A to Z of FIBA U20 Women’s European Championship 2016 in Matosinhos

NEWCASTLE (Paul Nilsen's Women's Basketball Worldwide) - It brought us one of the greatest and most unexpected Finals in youth basketball history as Matosinhos once again delivered some magic during the FIBA U20 Women's European Championship 2016.

A is for All-Star Five of Julie Allemand (Belgium), Cecilia Zandalisini (Italy), Aleksandra Crvendakic (Serbia), Laura Quevedo (Spain) and Raisa Musina (Russia).

B is for Bosnia and Herzegovina who made history by taking their first ever top-tier victory to ensure their Division A survival and then also took a second win.

C is for Competition system which witnessed Sweden remain in Division A on 1-6 and Slovak Republic relegated on 3-4. It just can’t be fair by any measure.

D is for different All-Star Five outside of Semi-Finals in Lisa Berkani (France), Melisa Brcaninovic (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Digna Strautmane (Latvia), Maria Fasoula (Greece), Kyara Linskens (Belgium).

E is for EuroBasket Women which I believe Portugal could host in 2021 or 2023, when their impressive recent youth generations have matured. It would be a great place for a major tournament as they really do love the women’s game.

F is for Final and the best I've seen at youth level in terms of unexpected drama, excitement, tension, crowd interaction and emotion.

G is for good luck to those who sustained serious injuries including suspected ACL victims Marzia Tagliamento of Italy and Embla Andersson of Sweden.

H is for Hungary who had drama of their own in Podgorica as Debora Dubei handed them promotion to Division A with a big triple. They joined Lithuania and Division B champions, Slovenia.

I is for Italy who almost completed a miracle with their eye-popping comeback from 19 points down in the Final. They came so close to a miracle which would have seen them go unbeaten and take the title.

J is for Jose Hernandez who won back-to-back titles with Spain and he deserves huge respect.

K is for keep practicing those ''high fives'!

L is for Laia Flores who must have ice running through her veins as she calmly scored the free-throws to get Spain over the finishing line against Italy.

M is for Matosinhos which is now synonymous with women’s youth basketball. It has hosted Division A tournaments at U16, U18 and U20 level. Congratulations for all that hard work.

N is for no major improvements on shooting percentages in the women's youth game. It continues to be a huge concern.

O is for only one player had previously scored 40 points in this competition, but Bosnia and Herzegovina's Brcaninovic became the second on a stunning 75 percent shooting display. She scored more than Germany on the final day.

P is for perhaps it will be recognised that two tough drives to the hoop in the last 90 seconds by Ainhoa Lopez Rodriguez and Helena Orts were the two plays that effectively won Spain the Final. Without them at such key moments, Italy's blue tidal wave would have sunk them.

Q is for Quevedo [Laura] who must have feared her Olympic dreams were over when she got injured, but the Spanish ace is hopefully going to still be in contention.

R is for Russia who were favourites and had the best players, but their chemistry was suspect. Third place was merely consolation for what should have been gold - or at least if they had played as a team.

S is for Spain who had to overcome no Angela Salvadores and losing Quevedo early in the Final. A remarkable effort that should not be overshadowed by Italy’s resilience and courage.

T is for Turkey who lost their first five games and then won their last two, including another last day controversial epic against Greece to survive.

U is for underperformers of the tournament and that was Netherlands - probably by their own admission. They ended up fighting for relegation instead of the title. At least it was only a disappointment, rather than disaster. France fell short too in sixth place.

V is for volunteers and some of the best in the business in Matosinhos - sincere thanks to you all!

W is for Wow! Almost 2,000 people, including all the players from other teams in the tournament, on their feet and chanting "MVP-MVP" for Zandalasini while the game was still in progress.

X is for 'X-Factor' and it was teamwork in the case of Spain.

Y is for youth basketball careers ending for many players. The harsh reality is that only a handful will ever get to wear their national jerseys with the seniors.

Z is for Zandalasini, now the first word absolutely everyone will utter when this tournament is mentioned in the future.

Paul Nilsen

FIBA

FIBA's columnists write on a wide range of topics relating to basketball that are of interest to them. The opinions they express are their own and in no way reflect those of FIBA.

FIBA takes no responsibility and gives no guarantees, warranties or representations, implied or otherwise, for the content or accuracy of the content and opinion expressed in the above article