MUNICH (Germany) - The FIBA EuroBasket 2029 Pre-Qualifiers continued on Monday, with Slovakia and North Macedonia maintaining their unbeaten start.
There were three sides eager to get off the mark in the competition before play resumes again in July.
Slovakia go 3-0 with success over Albania
A clinical fourth quarter saw Slovakia see off Albania 94-68 as they maintained their perfect record in Group C after three games.
Despite leading from the third minute of the game, Slovakia looked too comfortable in the third as the Albanians seized an opportunity to claw their way back and trail 64-57 heading into the fourth.
But their joy was short-lived as the Slovaks outscored the hosts 30-11 in a sublime show of offensive execution that Albania couldn't contend with.
David De Julius hit five triples for 26 points to lead the winners. Xhuljan Tola and Celis Taflaj had 16 apiece for Albania.
Jakimovski stars as North Macedonia make it four straight wins
North Macedonia recorded a 78-70 come-from-behind victory away to Azerbaijan as Andrej Jakimovski shone once again for the unbeaten side.
Jakimovski led the way with 22 points, 8 rebounds, 4 of those boards coming on the offensive glass, as the visitors had to fight from 18 points down in the second quarter to battle back late on and score a priceless win - and move closer to securing qualification.
Wesley Van Beck shot 50 percent from the floor as he posted a game-high 23 points for Azerbaijan.
Bulgaria hit Armenia for 40 in the fourth for the win
Bulgaria powered past Armenia in the fourth quarter to win 100-80 and go to the top of Group B.
In a closely fought contest for the first three periods of play, the Bulgarians went up a gear, which proved too much for Armenia to handle, as they outscored their opponents 40-24 in an offensive bombardment.
Pavlin Ivanov and Yordan Minchev blazed the trail for Bulgaria with 24 and 22 points, respectively. The latter pulled down 9 rebounds.
Darius McGhee hit six three-pointers for a game-high 35 points to lead Armenia, who dropped to 0-3.
Ireland hold off Luxembourg for first win
Ireland finally got off the mark in Group A, edging Luxembourg 91-85 in Dublin, but they had to withstand a nervy start to the fourth quarter before pulling away late on.
And it was a deserved win as the Irish led for the vast majority, with Neal Quinn leading the way with 22 points on 9-for-10 shooting, along with 14 rebounds. The result was also a fitting end to Ireland icon Jordan Blount, who played his last game before international retirement.
Clancy Rugg had 23 points and 11 rebounds for Luxembourg as they dropped to 2-2.
Daily Highs
Efficiency: Neal Quinn (Ireland) - 36 Points: Darius McGhee (Armenia) - 35 Rebounds: Neal Quinn (Ireland) - 14 Assists: Konstantin Toshkov (Bulgaria) / CJ Fulton (Ireland) - 12 Steals: Multiple players - 3 Blocks: Matthew Zona (Ireland) - 5
FIBA