MUNICH (Germany) - Ukraine defeated Georgia 79-66 in Riga, Latvia, making it a triple victory on the day. They won the game, they won the tiebreaker over Georgia and they advanced to the Second Round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 European Qualifiers.

From this perspective, pre-game fear of potentially being out of the Qualifiers seems way off. But being cautious was the reason the beginning of the game wasn't necessarily the most beautiful piece of basketball ever played.

"We knew the price of this game. Defensively we played quality basketball, but offensively, our decisions in some moments were unacceptable," coach Ainars Bagatskis explained.

The lead was changing hands throughout the first quarter, but as soon as the second stanza started, the guys in yellow figured it out and made it a one-way street the rest of the way. At least in terms of not allowing another lead change in the final 30 minutes of the game.

"Finally, with some patience and good decisions, we did what's most important - won the game, qualified," Bagatskis added.

Georgia's depth was always going to be challenged in this one. However, not even the biggest optimists on the Ukrainian squad could've predicted the difference in bench scoring. It was 46-8, with Vyacheslav Bobrov registering team-highs of 17 points and 8 rebounds after starting with the second unit.

"The most important thing for us was to qualify for the next round. We fight, all 14 players who are on the team, we stay on our path, just play our game," he said after the game.

"Thank you for all the fans here, but also in Ukraine. We're grateful for (their support), we played for them, that's the only one reason why we're here," the big man told in one breath.

Georgia had won the first matchup by five, 88-83. But this defeat drops them to 3-2 with a game against Spain at home still on their to-do list.

Ukraine climbed to 2-2 and still have to play both North Macedonia and Spain to close out the First Round. Owning a tiebreaker over Georgia could be a big deal in the Second Round, if everything goes according to Bagatskis' plans, that could be worth a place among the 12 European teams reaching the summit next summer.

Sergio Scariolo and Spain also expect to be there. They remained perfect in the First Round, now up to 4-0, and it was their 80-44 win over North Macedonia that actually pulled Ukraine through on the day.

Sebastian Saiz was once again enjoying his high energy starting role. The 27-year-old forward spent the last three seasons in Japan, and averaged more than 17 points and around 12 rebounds in each of those campaigns with Hitachi Sun Rockers, Chiba Jets and Toyota Alvark.

Putting on the Spanish national team jersey did not change his output - 19 points, 9 rebounds, all done in just 18 minutes of work.

"We started slow, and the beginning was my fault. I had trouble guarding the pick and roll, but after that we learned. Besides that, it felt great to be back here after two years that I didn't play any window games because I wasn't able to come from Japan. It felt great to be back with the national team, wearing this shirt, playing with teammates that we've played with our whole lives," Saiz said.

Playing against the bigs of Georgia and Ukraine will present a much bigger challenge for Saiz. But the way he carried himself on Friday, it seems like that will only make him enjoy being back with Spain even more.

The focus will have to be there. Even though the defending champs are safely through to the next round, there's a lot of difference between advancing with a 4-2 record or greeting the new opponents from the top with a 6-0 starting mark.

FIBA