Quarter-Final field set in Podgorica

21/08/2018

Review

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Quarter-Final field set in Podgorica

PODGORICA (FIBA U16 Women's European Championship 2018, Division B) – The Quarter-Final field at the FIBA U16 Women's European Championship 2018, Division B was set in stone on Tuesday, with Belarus, Finland, Israel, Romania and Sweden moving into the next round of the competition in Podgorica.

The trio of Greece, Portugal and Slovenia had already locked up Play-Off berths and will also continue their promotion campaigns after Wednesday's rest day.

Sweden knocked out the tournament hosts Montenegro

The Matilda Ekh-led Swedes eliminated the tournament hosts Montenegro in Group A with a 76-48 victory in a must-win game for both teams. After a close-fought opening quarter, Sweden broke away to a double-digit lead with a 26-5 run in the second quarter, setting themselves up nicely for the second half.

Ekh posted a game-high 17 points and 10 rebounds for Sweden, Julia Nystrom chipped in with 15 points after knocking down four triples, while Marija Lekovic had 13 points and 7 boards for Montenegro.

Having already secured the top spot in Group A, Greece rounded out their Group Phase performance with a dominant 58-24 victory. Meanwhile, Iceland defeated the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 64-55 and finally got on the board in the tournament.

Finland eased past Ukraine in their last game of the Group Phase

Finland and Belarus snatched up the two qualification spots in Group D with convincing wins over Ukraine and Albania, respectively. The top-placed Finland registered a 77-35 victory to move to 5-0, with top scorer Janette Aarnio collecting 16 points and Teresa Seppala adding 11 of her own.

Belarus improved to a 4-1 mark and finished second with a 105-24 rout of Albania, while Norway earned a spot in the Classification Games 9-16 after topping Bosnia and Herzegovina, 62-45.

Israel completed the Group Phase without a single hiccup

Israel completed the Group Phase without a single defeat, registering their fifth consecutive victory in Group C in a 52-38 contest versus Ireland to clinch the number one seed. Despite going 5-of-19 from the field, Yarden Garzon finished as the top scorer with a 13-point, 11-rebound double-double with 4 steals and a couple of blocks.

The result allowed Romania to finish second in the standings, following their 77-44 victory against Kosovo, while Switzerland got the better of Luxembourg with a 59-48 scoreline.

Having locked in the first spot in Group B at the end of last week, Portugal moved to a 4-0 mark with Maria Lopes leading the Mariyana Kostourkova-coached side to a 67-47 victory over Slovakia with a game-high 14 points. In the other game of the group, Estonia defeated Bulgaria 73-57 to finish third with a 2-2 record.