RIGA (Latvia) - The first day of play at the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 is ahead of us with the event tipping off in Tampere and Riga.
Six games await in what promises to be an action-packed curtain-opener, with the 12 teams from Groups A and B getting their campaings underway.
Who is going to start off strong and who'll have to wait until Friday to get on the right track?
Key Storylines
Lithuania and Great Britain get the action underway in first game;
Porzingis and Sengun clash in Riga, as hosts Latvia welcome Türkiye;
Neighbors clash in Tampere with red-hot Markkanen taking on Sweden.
Group A: Porzingis vs Sengun on the menu
Hosts Latvia are headlining the opening day in Group A with arguably the biggest matchup of the day as the host Türkiye in what will be a sell-out crowd in Arena Riga. Kristaps Porzingis and Alperen Sengun will be the ones in the spotlight, with the hopes of their nations resting on their broad shoulders. Tournament favorites Serbia are will get their campaign up and running against Estonia, while the stakes in the game between Czechia and Portugal will reach fever levels with somuch on the line.
Did you know?
Kristaps Porzingis is back at the FIBA EuroBasket after taking part in 2017. That year, he had the best scoring average among players averaging under 30 minutes per game with 23.6 PPG.
Serbia have won 14 of their last 15 games in the Group Phase of the FIBA EuroBasket whereas Estonia have lost the opening game in each of their last three entries.
Vojtech Hruban has scored 205 points at the EuroBasket and with just four more he will overtake Lubos Barton as Czechia's third best FIBA EuroBasket scorer since gaining independence.
All information has been provided by Opta.
Group B: Can anyone stop the Finnisher?
Lauri Markkanen is the hottest hand in Europe. At least that's what the friendly games seem to suggest, with the Finnish superstar dropping not one, but to 40+ performances in the exhibition circuit. The EuroBasket hosts begin their journey in Tampere against Sweden. World champions Germany will be aiming sky-high, but face a tough challenge from Nikola Vucevic and Montenegro, while Lithuania and Great Britain will do the honors of lifting the curtain in the very first game of the event.
Did you know?
Nikola Vucevic will take part in his fourth FIBA EuroBasket, a Montenegro record that he'll share with his teammate Vladimir Mihailovic.
Lauri Markkanen has scored 312 points in just 13 FIBA EuroBasket games. The only player who reached 300 or more points faster is Radivoj Korac who did it in 11 games.
Lithuania's Jonas Valanciunas needs just eight more rebounds to reach the fourth spot at the FIBA EuroBasket all-time list since FIBA collects this data.
All information has been provided by Opta.
FIBA