Latvia’s U18 women face Slovenia in round of 16 after Serbia routs Croatia
Latvia’s U18 women’s basketball team finished third in Group D and will meet Slovenia in the round of 16 on Wednesday. Serbia’s 93-51 win over Croatia denied Latvia a chance to take second place.
On Monday, August 3, the group stage of the European U18 women’s basketball championship ended at the Kista exhibition centre in Stockholm. Latvia’s U18 side finished third in Group D with a 1-2 record. On Wednesday, August 5, at 21.30, Latvia will face Slovenia, the second-placed team from Group C, in the round of 16. Tuesday was a rest day for the teams, with the round of 16 scheduled for Wednesday.
Coached by Rūdolfs Rozītis, Edgars Ikstens and Mudīte Gūtmane, the Latvian team could still finish second or third after losing 70-73 to Poland. A second-place finish would have been secured had Croatia beaten Serbia by a margin of one to 12 points. Instead, Serbia crushed Croatia 93-51, confidently taking second place. Latvia therefore remained third, while Croatia ended the group without a win.
Final Group D standings: Poland 3-0 (+35), Serbia 2-1 (+23), Latvia 1-2 (+1), Croatia 0-3 (-59).
In Group C, the battle for second place lasted until the final seconds. Slovenia needed to beat Turkey by nine points to move up, and that is exactly what happened – 62:53.
The winner of Latvia’s round-of-16 game will meet the stronger team from the France-Sweden pairing in the quarter-finals.
