EUROPEAN BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT : Sabonis Lifts Lithuania to Victory Over Croatia

Arvidas Sabonis had 33 points and 16 rebounds to lead Lithuania’s comeback for a 99-89 victory over Croatia in the European Olympic qualifying basketball tournament Monday at the Prince Felipe Pavilion.

Sabonis, the starting center on the Soviet Union’s 1988 gold-medal Olympic team and a two-time NBA draftee, added three assists and two blocked shots as Lithuania improved to 2-0. Results against first-round opponents carry over into the final round, and only the top four teams in this eight-team round-robin will advance to the Olympics in Barcelona.

Croatia fell to 0-2.

In other games, Detlef Schrempf scored 29 points to help Germany (2-0) overcome a halftime deficit and defeat Israel, 85-71, and Atlanta Hawk forward Alexander Volkov finished with 30 points to spark the Commonwealth of Independent States (1-1) to an 88-60 rout of Czechoslovakia.

Slovenia (1-1) beat Italy, 91-78, behind Slavko Kotnik’s 25 points.

Trailing by 10 points during the first half and by six with 10:20 to play, Lithuania went on a 14-6 run that turned the tide. Arturas Karsinovas’ three-pointer with 6:12 to go and a free throw by Golden State Warrior guard Sarunas Marciulionis completed a four-point play that gave Lithuania a 74-72 lead.

Croatia, meanwhile, managed only one field goal over the next 3:42 and gradually slipped from contention. New Jersey Net guard Drazen Petrovic led the Croats with 30 points before fouling out, and forward Dino Radja added 19.

Earlier, Schrempf, a two-time sixth man of the year award winner with the Indiana Pacers, played all 40 minutes and made 12 of 17 shots from the field. He also added 14 rebounds, five assists and two steals, and keyed an 8-0 run late in the second half.

Nevertheless, the Germans trailed, 43-40, at intermission as Israel sank six three-pointers.

“Israel is a very difficult team to play,” Schrempf said. “A big team like ours always hates to play small teams like Israel that stay outside and just take perimeter shots. We had to make some adjustments to counter that at halftime.”

Volkov led four players in double figures for CIS. The 6-foot-8 forward also had 13 rebounds and three steals. Also playing a key role was Valery Tikhonenko, who had 17 points.

Slovenia, the surprise winner of its first-round group after Yugoslavia was banned from the competition, built a 12-point halftime lead behind Kotnik’s 16 points and never let up.

Peter Vilfan added 20 points and Jure Zdovc, a starter on the Yugoslav national team before the nation’s split-up, had 17.