Latvia claim first Division B title to earn promotion

MATOSINHOS (Portugal) - Latvia have been crowned FIBA U18 European Championship 2023, Division B winners and will play in Division A next summer after taking down Belgium 75-69 in Sunday's Final.

It is the first time they have won the Division B event, while one-time winners Belgium registered their first-ever runner-up finish.

Belgium grabbed the lead briefly in the final quarter, but Latvia quickly got it back and went on a 14-5 run to seal the victory.

Roberts Blums recorded another strong performance with a game-high 23 points to go along with 9 rebounds and 2 assists, while shooting 9-of-18 from the field and 5-of-12 from three-point range.

Montenegro won the Third-Place Game as they battled back from 12 points down to Austria to win 85-80. This is Montenegro's fifth overall medal and their third third-place finish at the event. David Mirkovic posted 31 points and 7 rebounds in the victory, connecting on 10-of-16 shots from the field and 5-of-6 from three-point range.

David Mirkovic (right) of Montenegro

Elsewhere on the last day of the competition, Great Britain landed 5th place after beating Netherlands 95-94 thanks to Tyrese Lacey's totaling 22 points, 6 assists, 2 rebounds and 2 steals.

Romania secured 7th place in an 84-55 win over Slovakia as Andrei Oinaru scored a game-high 19 points. Portugal took 9th place over Bulgaria 85-61 behind Ruben Prey's 21-point, 18-rebound double-double.

Hungary edged past Iceland 84-81 for 11th place, while Estonia finished 13th after getting by Bosnia and Herzegovina 88-82, and there was a 15th place finish for Ukraine after they defeated North Macedonia 90-74 thanks to a 28-point, 10-rebound double-double and 81 percent shooting from Desmond Yiamu.

Norway grabbed 17th place with a 72-69 victory over Switzerland, Georgia was 19th after prevailing over Ireland 93-81 and finally, Kosovo avoided a last place finish by defeating Albania 85-64 for 21st.

Final standings

1. Latvia
2. Belgium
3. Montenegro
4. Austria
5. Netherlands
6. Great Britain
7. Romania
8. Slovakia
9. Portugal
10. Bulgaria
11. Hungary
12. Iceland
13. Estonia
14. Bosnia and Herzegovina
15. Ukraine
16. North Macedonia
17. Norway
18. Switzerland
19. Georgia
20. Ireland
21. Kosovo
22. Albania

FIBA