By Angelica Medina
LILLE, France (Reuters) - South Sudan coach Royal Ivey was highly critical of the officiating as his side's Olympic basketball dreams came to an end as they failed to qualify for the men's quarter-finals in a heartbreaking loss to Serbia.
Serbia beat South Sudan 96-85 in their final Group C match on Saturday. The Africans finished third, but Group A team Greece took the last quarter-final spot on points difference as one of the two best third-placed teams with Brazil.
"I need an answer. Explain it to me. I'm baffled," said Ivey, citing the difference in free throws and fouls between the two teams.
"My guys are out there giving their all - blood, sweat, and tears. And you tell me how we shoot six free throws. We shot one free throw in the second half. One free throw in the second half?"
"I had dialogue (with the referees), but they wouldn't talk to me. They gave me a technical (foul) they told me they were worried about my bench standing up.
"They were worried about me crossing the line instead of refereeing the game. What is me crossing the line having anything (to do) with it, with the game?
"My guy goes up for a shot, they go underneath him. They are grabbing jerseys. So call them both ways then.
"I'm not one to complain and bicker about calls and stuff. But It was blatant tonight. It was very blatant. And I had to keep my cool because (they) threatened to throw me out of the game," the former NBA player added.
The South Sudan team known as the "Bright Stars" become Olympic battlers thanks to the work of former NBA All-Star and president of the country's basketball federation Luol Deng, who made a call to have more African referees.
"I don't know why there are no African referees at the Olympics. This is 2024. I don't know what the reason is ... if we’re representing the continent, we have to be represented fully.
"If these referees don't know our game or our style, then I don't know what the World Cup or the Olympics are. Is it just a European style of basketball? We can't be aggressive."
Deng agreed with Ivey and considered the calls against his players were "deliberate and blatant" because they could not be as aggressive as the Serbians.
"We couldn't be as aggressive as they are. I know that Serbia is known for basketball. They've been great for many years. The way of their style, the way they play, it's almost like the ref knows them. As soon as our guys play their style, we're getting fouled every time," said Deng.
"I'm not here to make excuses. We are going to keep on working and I guarantee you we will be back and we will be better ... but it was not fair tonight," he added.
(Reporting by Angelica Medina in Lille; Editing by Neil Fullick and Ken Ferris)
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