VILINIUS, Lithuania--Russia made seven straight shots in the fourth quarter, cushioning a small lead. They still needed Sergei Monya's stunning banked three as time expired to clinch the win over Macedonia, 63-61.
Russia had a 58-51 lead that shrank to one with 3:31 to go. Viktor Khryapa cut to the basket, got wide-open, and received a pass that allowed him to break Russia's scoring drought. 60-57.
The lead changed hands after a pair of Bo McCalebb free throws, at 61-60. Russia is not a good free throw shooting team, at under 65%. But it was Macedonia that shot 10-of-18 from the line tonight.
