Estonia crushed by Finland in World Cup qualifier, Drell apologizes to fans

Estonia's national basketball team suffered a heavy setback in its FIBA World Cup qualifying campaign, losing 67-96 at home to Finland on Sunday at Tallinn's Unibet Arena, just days after a 67-85 road defeat to Hungary.

The loss dropped Estonia to fifth of six teams in Group L despite having three wins, after Slovenia's Sunday victory pushed the Estonians into last place. France leads the group with seven wins, followed by Finland with five, and Hungary and Sweden with four each. Only the top three teams advance further.

Estonia started strongly, building a 10-2 lead and later a 34-26 advantage in the second quarter, but Finland responded to lead 38-35 at halftime. The third quarter proved decisive as Estonia's offense stalled while Finland pulled ahead with runs of 8-0 and 11-3, leading 66-46 entering the final period. Finland extended the margin further in the fourth quarter to seal a 29-point win.

Kristian Kullamäe led Estonia with 15 points, while Kregor Hermet was the only other Estonian in double figures with 10. For Finland, NBA star Lauri Markkanen finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Olivier Nkamhoua and Edon Maxhuni each added 18 points. Estonia shot just 37 percent from the field and 26 percent from three-point range, compared to Finland's 52 and 37 percent respectively.

Forward Henri Drell, who combined for just six points across the two recent games along with eight turnovers, took full personal responsibility afterward, publicly apologizing to Estonian fans and stating that neither the coaching staff nor other circumstances were to blame for the team's struggles.

Estonia's next qualifying game will come in the following window, with the team needing a marked improvement to keep alive its hopes of reaching the FIBA World Cup, scheduled for August-September 2027.