RIGA (Latvia) - Back in 2001, Hedo Turkoglu was the star of the team that reached the Final of FIBA EuroBasket. In 2025, he was the first to jump from the courtside seat to congratulate his compatriots on reaching another Semi-Final.
Türkiye defeated Poland 91-77 to stay perfect and registered seven straight EuroBasket wins, tying their longest ever streak in this competition.
They've made the Semi-Finals for only the second time in the national team history, and are now waiting for the winner of the Greece vs Lithuania matchup.
Turning Point
Poland started the game strong and held Alperen Sengun scoreless in the first 10 minutes.
But once he scored his first points, it felt like it was the turning point as it not only ignited the crowd, it also derailed the Polish plans for the rest of the game.
Since his dunk, Türkiye closed the first half with a partial score of 22-10, going from a one-possession lead to a 46-32 advantage at the break.
While Poland did everything in their power to make the battle more interesting, they could not come closer than -8 with three minutes left to play.
TCL Player of the Game
Stojko Vrankovic unofficially did it in 1993, Toni Kukoc officially did it in 1995, and was joined by Andrei Mandache in 2017, Mateusz Ponitka in 2022 and Luka Doncic in 2025.
Add Alperen Sengun to the list, and you have all the triple-doubles in FIBA EuroBasket, since rebounds and assists started getting tracked in 1995.
The 23-year-old center wearing #23 had 19 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, while also stealing the ball three times.
An all-round performance by the NBA All-Star, marking his seventh game of 15+ points, 5+ rebounds and 5+ assists in this EuroBasket.
Stats Don't Lie
The idea to stop coach Ergin Ataman's guys is to hold them to a low-scoring effort. Poland failed to do that, allowing them 46 points in the first half alone.
Why is that in this section of the game report? Because this win means Türkiye are now 12-0 when scoring 45+ in the first half in this century.
Bottom Line
It wasn't all fun and games for Türkiye, as Cedi Osman injured his foot in a collision with Mateusz Ponitka, as he was trying to block the shot under the rim.
Osman left the game midway through the third quarter, but returned and entered the game with five minutes left on the game clock.
Poland tried zoning on defense whenever the ball went to Alperen Sengun, sending traps or doubles when he put the ball down and dribbled, but the big guy is simply unstoppable, dishing out four assists to start the game, one prettier than the other.
With their fans up on the feet behind the bench all game long, coach Igor Milicic's players refused to give up, fighting until the final buzzer.
This was their second straight Quarter-Finals appearance in EuroBasket, but they could not repeat the success of 2022 when they finished fourth.
Mateusz Ponitka had 19 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds in a losing effort.
They Said
"It's what I've been preaching from the beginning. I think we're a very talented group, we can beat you in many different ways. That just goes to show how talented we are, one through 12, we have guys who can come in and win games, and I think we showed that tonight." - Shane Larkin, Türkiye, about having seven players in double digits
"It's our time. Every day, we are showing it. We're not just winning the games, we're enjoying playing basketball. We got two more games left, hopefully, we'll play our best basketball." - Furkan Korkmaz, Türkiye
"If I know Cedi, for sure he will be on the court." - Türkiye head coach Ergin Ataman, hoping Osman will be at 100 percent ahead of the Semi-Finals
"I'm a team player. I'm gonna do whatever it takes to win." - Alperen Sengun, Türkiye
"It wouldn't mean anything if we would've lost today. I'm happy we won, I give my everything on defense and offense, and I'm just happy. What more can I say?" - Sengun, again
"We will celebrate a bit, then we're gonna watch them and get ready for those two teams. Two great teams, we just gotta prepare for them." - Sengun, about Greece and Lithuania
For quotes, tune in to the official post-game press conference!
FIBA