LONDON (Olympics) - Ana Lelas had good reason to be feeling down and out on Saturday after having a horrific shooting day in Croatia's loss to the USA. Instead, the 29-year-old was as optimistic as ever after her team succumbed to the reigning Olympic champions.
Lelas' positive outlook is understandable when you take into account the fact that she is back to full health and making history with Croatia as they take part in their first-ever Olympic Basketball Tournament for Women.
The small forward had a game to forget against the Americans, hitting only one of her 13 field goal attempts. But the team performed well, keeping the game close for the first three quarters before being on the receiving end of a 16-0 run that resulted in the 81-56 final scoreline.
"I think we played a tight game for 30 minutes and the last 10 minutes you could see their (the Americans') quality," said Lelas.
"I can't say we gave up, we didn't, we played until the end. They are the best team in the world. There is nothing else to say."
The result is an encouraging one for Stipe Bralic's team as they were easily beaten by this same USA team just last week.
"We played a week ago and they beat us by 50," Lelas recalled.
"But we knew today was going to be a different game. We came out and gave our best. Definitely it's encouraging that we were close for 30 minutes."
For Lelas, just being back out on the court is a pleasure in itself.
A year ago, she suffered an injury against Latvia in the First Round at EuroBasket Women and had to watch from the sidelines as her teammates went on an incredible run to finish an impressive fifth.
The fact of having had to miss out has only galvanised her to make sure her team does its very best.
"Last year when we finished fifth, it was the biggest result for Croatia but no one believed we would make it to the Olympics. Today we are here but we're not going to stop here," Lelas explained.
The way in which Croatia stayed close throughout the first three quarters will only boost Lelas and the team's confidence.
"Definitely we are more confident. We showed we can play with the biggest teams in the world so we have to keep this level of the game and push harder even with the teams that we have more chances to win," she explained.
"Our goal is to play the Quarter-Finals. I think that would be amazing.
"But if we keep this level like we played today, I think we can do something more."
Nevertheless, the 1.83m forward won't allow herself or her team to get carried away.
"For us the first step is the Quarter-Finals."
FIBA
