FIBA is investigating a shocking and unprecedented turn of events at the 2023 FIBA U18 European Championship in Nis, Serbia on Saturday,

The Polish and Turkish junior teams decided to play the final five minutes of their game in non-traditional fashion. They passed the ball behind the 3-point arc and committed several shot clock violations in the game's waning moments so players won't increase the risk of injury, per ESPN's Jonathan Givony.

Poor playing conditions resulted in several incidents and injuries during the controversial game. Torrential rains in Serbia produced unbearably humid conditions inside the Mika Antic elementary school gymnasium this past weekend.

The game began to unravel in the third quarter. Turkish guard Yagiz Aksu lost his footing and injured his groin while he was dribbling the basketball. The injury forced Aksu to sit out the remainder of the contest. Team physicians also ruled him out for Turkey's game on Sunday.

The Polish team also had its own casualty in power forward Jakub Szumert. He smashed his chest onto the slippery parquet floor after a loose-ball situation. Szumert collapsed and fainted while he was walking to Poland's bench. Emergency responders rushed him to a nearby hospital for further observation.

Players from both teams thought officials would call the game off after the Szumert incident so they shook hands. To their shock, FIBA referees and officials decided to continue the last five minutes of the game.

The Turkish and Polish players then decided not to compete at a high level from that point onward to prevent further injuries. Parents and fans applauded them as the game clock wound down. The 78-63 score in favor of Turkey remained unchanged in the game's final five minutes.

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Surprisingly, the France vs. Sweden game took place in the same venue immediately after the Turkey vs. Poland match. Fortunately, nobody among the French and Swedes sustained injuries.

FIBA's controversial 2023 continues 

FIBA acknowledged its mistake almost one day after the controversial match between Turkey and Poland, per Givony.

“The game between Poland and Turkey should have been stopped by game officials because of the adverse conditions inside the gym,” FIBA wrote in an email to ESPN on Sunday. “Our competitions department will investigate this matter to understand why it was not done.”

This isn't the first time FIBA has stirred controversy this year. New San Antonio Spurs franchise cornerstone Victor Wembanyama called out FIBA five months ago. Wembanyama mentioned on his Instagram post FIBA allegedly published a “fake interview” about him.

With that, let's hope FIBA gets its act sooner than later.