THE Australian Boomers have been eliminated from medal contention at the 2023 FIBA World Cup after falling to Slovenia on Friday night.

The first night of the second round of the tournament saw the Boomers take on Slovenia in a highly anticipated matchup. Results from the first round carried over, and with Slovenia and Germany both unbeaten after three games, Australia could not afford to lose.

The game started with the Aussies delivering yet another slow start, falling behind in the early stages of the match to trail at the first change. Although Slovenia star Luka Doncic was not at his best, the Boomers were still unable to lock down defensive stops. Australia trailed by 10 points at the first change.

The Boomers were able to get a few more defensive stops in the second quarter, but they could not chew into the lead. Doncic found himself trapped every time he got the ball, and had to either force up a tough shot or hand the responsibility to his teammates. However, Slovenia still led by nine points at the main break, and was in full control of the game.

Australia continued to get things back on track in the third quarter, rallying behind some Joshua Giddey brilliance to bring things back to a manageable margin. The Boomers were still struggling to shoot from behind the arc, but were creating looks in the paint to whittle away at the deficit. Heading into the final quarter, Australia trailed by just four.

Giddey continued to lead his team’s charge, bringing the Aussies to within two points at one stage. However, poor defence brought all that work undone, as Slovenia grabbed control of the match in the closing minutes, with the margin ballooning out to 19 points, essentially sealing the result as the Boomers fell by 11 points.

Doncic led the way with 19 points for Slovenia, while Giddey tried his hardest with 25 points, eight rebounds and four assists.

In the days other results, Italy downed Serbia in a two-point thriller, Germany claimed a big win over Georgia, while the United States emerged victorious against Montenegro. Latvia snagged a five-point win over Spain in an upset, Puerto Rico delivered a five-point victory against the Dominican Republic, Lithuania was dominant in a huge win over Greece, and Brazil downed Canada in another boilover.