Italy vs. Croatia: Score, Reaction from 2016 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Final

Croatia earned a berth in the men's basketball tournament at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Saturday with a thrilling 84-78 overtime victory over Italy in the championship game of the FIBA qualifying tournament in Turin, Italy.

Bojan Bogdanovic shined for the Vatreni with 26 points, including four clutch free throws late, and six rebounds in the win. Krunoslav Simon chipped in 21 points and five boards, while Dario Saric added a double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds.

Five players reached double figures for Italy in the losing effort, led by Marco Belinelli with 18 points. Danilo Gallinari also had a strong showing with 12 points, eight rebounds and four assists. He almost single-handedly carried the Azzurri at times in the second half, but it wasn't enough.

Here's a look at the quarter-by-quarter scoring breakdown from the final:   

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT	Total
Croatia	19	20	15	16	14	84
Italy	12	22	18	18	8	78

The game got off to a sloppy start with a lot of physical play from both teams. They combined for just six points and had one technical foul apiece in the first three-and-a-half minutes. The sluggish opening stretch was followed by an extended delay due to a scoreboard malfunction.

Sam Vecenie of CBS Sports provided a picture of the makeshift solution:

Even though things settled down from a physical standpoint after the unexpected break, the nerves were still evident for each side at the offensive end. Both teams shot poorly in the opening period—31 percent for Croatia and 29 percent for Italy—despite getting some open looks.

The Vatreni did start to find more of a rhythm in the latter stages of the quarter, however, which allowed them to build a 19-12 lead after one.

Although his team trailed, Italy's Marco Cusin provided the top highlight of the first 10 minutes, as showcased by FIBA:

The Azzurri finally started coming alive in the second quarter. After Croatia increased its lead to 11 midway through the period, Italy used a 13-3 run to get back within one. It was a key stretch because it felt like the game was starting to slip away for a few minutes.

On the flip side, Croatia did well to weather that storm and still hold a five-point edge at halftime.

The Italians' surge continued after the half, as they rattled off the first eight points of the third quarter to grab their first lead since early in the contest. Gallinari led the charge with six quick points.

Sportando commented on the takeover by the Denver Nuggets' leading scorer:

The teams traded jabs from that point forward in what became an entertaining battle for the Olympic spot.

Saric started to take over for Croatia with around eight minutes left. He attacked the basket consistently and effectively, scoring nine unanswered points over a three-minute span to take the Vatreni from one point down to eight points ahead.

Once again, Italy fought back. It regained the lead with just over two minutes left on a Nicolo Melli dunk to cap a series of well-executed offensive possessions that also included a Gallinari dunk and a three by Belinelli.

The lead changed hands three more times in the final minutes of regulation. Melli tied the game for Italy with five seconds to go on a putback layup. Bogdanovic couldn't play the role of hero at the other end, missing his buzzer-beating effort and sending the game to overtime.

Simonas Baranauskas of the European Seniors Basketball Association summed up the drama:

Italy's home-court magic came to an end in overtime, though. Croatia knocked down a couple of outside shots to put the pressure on the Azzurri, who failed to respond. A late turnover by Alessandro Gentile allowed the Vatreni to close it out from the free-throw line.

FIBA highlighted the celebration:

Looking ahead, Croatia can officially start planning its trip to the Olympics next month. While the Vatreni won't be considered a top tournament contender, they could have some sleeper potential for a medal after winning this event.

That's mostly because there's still a lot of room for improvement. They earned the berth despite showing mere flashes of top form. Now they have about four weeks of preparation to iron out the remaining issues before trying to make a deep run in Brazil.

Postgame Reaction

FIBA shared the post-game press conferences:

The most impactful comments came from Croatia head coach Aleksandar Petrovic, who talked about how much the result meant for the sport as a whole in the country, per FIBA.com.

"I'm happy not only to qualify for Rio but also for the sport of basketball in Croatia because this sport in the last 22 years has suffered. Since 1995 we haven't been among the three best teams in Europe or participate in the biggest competitions," Petrovic said. "I'm happy we're going to the Olympics. It's great for a player like [Simon] who is 31 year old and for whom it may be the last opportunity. So I am happy for him and also for every single player."

All game statistics courtesy of FIBA's official site.