Latvia thump Greece, book first World Cup ticket
MUNICH (Germany) - Latvia will be playing at the FIBA Basketball World Cup for the first time after they dominated Greece 80-60 in Group I of the European Qualifiers to punch their ticket.
After the disappointment of missing the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 - their first absence from the continental showcase since 1999 - the Latvians extended their European Qualifiers winning streak to eight games to get into the World Cup.
The Latvians could only celebrate after Turkey beat Belgium 86-52 with the winning side keeping alive their hopes of also reaching the World Cup. Serbia also won as they fought past Great Britain 74-68 on the road.
Group I
9/18 games played
| GAMES | GAME POINTS | POINTS | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Team | P | W | L | % | For | Agt | +/- | FA | AA | |
| 1 |  Latvia* |
7 | 6 | 1 | 85.7 | 578 | 513 | 65 | 82.6 | 73.3 | 13 |
| 2 |  Serbia |
7 | 4 | 3 | 57.1 | 555 | 547 | 8 | 79.3 | 78.1 | 11 |
| 3 |  Greece |
7 | 4 | 3 | 57.1 | 549 | 535 | 14 | 78.4 | 76.4 | 11 |
| 4 |  Turkey |
7 | 3 | 4 | 42.9 | 550 | 528 | 22 | 78.6 | 75.4 | 10 |
| 5 |  Belgium |
7 | 3 | 4 | 42.9 | 467 | 504 | -37 | 66.7 | 72 | 10 |
| 6 |  Great Britain |
7 | 1 | 6 | 14.3 | 492 | 564 | -72 | 70.3 | 80.6 | 8 |
* Qualified for the World Cup
November 11, 2022
Greece 60-80 Latvia - Heraklion, Greece
Turkey 86-52 Belgium - Istanbul, Turkey
Great Britain 68-74 Serbia - Newcastle upon Tyne, Great Britain
Latvia race past Greece, book World Cup spot
Latvia remained one of the hottest teams on the continent as they raced past Greece 80-60 to extend their European Qualifiers winning streak to eight games. Luca Banchi's team never trailed in the game and charged ahead with an 11-2 start to the second half for a 14-point lead and never looked back.
Huans Karloss Strelnieks 💣🇱🇻#FIBAWC x #WinForLatvia pic.twitter.com/7VzqQHLhNW
— FIBA Basketball World Cup (@FIBAWC) November 11, 2022
Latvia improved to 6-1 in the group with Janis Strelnieks scoring 19 points to pace the win while Janis Timma had 17 points and Dairis Bertans chipped in 15 points. Greece dropped to 4-3 in the group as Nikos Gkikas and Kostas Gontikas both had 11 points.
Turkey bash Belgium, set up major showdown with Serbia
Turkey avoided a slip-up in their fight to reach the World Cup as they bashed Belgium 86-52 to set them up for a massive showdown with Serbia later in the window. Turkey led by double figures after 10 minutes and the gap was 43-27 at halftime and Ergin Ataman's men cruised to the win.
12 PTS at HT for Sadik Emir Kabaca. Bright future 🇹🇷🦁#FIBAWC x #WinForTurkey pic.twitter.com/LEb7XajPwL
— FIBA Basketball World Cup (@FIBAWC) November 11, 2022
Onuralp Bitim stuffed the stat sheet with 19 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists while Sadik Kabaca scored 16 points in helping Turkey improve to 3-4 in the group. Ismael Bako poured in 17 points to pace Belgium, who also are 3-4 after the loss.
The second set of games in Window 5 on November 14 will be crucial as Turkey travel to Serbia, who are 4-3; and Belgium host Greece, who are 4-3.
Serbia survive Great Britain scare
Serbia looked less than convincing but they survived a major scare against Great Britain with a 74-68 victory on the road. Serbia built a 10-point lead in the third quarter only to see the hosts pull within two points in the final minute. Ognjen Jaramaz converted a driving layup with 19 seconds remaining to decide the game.
Ognjen Jaramaz finished off the game with his late layup
Dusan Ristic paired 15 points with 11 rebounds and Danilo Andusic contributed 14 points in pushing Serbia to 4-3 in the group. Great Britain remained on one win at 1-6 as they could not take advantage of Gabe Olaseni's 20 points while Luke Nelson tallied 15 points, 9 assists and 6 rebounds in the defeat.
FIBA
