VALETTA (Malta) - Andorra and Azerbaijan both advanced to the Semi-Finals of the FIBA European Championship for Small Countries 2022 after recording wins in the Qualification Games, on Friday.

Guillem Colom fired in 29 points to lead Andorra past Gibraltar in a 66-57 victory before Azerbaijan finished strong to beat San Marino 68-51 to complete the last-four lineup.

Andorra never trailed by more than a basket in their Qualification victory having jumped out to a 21-10 start. However, Gibraltar battled back and stayed in contention as they closed back within two points early in the fourth before Colom scored all the points in a pivotal 8-0 run.

Meanwhile, Azerbaijan were paced by 21 points from Amil Hamzayev with Jordan Davis adding 16 points as they produced a pivotal 19-0 run in the final quarter after San Marino had tied the game at 49-49 with 7:23 remaining.

Hamzayev scored eight points in a row during the dominant spell in the fourth with their opponents held scoreless until the final minute with the damage already done.

The Semi-Finals will take place on Saturday with Azerbaijan taking on the hosts Malta before Armenia meet Andorra.

FIBA