Center Timofey Mozgov scored 18 points and grabbed eight rebounds Friday to help defending champion Russia beat Croatia 62-59 in the second round of the European Basketball Championship. Tied at 55 with a minute to play, Russia hit seven of 10 free throws down the stretch to pick up the win in Group E. “Obviously this was a defensive game and we were just a little better defending the post than they were,” Russia coach David Blatt said. Center Mario Kasun scored 13 points and had six boards to lead Croatia, which shot just 35 percent from the field. “Russia played good defense, very tough and every play was difficult to execute,” said Croatia forward Nikola Vujcic. “We spent a lot of energy on defense, because Russia is a very strong and athletic team, and maybe that hurt us on the other side of the court.” Russia next plays Greece Sunday, and Croatia takes on France. In another Group E matchup, Greece beat Germany 84-76 behind 20 points and 7 assists from guard Vasileios Spanoulis. The Greeks took control in the middle of the first half with a 9-2 run to open a 31-22 lead and then held off a late charge from Germany to remain undefeated at the tournament. “Germany played a great game and gave us a lot of problems,” Greece coach Jonas Kazlauskas said. Germany guard Heiko Schaffartzik led all scorers with 23 points. “We played very well and we could have won the game, but at the end they kept making shots and always had answers for what we did,” Schaffartzik said. Also, France pounded an overmatched Macedonia 83-57 to remain unbeaten at the competition. San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker led the French on a 17-3 run to open the game and France cruised from there, shooting 64 percent in the first half to lead 49-18 at the break. Forward Florent Pietrus and reserve guard Nando De Colo each scored 14 points to lead five French players in double figures. The top four teams in Group E and Group F advance to the quarterfinals.
