TAMPERE (Finland) - Lauri Markkanen produced his second career 40-point game at FIBA EuroBasket as Finland dismissed Great Britain 109-79 in front of a sold-out crowd of 12,900 at the Tampere Deck Arena.
Markkanen had 29 points and 3 steals in the first half, and ended with 43 points, along with 4 steals in a breathtaking display that ignited the vocal WolfPack fans in attendance.
Turning Point
Finland held the advantage, but was unable to shake off a Great Britain side that wouldn't go away for most of the first half. However, a four-point play from Markkanen with 11.9 seconds left in the second quarter gave the hosts the necessary lift, and from there, they were in cruise control.
To Great Britain's credit, they didn't let their heads drop, and by the halfway point of the third quarter, they were shooting 47 percent from the field, but on this day, they found Markkanen and Finland too hot to handle.
TCL Player of the Game
We were witnesses to another moment of Markkanen magic in Tampere. Along with his jaw-dropping statline, he went 13-for-22 from the field and shot an outstanding 7-for-13 from three-point range for 43 points and also had 4 steals.
Markkanen was supported by veteran Sasu Salin, who also shot the ball well, going 7-for-9 from range for 21. Luke Nelson led Great Britain with 13.
Stats Don't Lie
All 12 of the Susijengi saw playing time and all registered at least a point, and they finished with 18 made three-pointers in the contest - one short of the EuroBasket record since 1995.
Bottom Line
Finland remains flawless in their own backyard. They prepare to face Montenegro on Saturday, who will be eager to secure their first win of the FIBA EuroBasket as the Round of 16 conversation begins its infancy. Great Britain will face Sweden in a pivotal battle between the two winless sides in Group B.
They Said
"I congratulate my guys for the way they recovered and the way they handled the situation from the tough game against Sweden, having a day off, and today they did a job, they were humble, they were fresh, particularly mentally even though Great Britain started well and they are a good team when you let them play and I felt that we were locked in," - Lassi Tuovi, Finland head coach.
"The team wasn't really happy with how we played in the first game, we all understood it and were very locked in and did enough to perform well," - Andre Gustavson, Finland.
"We have to try and find different ideas, different solutions. My team continuously fights, continuously battles, no matter what. But for all of us, we have got to try and find other ways when you're playing against [Markkanen], a player at that level, and he's carrying the scoring load for a team like that, we have to be more effective," - Marc Steutel, Great Britain head coach.
"[Lauri] had a great game against us; we did what we could. We made a lot of mistakes; there are things we can learn from, moving forward to the next game, that's all we can do now, and look forward to the next two, three games that we have," - Myles Hesson, Great Britain.
For more quotes, tune in to the official post-game press conference!
FIBA