The Serbians, the Rio 2016 Olympic silver medallists behind the United States, eased past Italy 83-67 as they seek a fourth continental crown and a first since 2001.

They took control in the second quarter and led by 11 points at half-time, with Bogdan Bogdanovic then notching 14 out of his 22 points in the final stanza.

"It is the most solid defence we have played in this tournament," Serbia coach Aleksandar Djordjevic said. 

"This is what we worked on and get our strength from. 

"Our players were extremely focused. 

"We knew they are great shooters and we did a great job on their best players."

Serbia's reward is a last four clash with Russia, whose victory at the Sinan Erdem Dome in the Turkish city was a lot more tight.

They came through 74-69 against Greece after trailing by 10 points midway through the second quarter.

Aleksei Shved scored 22 points in the second half but the result was not secure until the final seconds.

Shved was benched by Russia coach Sergey Bazarevich for the last two minutes, a decision which seemed surprising but ultimately paid off.

"We wanted to have more muscle in the end, to get stops, and we succeeded," Russia coach Sergey Bazarevich said when explaining the substitution.

"He was ready to come in for offence but it worked out."  

The first semi-final will be played tomorrow with Spain taking on Slovenia.

Serbia and Russia will then lock horns on Friday (September 15).

The final and third place play-off are scheduled for Sunday (September 17).

The tournament was co-hosted by Finland, Romania and Israel before the knock-out stages, which are taking place in their entirety in Istanbul.