Latvian U18 basketball team loses to Slovenia in round of 16

Latvia's U18 basketball team suffered a 76-86 defeat to Slovenia in the round of 16 of the European Championship on Saturday, July 29, ending their medal hopes.

The match started poorly for Latvia, with only four points scored in the first six and a half minutes, allowing Slovenia to take a double-digit lead. By halftime, Latvia had managed to close the gap somewhat, but Slovenia's star player Stefan Joksimović had already scored 19 points, giving his team a 45-37 advantage at the break.

Latvia came out strong in the third quarter, going on a 20-2 run in just over five minutes to take a ten-point lead. However, Joksimović answered with two three-pointers in under a minute, and the game became tight again. The teams traded leads until midway through the fourth quarter, when Slovenia scored five points in two consecutive possessions to regain control.

In the final minutes, Joksimović continued to dominate, scoring on a last-second shot in the shot clock and then throwing down a spectacular dunk, giving Slovenia a five-point lead with 84 seconds left. Latvia was unable to recover.

For Latvia, Roberts Rotčenkovs was the top scorer with 20 points and seven rebounds. Ralfs Mūrnieks added 15 points and six rebounds, while Raivo Kudrjavcevs contributed 13 points. For Slovenia, Stefan Joksimović, projected as a top-ten pick in next year's NBA draft, scored 30 points.

Latvia will now compete for 9th-16th place. Their next opponent in the classification quarterfinals will be Denmark, who previously lost 86-100 to Israel.