Serbia defeat Kuol's Bright Stars to end history-making campaign

South Sudan’s historic first Olympic basketball campaign has come to an end, after a 96-85 loss to Serbia. 

The defeat left the Bright Stars, headlined by Sydney's Bul Kuol, with one win and two losses across the tournament, behind the United States and Serbia in Group C.

Greece claimed the final wildcard spot as the best third-placed finisher on points differential. 

It was a tough way to finish a memorable Olympics for South Sudan, after winning their opening game against Puerto Rico.

In one of the toughest groups in Paris, they then lost by 17 points to the USA, before Bogdan Bogdanovic (30 points) and Nikola Jokic (22 points, 13 rebounds) dominated proceedings in the final pool game.

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Kuol finished an impressive individual tournament with 11 points against Serbia, while JackJumpers championship player Majok Deng had 5 points in 10 minutes of action.

King #238 Jackson Makoi and Adelaide’s Sunday Dech both stayed on the bench during the Bright Stars’ loss. 

"I was scared of South Sudan before the game. They had a great tournament," Bogdanovic said.

"Respect to them. We've known them since the World Cup. They really got better."

South Sudan, who also included King #211 Kuany Kuany, finished the tournament in ninth place overall.