FIBA Basketball

    Gritty Greece triumph on home soil

    Game Report

    CRETE (FIBA U20 European Championship 2017) - Hosts Greece claimed their first title in eight years after a decisive victory over Israel in the Final to celebrate in front of their beloved fans.

    CRETE (FIBA U20 European Championship 2017) - In front of their adoring home fans, Greece celebrated their first FIBA U20 European Championship in eight years with a 65-56 victory over Israel in the Final.

    Turning Point: After trailing by 12 points in the third quarter, Israel engineered a brave fightback to get within 4 points moments before the end of the third. However, an astonishing long three from Nikolaos Diplaros on the buzzer stretched Greece's lead to 7 and gave them the momentum. Israel never threatened again.

    Game Hero: Vasileios Charalampopoulos faced double teams almost every time he entered the post but his all-round influence was still pronounced. He finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals to cap a brilliant tournament.

    Stats Don't Lie: Greece was superb defensively, especially displaying active hands. They had 11 steals to Israel's 4.

    In their Words: "It is amazing to win and I am so happy. We played great defense and we really played aggressively. I was happy to hit a few threes and help us win the title." - Antonios Koniaris 

    You can also follow how the day's action unfolded by reflecting on our Live Updates. 

    Check out full game replays on YouTube.com/FIBA. 

    ...

    FIBA