France secure spot in Quarter-Finals at U20 European Championship

LIGNANO SABBIADORO (2015 U20 European Championship Div. A) - France on Tuesday became the fourth team to book a Quarter-Final place at the U20 European Championship, while Croatia and Bulgaria were relegated to Division B of the competition.

Second Round
In Group E, France were superb during long stretches and clinched a stress-free 70-47 win over Israel that earned them a spot in the last eight of the tournament.

Petr Cornelie and Timothe Luwawu had 14 points each for France, the latter also adding eight boards and five assists.

Serbia recovered from a sluggish start and made their free throws in a tight finale to pick up a 76-74 win over Belgium, their sixth success in as many games.

Marko Tejic paced Serbia with 17 points and eight boards while Nikola Rebic added 15 points.

In the late game in Group E, Latvia delivered their best performance at the U20 European Championship to storm past tournament hosts Italy 82-51 and avoid dropping out of the race for a Quarter-Final berth.

Kristaps Gluditis poured in 21 points and Rolands Smits added 17 to lead the Latvian charge.

The still undefeated Serbia lead Group E on 4-0, France stand at 3-1, Belgium dropped to 2-2 while Israel, Latvia and Italy are now all tied at 1-3.

In Group F, Spain extended their unbeaten streak to six games as they assumed control in the second half to register a 68-62 success over Lithuania.

Alberto Martin came up with his best game in the tournament to lead Spain, as he collected 22 points on four-for-four from beyond the arc.

Turkey meanwhile withstood a late assault by the Czech Republic and claimed their third consecutive win, 75-67.

Okben Ulubay had the hot hand for Turkey and finished with 24 points, also adding seven rebounds.

In the game that concluded Tuesday action in Group F, Germany stayed alive in the race for a quarter-final berth by claiming a hard-earned 61-52 win over Ukraine.

Christian Sengfelder paced Germany by registering his first double-double in the tournament, of 16 points and 12 rebounds.

Spain and Turkey, who meet on Wednesday, lead Group F on 4-0 each, the Czech Republic stand at 2-2, Lithuania and Germany are tied at 1-3 while Ukraine dropped to 0-4.

Classification Round for 13th-20th places
In Group G, Russia inflicted an 83-71 loss on Croatia behind a 24-point display by Ivan Viktorov while Great Britain enjoyed a 77-51 rout of Bulgaria, on the back of a 17-point showing by Luke Nelson.

Great Britain and Russia, both at 2-0, will continue in the battle to maintain Division A status while Croatia and Bulgaria, both at 0-2, can no longer avoid relegation.

In Group H, Bosnia and Herzegovina survived a late rally by Poland and clinched a 66-62 win, thanks to a 16-point effort by Dejan Ivkovic.

Slovenia meanwhile abolished a seven-point lead in the last two minutes of regulation but finally managed to outlast Greece, 78-72, after double overtime.

The Slovenes now lead Group H on 2-0, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Poland are tied at 1-1 while Greece have slid to 0-2.

Go to http://u20men.fibaeurope.com/en/ for complete coverage of the 2015 U20 European Championship Div. A.

FIBA