Israel, Turkey, Spain and Germany: semi-finals and World Championship U23!

The preliminary rounds of the European Qualifiers for World Championship Men U23 ended with Israel and Spain at the top of the standings of their respective groups, followed by Turkey and Germany, which qualified them for the U23 World Championship that will take place next year in Chiba, Japan. France, Italy, and Poland will play for the 5th-7th place with the goal to claim a qualification spot.

TURKEY – ISRAEL 49-59

Most of the first quarter of the match between Turkey and Israel was a close game, with no points made in the first three minutes of the game. At the end of the first quarter, Israel took the lead creating a 9-points gap and closing the first half at 24-33. The Turkish team tried to close the gap in the second half, but to every point made, Israel counterattacked, closing the game at 49-56 and winning their third game.

Leaders

Amit Vigoda (ISR): 26 points, 13 total rebounds

Mücahit Günaydin (TUR): 14 total rebounds, 5 assists

Full Statistics: http://bit.ly/StatsMenU23_game7

ITALY – FRANCE 39-59

France led the whole game against Italy, which was able to keep the gap from the opponent under 10 points in the first half, closing it at 18-27. In the third quarter, France started gaining more distance, creating a gap of 28 points. In the last quarter, Italy took the lead with a partial of 15-7. However, this was not enough to overturn the game. France closed at 39-59, winning their first match in the preliminary rounds.

Leaders

Enzo Trabuchet (FRA): 25 points, 14 total rebounds, 3 assists

Manuel Gomez (FRA): 21 points, 15 total rebounds, 5 assists

Full Statistics: http://bit.ly/StatsMenU23_game8

SPAIN – GERMANY

Close first period between Spain and Germany, which ended 11-10. The second period saw Spain taking the lead and starting to gain advantage, closing the first half at 27-19. In the third period, the Spanish team created a comfortable gap of 17 points (48-31). Leading with a partial of 23-6 in the fourth period, Spain closed the game at 71-37, securing their second victory.

Leaders

Ignacio Ortega (ESP): 24 points, 5 asssits

Manuel Enrique Lorenzo (ESP): 13 total rebounds

Full Statistics: http://bit.ly/StatsMenU23_game9

RANKING after day 3 – end of preliminary rounds:

Group A

1. Israel

2. Turkey

3. France

4. Italy

Group B

1. Spain

2. Germany

3. Poland

Today’s schedule (17 June):

8.45: Poland – Italy

11.15: Israel – Germany

15.15: Spain – Turkey

17.45: Italy – France