LIMASSOL (Cyprus) - Georgia avoided a slip-up before their final decisive game against Bosnia and Herzegovina as they rolled past hosts Cyprus 93-61 for a second victory at FIBA EuroBasket 2025 thanks to a masterful performance by Tornike Shengelia and Goga Bitadze.
Georgia improved to 2-2 in Group C and now head into their next game with confidence after taking care of business in the Spyros Kyprianou Arena in Limassol. Cyprus for their part fell to 0-4 in the group and are eliminated from contention for the Round of 16.
Turning Point
Cyprus were actually leading the game early in the second quarter before Georgia took charge with a 14-4 run to pull ahead 29-20 and added 10 straight points for a 39-24 cushion. And that decided the game.
TCL Player of the Game
Tornike Shengelia was an unstoppable force for the Georgians as the team's heart and soul poured in 27 points - 12 more than his combined total the first three games. He also collected 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals.
Goga Bitadze added 21 points, 13 rebounds and 3 blocks while Sandro Mamukelashvili chipped in 5 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists. Darral Willis had 19 points in the loss.
Stats Don't Lie
Georgia held Cyprus to just 20 percent shooting from long range while hitting 52 percent from the field themselves including 15 three-pointers at a 44 percent clip.
Bottom Line
Georgia still have everything to play for in their quest to reach the Round of 16 as they face off against Bosnia and Herzegovina in their final game of the group. Cyprus have one more chance to get their first victory in EuroBasket history as they take on Italy.
They Said
"We found some open looks, we made some shots. The game is a little easier when you are making threes - especially for us because our strength is the inside game. I believe that we showed enough energy on defense."- Aleksandar Dzikic, Georgia
"We tried to keep the rhythm high. We knew that if we give Cyprus confidence that they could become a problem because they fight all the time. They shoot well too. So we wanted to kill their confidence from the beginning and I think we did a good job with that." - Tornike Shengelia, Georgia
"It was really amazing. We had a good game with good defense and good offense. We have one more game and that will be the key for us or Bosnia and Herzegovina. We have to play defense like we did today. It was a good warmup." - Giorgi Shengelia, Georgia
"It's very tough, maybe people don't know but these players here are used to winning. Not on this level. But they are winners. They are used to winning titles and competing at Europe. Coming and playing at such a level at the end of the day, you lose but you have to keep fighting. And to keep doing that takes mental toughness. It's not easy but they do it.." - Christoforos Livadiotes, Cyprus
"We are not always used to the fan support in the Cyprus league, but it's a pleasant surprise that we see the crowd involved and making a push and helping us out - in good and bad moments. We need that, especially on this level. Hopefully we're going to build something to keep in the future and future games with the national team." - Simon Michail, Cyprus
For more quotes, tune in to the official post-game press conference!
FIBA