SOFIA (FIBA U16 European Championship Division B 2016) - The Quarter-Finals are all set in Bulgaria. Russia will face England, Czech Republic are up against Ukraine, Israel play Belarus, and Slovenia battle Belgium.

Russia had already secured first place in Group A prior to the last round of group play. Their 67-47 loss to Portugal did not influence the standings. Francisco Amarante filled up their basket with 20 points, 18 of those coming from beyond the arc. Diogo Peixe had 11 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for Portugal, who finished fourth in the group.

Belarus won the direct battle for second place against the Netherlands. Their 70-63 success brought them a date with unbeaten Israel in the Quarter-Finals. Vadzim Stubeda finished with 18 points and 14 rebounds, David Odiah also had 18 points, and German Plotnikov collected an all-action 15 points, seven assists, six rebounds and four steals. Also in Group A, Denmark defeated Luxembourg 73-67 to avoid last place.

In Group B, Israel were tested, but held on to their perfect record with a 61-58 win over Ireland. Alon Druker hit the triple with just over a minute left, and Ireland had four possessions to close the gap or tie the game, but none of their shots found the target. Ireland stayed in fifth position in the group. Tomer Levinson had a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds for Israel.

England secured second place with a 69-38 triumph against The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Jacob Round led the way with 17 points. Hungary finished in third place with an 88-47 win over Scotland, as Andras Dancsecs collected 23 points.

Besides Israel, Slovenia are the only other unbeaten team at the championship. Rok Radovic had 20 points, seven rebounds and six assists in a 96-48 win against Norway, which clinched first place in Group C for Slovenia.

Ukraine and Romania went head-to-head in a direct fight for second place, and Ukraine came up 78-58 on top. Denys Klevzunyk put on a performance of the tournament, scoring 31 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the field, including 5-of-10 from long range. Kosovo finished fourth in Group C following their 66-51 win against Austria.

Czech Republic secured first spot in Group D with an 85-62 win over Iceland. Vit Krejci connected on 6-of-9 attempts from three-point range to finish with a game-high 22 points. Noel Coleman channelled his inner Klevzunyk with 30 points for Belgium in a 92-67 win over Bulgaria, to finish second in the group and book a place in the elite eight. Georgia ended Slovak Republic's hopes of reaching the Quarter-Finals with an 84-61 win.

The teams will now enjoy a day off, and Russia and England kick off the Quarter-Finals schedule at 12:45 CET on Thursday. Czech Republic and Ukraine play at 15:00 CET, followed by Israel and Belarus at 17:15 CET. Slovenia and Belgium take to the court at 19:30 CET. The top three teams will be promoted to Division A.

FIBA