Serbia's Nemanja Bjelica (L) and Lithuania's Jonas Valančiūnas. (Photo : Reuters)
Perennial contender Lithuania takes on three-time champions and 2009 silver medalists Lithuania in the second semifinals of the 2015 EuroBasket at the Pierre-Mauroy Stadium in Lille, France on Friday, September 18.
The two powerhouse squads will not only contend for a chance to face Spain, who earlier defeated France in OT, 80-75, in the final but they will also be fighting for an automatic berth to the 2016 Rio Olympics as the gold and silver medalists of this year's tournament will be awarded.
Head coach Aleksandar Djordjevic's men remain undefeated so far as they walked through Finland and the Czech Republic in the Round-of-16 and quarterfinals on their way to this clash with Lithuania.
They trounced the Czechs in the quarters, 89-75, behind the efforts of resident big man Nemanja Bjelica, who had 14 points and 10 rebounds in limited minutes to lead the rout early.
The substitutes were the stars of the night, though, as the starters rest to prepare for the semifinal. Power forward Zoran Erceg top scored for the Serbians with 20 while point guard Milos Teodosic had 12 points and 14 assists, as per TalkBasket.
Meanwhile, Lithuania went through the tough challenges of Georgia and Italy to set up the meeting with the Serbians.
Jonas Kazlauskas' side beat favored team Italy in their last game, 95-85, in overtime as Toronto Raptors' Jonas Valančiūnas fired 26 points and hauled down 15 boards to lift the Lithuanians to the final four, via Yahoo Sports.
The game would be a low-scoring one as both teams are known for their tough defenses anchored on their big men. It is up to point guards Teodosic and Mantas Kalnietis to orchestrate their offenses and drive their teams to victory.
Prediction: Serbia wins, 73-63
Serbia starting five: Ognjen Kuzmic (C), Nemanja Bjelica (PF), Nikola Kalinic (SF), Stefan Markovic (SG), Milos Teodosic (PG)
Lithuania starting five: Jonas Valančiūnas (C), Paulius Jankūnas (PF), Jonas Mačiulis (SF), Renaldas Seibutis (SG), Mantas Kalnietis (PG)
