TRENTINO (Italy) - Italy and Slovenia will be playing for the championship at the FIBA U18 EuroBasket 2026 after winning their Semi-Final matchups on Saturday.
Italy's win featured an unlikely comeback and then a three-point winner at the buzzer in overtime, while Slovenia dethroned the reigning champions Spain.
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Key Storylines
Italy rally from -14 down to beat France in OT on Di Meo triple at the buzzer, advance to Final;
Slovenia dethrone Spain thanks to Joksimovic-Ciperle duo;
Germany, Greece stay in running for FIBA U19 World Cup spot;
Bulgaria and Slovakia relegated.
Di Meo buzzer-beating three in OT sends Italy to Final
Hosts Italy reached the Final of the FIBA U18 EuroBasket with a thrilling 80-77 overtime comeback win over France as Edoardo Di Meo drained a corner three-pointer at the buzzer.
Italy trailed 63-49 with 5:30 minutes left in regulation before a 15-1 run to knot the game 64-64 - Federico Bottelli hitting the game-tying three-pointer with 56 seconds left.
In the extra period, Louka Letailleur evened the game 77-77 on a three-pointer with 0.8 seconds to go. That was enough time for Di Meo to collect the pass from Botelli in the left corner and hit the game-winner.
Di Meo finished with 22 points while Bottelli and Cheickh Niang both had 16 points and Gabriele Lastella added 14 points and 8 rebounds for the Italians.
The French, who have not won the U18 title since 2016, will look to somehow bounce back from this loss as Hugo Yimga had 14 points to lead the way.
Slovenia will take on Italy for first title
Slovenia fought off defending champions Spain 90-71 to reach the Final and set up a date with Italy. It will be Slovenia's second appearance in the title bout since 2002, when they took second place.
Slovenia led 56-55 at the end of the third quarter but took command with nine straight points for a double-digit lead at 65-55. That was the foundation for the win as Slovenia had an answer for every Spain attack.
Stefan Joksimovic stepped up yet again with 26 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists while Maks Ciperle totalled 16 points and 7 rebounds for the Slovenians. Spain could not take advantage of Diego Niebla scoring 32 points.
Top Performers
Spain gave a good fight in the Semi-Finals but ended up losing to Slovenia 90-71 and will next play against France in the Third Place Game. Diego Niebla was a real force for the Spaniards with 32 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
Bulgaria were relegated to Division B as they lost 87-81 to Latvia in the Classification 13-16. Kristiyan Zanov did all he could for the losing side with 22 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 5 blocks.
Germany did a good job bouncing back from their Quarter-Finals loss to France by fighting past Türkiye 74-69 in Classification 5-8. Leonard Kroger was massive for the Germans as he totalled 12 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal and 1 block.
Serbia took care of business in the Classification 9-12 with a comfortable 70-54 win over Denmark. Nikola Karalic did some of everything for the Serbians with 20 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals and 1 block.
Estonia will be playing against Serbia for ninth place after knocking off Lithuania 80-69 in Classification 9-12 action. Sten Adamson poured in 25 points to go with 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 steals.
Results of the Day
Semi-Finals
France 77-80 Italy Slovenia 90-71 Spain
Classification 5-8
Israel 64-84 Greece Germany 74-69 Türkiye
Classification 9-12
Denmark 54-70 Serbia Estonia 80-69 Lithuania
Classification 13-16
Latvia 87-81 Bulgaria Slovakia 61-75 Austria
Final
Slovenia vs Italy
Third Place Game
Spain vs France
Classification 5-6
Greece vs Germany
Classification 7-8
Israel vs Türkiye
Classification 9-10
Serbia vs Estonia
Classification 11-12
Denmark vs Lithuania
Classification 13-14
Latvia vs Austria
Classification 15-16
Bulgaria vs Slovakia
FIBA