FIBA: Finland upsets Jokic, Serbia in Round of 16 clash

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

And just like that, one of the favorites to bring home this year’s FIBA EuroBasket crown has been booted out of the tournament.

On Sept. 7, 2025, Finland pulled off their biggest FIBA moment of 2025 after stunning the Nikola Jokic-led Serbia, 92-86, to reach the quarterfinals of the EuroBasket in Riga, Latvia.

The victory marked Finland’s first win over the Serbians since 2009, handing them their second consecutive Round of 16 defeat in the main stage of the FIBA-sanctioned tourney.

Steering the Finns to the breakthrough win was NBA power forward Lauri Markkanen, who dropped an insane stat line of 29 points and seven rebounds.

The current Utah Jazz star led Finland to a strong start, knocking down big triples that set the tone for the underdogs and helped them grab an early 11-1 lead in the opener.

However, much of the postgame buzz focused less on his offensive brilliance and more on Finland’s unsung hero, Elias Valtonen.

With Serbia threatening to steal the game away after retaking the lead, 75-77, Valtonen single-handedly carried the Finns to the win with eight points in the final two minutes of regulation.

Valtonen knocked down a pair of three-pointers and a deuce underneath that turned the tide, propelling Finland back to the driver’s seat, 87-81, with only 53 seconds remaining.

Unfortunately for the Serbians, Jokic couldn’t find any clean looks, and his extra passes to his teammates weren’t converted into much-needed baskets.

Finland got it going in the first half and led by double digits in the first quarter, but Jokic stepped up when Serbia needed him the most in the second frame as he pounded his way inside the shaded lane.

Jokic’s dominance helped Serbia steal the cushion, but Finland responded when the second half kicked off. Due to the shooting display of Markkanen and Mikael Jantunen, the Finns were able to keep themselves within striking distance and prevented Serbia from pulling away heading into the fourth.

The mano-a-mano battle lasted until the fourth, but all thanks to the ever-reliable Valtonen, who erupted for eight points in the most crucial two-minute window of the final period.

Jokic capped off his FIBA EuroBasket tour with 33 points and eight rebounds, while NBA stretch-four Nikola Jokic chipped in 20 markers.

“Amazing night. What can I say,” said Valtonen after his heroics for Finland.

“We just believed in each other today and just made it happen. You have to shoot the ball when you are open. A couple of looks came to me, they left me open, so I just stepped up and shot with confidence.”