After the 4th matchday at the European Basketball Championship, it is clear that Group A is in for an extremely exciting final. Giannis Antetokounmpo put a big exclamation mark on the final.
Belgium had recently caused a stir when they surprisingly beat Spain. Now it was against Turkey, who are still dealing with the chaotic match against Georgia and therefore now also want to go to the International Court of Arbitration for Sport CAS. On the floor, however, the Turks kept their cool this time, winning 78-63 against the Red Devils and will now determine the winner of Group A on the last matchday in a direct duel with Spain, who are level on points and who for their part gave Montenegro a dominant 82-65 thrashing.
The last matchday in the group promises to be really exciting, because Bulgaria came back with a 92:80 win over Georgia and can now climb up to one of the first four places in the final match on Wednesday against Belgium. The same applies to last-place Georgia, which can overtake Montenegro in a direct duel.
Decisive match between Bosnia and Lithuania perfect
This relay is of great interest from a German point of view, as the DBB giants’ opponent in the last 16 will come from there. While Germany can already keep an eye on the knockout round, Lithuania’s aim was to avoid a historic exit from the preliminary round. After three opening defeats, the three-time European champions were doomed to win against Hungary. At the end of the game, the Balts were relieved to see the scoreboard show an 87-64 win over bottom-placed Hungary.
The team around NBA stars Jonas Valanciunas and Domantas Sabonis had France to thank for the fact that they still had a chance to reach the last 16. The Equipe Tricolore defeated the up-and-coming Bosnia-Herzegovina 81-68 to qualify for the knockout phase after Germany and Slovenia. Lithuania and Bosnia, meanwhile, will determine the last ticket in Group B on Wednesday for the final round in Berlin, which starts on Saturday.
For the Slovenians – after their narrow but deserved 88:80 victory in the top match against Germany – it’s all about winning the group against France (17:15). If the defending champions beat the French, they will finish first. For the DBB team, it’s all about securing second place against underdog Hungary (8.30 pm). However, first place is still possible: if the Germans win as expected against Hungary and the Slovenians lose to the French, then the DBB will still have the chance to win the group.
Monster game by Antetokounmpo
Meanwhile, Greece consolidated their first place in Group C in Milan. Giannis Antetokounmpo played monstrously well against the previously unbeaten Ukraine: In the end, the “Greek Freak” finished the game with an incredible 41 points and 9 rebounds in front of his NBA teammate Khris Middleton – the 27-year-old thus achieved the eleventh best scoring performance ever at a European Championship; the record is held by the Belgian Eddy Terrace with his 63 points against Albania in 1957. Incidentally, in joint fourth place is Dirk Nowitzki, who poured in 43 points against the Spaniards in 2001.
Previously, winless Estonia kept their chances of advancing alive with a 94-62 win over Great Britain. The British, however, are out. Italy also wanted to avoid an early exit, and they succeeded. The Azzurri beat Croatia 81-76 in a hard-fought game. The win moved Italy up to third place in the table and, given that they face the British at the end of the preliminary round, they have excellent prospects of progressing.
Poland book decider against Serbia
Poland remain the surprise in Group D. The “White and Reds” struggled for a long time against the Netherlands, but kept their cool in a close match and won 75:69. The Poles, for whom Michal Sokolowski stood out with 24 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists, thus secured their ticket to the last 16 and even have a chance to win the preliminary round against the favourites Serbia on Thursday.
Oranje, who began to have problems with their strength as the game progressed, will have to bid an early farewell to the European Championship after four defeats in four games. The same fate threatens hosts Czech Republic, whose hopes of staying in the tournament for a longer period deteriorated visibly after the 88-98 loss to Finland – Lauri Markkanen shone with a double-double (34 points, 10 rebounds) – despite home advantage.
Serbia did not show any weakness against Israel in the evening and won thanks to a fantastic first half with 89:78. Superstar Nikola Jokic shone for the third time in a row with a double-double (29 points and 11 rebounds). Remarkable: The centre scored 20 points before halftime – with a shooting percentage of 100 per cent.