MUNICH (Germany) - The First Round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup European Qualifiers brought high suspense, drama, and unparalleled excitement.
And with the Second Round on the horizon, we've selected five moments that made fans across Europe drop their jaws in disbelief.
Sargiunas activates T-Mac mode in London
Lithuania's Ignas Sarguinas produced nine seconds of unbelievable magic that is still talked about today.
With his side seemingly down and out against Great Britain, who looked set to beat Lithuania for the first time ever, Sargiunas saw hope. His first triple came with 9.9 seconds left and his team down 87-80.
GB could only split their following free throws, and Sargiunas nailed another three-pointer to make Lithuania believe, only down 88-86 with 3.5 seconds to go. Then, after a turnover, Sargiunas zipped up court and buried a dagger three on the buzzer for an 89-88 win to send the heavy Lithuanian crowd in London into raptures.
Sargiunas finished with 27 points and, in the process, created a magic moment in world basketball, along with the likes of Reggie Miller and Tracy McGrady.
Satoransky sets assist mark
Czechia's Tomas Satoransky broke the all-time World Cup Qualifiers assists record, which was set just a few days previously.
Satoransky put his name at the top of the all-time list with 16 assists, along with 18 points on 7-for-9 shooting, securing a 97-92 win and improving his side's record to 2-0 heading into the second window.
The Czech guard has made a name for himself with elite passing and led the World Cup 2019 in assists with 8.5, the most among players who appeared in all eight games.
France survive Hungary on Francisco game-winner
Sylvain Francisco proved the game-winner for France in a tough battle against Hungary on the road. The French had led by 12 points over previously unbeaten Hungary with 7 minutes to play, but the hosts roared back and evened the game 71-71 with 4.7 seconds left.
Francisco showed why he is the French captain as he collected the inbounds pass and drained a three-pointer from the right side over Gyorgy Goloman to give France the win 74-71. Francisco was only 1-of-5 from deep before the game-winner and he ended with 10 points and 5 assists.
"Loydowski" delivers dagger for Poland
Jordan Loyd is building quite a following in Poland - where they affectionately call him "Loydowski" - and the guard gave another reason for fans to love him in the second window against Latvia.
With just 3.7 seconds left in Riga, Loyd collected the inbounds pass and drained a stepback three-pointer as the final buzzer sounded for an 84-82 victory. Loyd finished with 37 points including 7 three-pointers.
The 37-point performance was the third highest scoring game by any player in FIBA Basketball World Cup European Qualifiers. And, Loyd's seven triples were just one off the record of eight by fellow Polish player AJ Slaughter and Italian Amedeo Della Valle.
Brito ties three-point record with eight triples
Diogo Brito had a night to remember as he led Portugal to a 99-82 home triumph over Romania with a record-tying eight three-pointers. Brito finished with 32 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists for an efficiency of 36.
Brito's 8-of-10 three-point shooting pulled him even for the single-game record in World Cup European Qualifiers, joining Poland's AJ Slaughter and Amedeo Della Valle of Italy.
Fridriksson buzzer-beater stuns Lithuania
Lithuanian basketball fans undoubtedly were having nightmares of Elvar Fridriksson in the aftermath of their showdown with Iceland in the second window. The sniper helped finish a miracle Icelandic comeback with a buzzer-beating jumper for an 86-85 home win.
Lithuania were leading by 21 points with 7 minutes left, but Iceland refused to give up and took the lead with 73 seconds left. Lithuania reclaimed the lead on Ignas Sargiunas' two free throws with 6.9 seconds remaining.
But Fridriksson took the ensuing inbounds pass, sidestepped and faked to get Sargiunas in the air and calmly hit the mid-range jumper at the buzzer for the crazy win. Fridriksson ended with 34 points and 6 assists.
Romania beating Greece leads a First Round filled with upsets
Who doesn't love an underdog? An unexpected win raises eyebrows and creates buzz. None more so than Romania's 73-66 win over Greece during the Third Window.
With 51 places separating them in the FIBA World Ranking Men, presented by NIKE, Romania delivered a dramatic comeback win, closing the game with a 22-8 run in the fourth quarter, after Greece controlled the tempo for much of the game and took a 58-51 lead heading into that decisive final period. It capped a woeful Window for Greece, who also stumbled against Portugal 71-56.
That was just two shock results in a First Round littered with surprises. Namely, Latvia going down 86-78 and Hungary downing Finland 89-82.
There was a near shocker in Belgrade during the First Window, Serbia edged past Switzerland 90-86 in Belgrade; they had to come back from 23-points down to do so. The Swiss led 57-34 at the half, a shocking score, before the Serbs recovered to outscore their opponents 56-29 for the win.
Hezonja records a triple-double on record-breaking night for Croatia
An historic triple-double from Mario Hezonja was just one of many landmark moments during Croatia's win over Cyprus.
Hezonja had 11 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds, all in 29 minutes, becoming the first player to record a triple-double in the FIBA Basketball World Cup European Qualifiers in the current format.
But that wasn't all. Hezonja's 12 assists were part of the team's 43 in total, with Croatia breaking their own record of 32 set against Cyprus in 2025.
The win formed an offensive clinic unlike any other, on the way to the biggest-ever winning margin in World Cup Qualifiers, and they also tied the scoring record in Europe in beating Cyprus 123-50, less than an hour after Poland had set the new mark in a 123-77 victory against Austria.
Shengelia drops 37 on Spain
Tornike Shengelia led Georgia to an unbelievable comeback win over Spain, where they trailed by as many as 22 points before forcing overtime and edging to victory.
Shengelia posted 37 points on 13-of-24 shooting, including 6-of-11 from beyond the arc, 10 boards and 4 steals also added to his name.
With that points haul, he tied Jordan Loyd's mark for most points in this campaign, while only Dennis Schroder (38) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (40) have scored more than Shengelia in a single game in FIBA Basketball World Cup European Qualifiers history.
Jokic adds name to the triple-double list in unforgettable homecoming
It had been more than a decade since Serbia's Nikola Jokic last stepped on the court at Belgrade's Pionir Arena, and he was determined to make the most of it.
Stepping onto Belgrade's iconic arena as captain, Jokic delivered a masterful triple-double performance with 20 points on 6-for-10 shooting, 10 rebounds and 11 assists to guide the Serbians to a 94-81 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
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