VIENNA (FIBA EuroBasket 2017 Qualifiers) – Going into Gameday 4 of the FIBA EuroBasket 2017 Qualifiers, the situation could not be any tighter in Group B, where Austria, Germany and Netherlands all stand at 2-1 in the standings. The Austrians are playing host to the Dutch on Saturday night, having won the reverse fixture in the premiere, 75-72.

Rasid Mahalbasic is the motor propelling Austria in this race as one of the best-performing players in the Qualifiers, averaging 14.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per contest. But as fiba.com found out, the big man is not looking for praise. All he wants is to help Austria return to a EuroBasket Final Round after four decades.

"It is a must-win game for both teams. The Dutch will come out here and give their best." - Mahalbasic

FIBA.com: Is Saturday's game against the Netherlands the most crucial in this race now that three teams are tied at 2-1? Do you expect to see a more confident Dutch team than on the opening day? Is it sufficient for Austria to follow the same game-plan you had 10 days ago?
Mahalbasic: We are still in a good position to qualify, but we have to respect the opponent even if we beat them on their home court. Netherlands are a very offensive-oriented team who dominate the boards. With the win in Germany they regained their confidence. It will be a very hard game for us and it will be totally different than the previous one, because for both teams it's a must-win game. Our biggest problem in Netherlands was the rebounds, so we will try to change this and of course we will try to maintain the aggressive style we showed in the previous game. The Dutch team will come out here and give their best, so I believe it will be great game on Saturday night.

"With the changes coming to EuroBasket after 2017, this might be our last chance to make it." - Mahalbasic

FIBA.com: Your average player efficiency is 20.3 per game, you rank ninth among all players in the Qualifiers and only Jusuf Nurkic has a higher rating among centers. Are you currently at the best stage of your career and do you feel you can lead Austria to EuroBasket? Is this the right time for yourself and your generation, the guys you started with in Division B?
Mahalbasic: I will be 26 years old this year so I don’t feel that my career has reached its peak yet. We have been playing together as a team for several years, this is my eighth summer with most of these guys, and it would be great if these same people gathered again next summer [to play at the EuroBasket]. With the changes coming to EuroBasket after 2017 (the tournament taking place every four years), this might be our last chance to make it. Individual stats don't mean a lot right now, the only thing that is important is to meet our goal, which is to bring Austria to EuroBasket. The national team is moving in the right direction, it's fun to be here and work with the people around the team. There is always space to improve but we are on the right track.

FIBA.com: Is this Austria's best qualifying campaign during your time with the senior national team?
Mahalbasic: Right now it’s too early to say anything about that, from a player’s standpoint it will be the best summer campaign if we manage to qualify for EuroBasket 2017. But I can tell you that bringing coach Kestutis [Kemzura] and his staff to Austria changed a lot of things. In my opinion the federation made a big step forward with this move and the man who deserves the credit is Philip Trattner. It would be great to be rewarded with earning qualification to EuroBasket.

FIBA.com: You knew coach Kemzura well because you had worked together previously but the rest of your team-mates also seem to have adapted nicely to him, so how did he change Austria’s style of play and its team identity after he took the reins this year?
Mahalbasic: We had five weeks of hard preparations, with a lot of work on the court but also part of it off the court, in many different aspects. During the first days we had to adjust to the harder and longer workouts, as well as the different tactical approach. Coach Kemzura knows what he is doing and we are following his instructions and we believe that the way he shows us is the right one. So far we are successful and we will keep pushing and working until we reach our goal.

FIBA