MUNICH (Germany) - The stands in Ljubljana were packed to witness Goran Dragic's comeback. It was nothing short of amazing, the one-two punch of Dragic and Luka Doncic too hot to handle for derby opponents Croatia.

Slovenia won the game 97-69, advancing to the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 European Qualifiers Second Round. They are now up to 3-2, and cannot be caught by 1-4 Croatia in Group C.

Turning point: The moment Goran Dragic decided it was time to give the national team another go. The talismanic leader of the FIBA EuroBasket 2017 champions announced his national team retirement shortly after lifting the trophy in Istanbul, but five years later he came back for one more victory lap alongside Luka Doncic.

The 36-year-old point guard started the game with his usual mid-range trickery, and it felt like the arena was shaking with each new offense by coach Aleksander Sekulic's men. They put up 33 points in the first quarter, opening up a 25-point lead and never looking back.

Game heroes: Dragic finished with 19 points on 8-of-16 shooting, and also had 4 rebounds and 3 assists. Doncic was once again flirting with a triple-double in a jersey with Slovenia emblazoned on the chest, getting 21 points with 10 assists and 8 rebounds.

Honorable mention goes to Mike Tobey, not just because of his 16 points and 13 rebounds, but also because Slovenia were +27 with him on the floor. Considering the fact Ivica Zubac and Ante Zizic were the opposing centers, Tobey's numbers look even more impressive.

Stats don't lie: Croatia's interior defense was nonexistent. Slovenia shot 25-of-34 from the two-point range, getting to 74 percent from inside the arc. Croatia were 17-of-38, from the same distance, while also missing 11 free throws.

Bottom line: Slovenia are through, searching for a 4-2 record to carry over to the Second Round. They would reach it if they defeat Sweden on the road in their last game.

Croatia got 22 points from Mario Hezonja, but are in danger of dropping out as they host Finland in Rijeka next.

They said:

"Congratulations to team Slovenia. Tonight, they were excellent, with a special atmosphere in their gym. The game was finished in the first quarter. They have Luka and Goran, they were dominating with all other players and we could not defend them. We could not catch our game." - Croatia coach Damir Mulaomerovic

"Games like these, you can either write a book or keep it at no comment. Congratulations to Slovenia, we were not at the level to beat them tonight. But we will be, soon. We will keep preparing, we will keep working on our basketball, and I hope we will get to their level." - Mario Hezonja, Croatia

"Big thanks to our fans, it was just a unique and amazing atmosphere. We started with a perfect game, almost, the lead was big enough to finish the game in this fashion like we did. We found a way to say thank you to the fans in the best possible way." - Slovenia coach Aleksander Sekulic

"Amazing atmosphere, we have one of the best fans in the world and they were amazing. They whole gym was cheering all the time, it was amazing. But we really had to be ready for Croatia. They have big players, and it was a tough game. We did our job." - Luka Doncic, Slovenia

FIBA