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10 - 19
August 2017
1 Marcus Barnett (NOR), 5 Akos Kopacsi (HUN)
15/08/2017
News
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Hungary claw their way into the Quarter-Finals, Bulgaria extend Ukraine a helping hand

SOFIA (FIBA U16 European Championship 2017, Division B) - Belgium, Ukraine, Great Britain, Georgia and Hungary snatched up the last remaining Play-Offs tickets in the FIBA U16 European Championship 2017, Division B on Tuesday evening in Sofia.

These five national teams will join the already qualified Czech Republic, Greece and Netherlands in the Quarter-Finals, where they will battle for the medals, with a podium finish also earning promotion to Division A.

Hungary was the last team to jump aboard after coming out on top 79-65 in a head-to-head battle for a place in the next round against Bosnia and Herzegovina to claim second place in Group C behind Czech Republic in the standings.

After being behind for most of the game, the Hungarians turned the tables around with a strong fourth-quarter performance, outscoring their opponents 32-13 in the final frame of the contest. 

Peter Filipovity was instrumental for the winners with 17 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists in just 18 minutes of playing time, while Tamas Pallai and Benedek Kovacs chipped in with 13 and 11 points respectively.

U16 s pล™ehledem postupují ze skupiny #fibau16europe #rvisejakolev

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The Czechs inscribed their fifth victory in as many tries by defeating Ireland with a closer-than-expected 66-62 scoreline, while Slovak Republic downed Norway 73-47 to avoid a last-place finish.

Belgium did more than enough to lock up second place in Group A with an 89-63 victory against Iceland, Niels De Ridder leading the way with 25 points, 17 rebounds and 5 assists.

After losing close-fought games against Greece and Belarus, Iceland finished only fourth in the standings and will play in the Classification Games for 9-16th places.

Belarus ended the Group Phase on a high note by taking care of business 85-43 against the winless Romania, while Greece moved their marker to 5-0 with an impressive 111-39 hammering of Switzerland.

Ελβετฮฏα-Ελλฮฌδα 39-111 #FIBAU16Europe #HellasU16M @fiba

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Tournament hosts Bulgaria handed Ukraine a massive favor in Group B by forcing a three-way tie for second place in the standings with a 75-72 victory over Poland, who were consequently denied a place in the Quarter-Finals.

Ukraine were the main beneficiaries in this situation, sliding in to secure a Quarter-Finals spot with a convincing 96-64 win against Denmark with Serhii Melnyk turning in a great all-round performance of 13 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals.

Having locked in the top seed in advance, Netherlands capped their Group Phase performance with a 98-43 blowout against Cyprus, who finished rock bottom after failing to record a single win.

Group D leaders Great Britain formalized their place in the next round by eliminating Portugal with a 64-54 victory behind an 18-point and 10-rebound double-double by Tomiwa Sulaiman, while team captain Mate Okros also chipped in with 18 points.

Georgia joined the undefeated Brits into the Quarter-Finals with a one-sided 77-48 win over Kosovo, while the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia registered a 75-71 victory over Luxembourg to climb to fourth place.

Quarter-Finals pairings:

  • Greece v. Ukraine
  • Great Britain v. Hungary
  • Netherlands v. Belgium
  • Czech Republic v. Georgia

FIBA