EILAT (FIBA U20 Women’s European Championship 2017, Division B) - There are only four teams left in the race for promotion at the FIBA U20 Women’s European Championship 2017, Division B, with Belarus, Croatia, Germany and Slovak Republic making up the numbers in the Semi-Finals after surviving the Group Phase in Eilat.

Croatia, who secured the top spot in Group B after tournament hosts Israel inflicted damage on previous group leaders Belarus, will take on Group A runners-up Germany, with Group A winners Slovak Republic taking on the Belorussians on the other side of the bracket.

The winners of the Semi-Finals will receive direct tickets to Division A, while the losers will get a chance at redemption and will play it out for the final promotion spot in the third-place game.

Israel were on the cusp of a major upset against the previously undefeated Belarus, but the Volha Podabed-coached side staved off elimination by taking a 72-68 loss that still put them through as the second seed in Group B.

After leading by double digits for most of the game, the hosts were outscored 20-8 in the final quarter and couldn't get the necessary 11-point victory margin to advance.

Tal Lev had 19 points and 8 rebounds for Israel, while Anastasiya Sushchyk turned up with 20 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals.

The result created an opportunity for Croatia to move into the top spot in the group, which they gladly took by routing Great Britain 72-38 behind another magnificent performance by Andrea Maric, who finished the game with 14 points, 13 rebounds and 5 blocks.

In a game that didn't change things much in the grand scheme of things, Romania secured fifth place in the group with a 69-61 win over bottom-of-the-group Ireland.

There was plenty of drama in Group A too, with the already-eliminated Czech Republic doing Germany a massive favor with a 75-73 win in an overtime thriller against Greece, who were subsequently knocked out.

After clawing back into the game at the end of regulation, Greece were left heartbroken in the extra period with Natalie Stoupalova's last-second game-winner keeping them out of the Semi-Finals.

Greece star big Maria Fasoula was the game's leading scorer with 18 points, 13 rebounds and 5 assists, but it wasn't enough to counter an excellent team display by the Czechs.

Earlier in the day, Germany did their part to advance by registering a 53-36 victory against Iceland, Satou Sabally leading the way with 15 points, 7 rebounds and 5 steals.

Meanwhile, the defensive-minded Slovak Republic cruised to a 57-37 victory against their Ukrainian counterparts to clinch pole position in Group A, holding an opponent to under 40 points for the second time in the tournament.

Miroslava Mistinova finished the game with a team-high 12 points and 5 assists for the winners, while Ukraine star center Olga Yatskovets collected a double-double of 15 points and 15 rebounds, with 3 steals.

Israel and Great Britain will match up with Greece and Czech Republic, respectively, at the start of the Classification Games for 5-8th place, with Ukraine, Iceland, Ireland and Romania battling for 9-12th positions.

FIBA