many would have expected them to be just as important as they proved to be following another Turkish loss on Thursday.
Facing a must-win game against the Czech Republic in the group’s first round finale, Turkey looked to be suffering from a hangover from that American near miss, and fell to a shocking loss as a result.
Led by an outstanding performance from Chicago Bulls’ guard Tomas Satoransky, who orchestrated almost everything his team did across the floor, the Czechs pulled off an upset with a 91-76 win that sees them reach the second round in their first appearance in the World Cup.