The Tall Blacks have seen their Olympic qualifying hopes dashed by a 104-78 defeat to Slovenia, as they struggled to contain NBA superstar Luka Doncic.
Well placed after edging Croatia in their tournament opener, New Zealand could have progress to the semi-finals with a similar result against Slovenia, but were never in the hunt, falling 27-9 behind after the opening quarter.
They rallied over the second quarter to close within seven points at halftime and six points in the third quarter, before conceding 13 unanswered points, as the game slipped away from them.
"Results matter, we're all disappointed with the way the game has gone," said NZ coach Pero Cameron. "I think we fought back the end of the second quarter and showed fight, but we just couldn’t get stops in the third and fourth quarters.
"It’s tough to absorb and watch. We had plans [for defending Luka], and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.
"He's a great player and we respect him for that, but I think immediately we put ourselves in trouble with early fouls and when you get to the bonus really early, it's hard to play defence."
Doncic compiled a triple double of 36 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. Kiwi point guard Shea Ili continued his outstanding form with 28 points, including 3/4 from the arc and 11/15 from the free-throw line.
The Tall Blacks could have advanced with a nine-point loss. The result left all three teams tied with a win apiece, but the size of the Tall Blacks' defeat left them third in their group, with Croatia and Slovenia advancing.
The NZ men have not appeared at the Olympics since Athens 2004.
Slovenia 104 (Doncic 36, Nebo 20, Prepelic 14, Hrovat 14) NZ 78 (Ili 28, Le'afa 12)
