Finland will have a near home crowd behind them in Riga on Friday. Lauri Markkanen, Mikael Jantunen, Sasu Salin, Miikka Muurinen, and more have made history. As underdogs against Germany, they should be playing with house money. Emmet Ryan on how they can’t allow the occasion to overcome them.
Nobody put it better than Lauri Markkanen. You’ve got to enjoy the wins. After a far from impressive group phase in Tampere, Finland didn’t really expect to enjoy many more wins at EuroBasket 2025. It turned out coming to Riga did wonders for the Susijengi.
Now, Lauri Markkanen knows he’s got to stick by the other thing he’s said all tournament, Finland aren’t finished yet. There’s more to achieve. They’ve just got to know how to take it.
A different type of underdog
The eyeball test says Finland have the ideal underdog status. Germany ripped them a new one in the group phase of EuroBasket 2025 in Tampere. All the pressure is on them to not slip up against a team they devoured by 30 points.
Here’s the thing. Hope does extraordinary things to the soul. A 30 point defeat that gets followed up by Finland delivering the shock of the century against Serbia is a different kind of beast. Plus, again, they’ve got Lauri Markkanen on the floor for them. He’s the type of player that changes games.
It’s a neutral site but not the regular kind. Thousands of Finns made the journey for the quarter final on Wednesday against Georgia. Thousands more will have boarded flights since to see their first ever appearance in the medal round. If anything, this crowd will be hotter than the one they had in their home country. The Susijengi travel in hope but expect a miracle.
The wobble
Finland fans don’t need reminding of 2022. After Lauri Markkanen went beast mode in the round of 16, it looked like the Susijengi were going to do it again. This time it was the quarter final round against Spain. The lead hit 18 before the moment clearly got to them and Finland fell apart.
What Finland fans should be reminded of is the third quarter and the early part of the fourth on Wednesday against Georgia. The Susijengi looked to have broken Georgia and really just accepted it. When you’re in that position, in a knockout game, you’ve got to stomp harder.
The Susijengi were able to right the ship and the wobble may be the best thing that happened to them. The second time in the blinding lights and they overcame the moment. Now, they know what is required to finish the job. Mentally, that’s a big boost especially as they’ll have a most expectant crowd behind them for the EuroBasket 2025 semi final.
BallinEurope is ramping up its YouTube game this season. Subscribe to our channel now for player exclusives, analysis videos, and much more.
Movement may matter most
Germany are bigger, faster, stronger, more experienced, and, on paper, they’re just better. They’re also deeper. Now the next line Matthew McConaughey would say is that Germany don’t know Finland’s heart. They probably don’t but this is going to be more than a guts and glory job for the Susijengi.
They will lean on their Sisu but they should also realise that the athletic mismatches really aren’t as bad as they look. Elias Valtonen has gotten lots of praise for his big shots against Serbia. What most people have missed is the step-up in his one-on-one defensive play and his ability to maximise his length and movement.
Lauri Markkanen and Mikael Jantunen, as a tandem, can work really well at keeping Germany from overpowering them with numbers. Similarly, Miro Little’s focus on creativity and D coupled with the growing influence of Olivier Nkamhoua means that Germany’s ability to wear a team down can be reduced. The bodies are there to frustrate Germany.
BallinEurope has a book, a real life actual book called I Like it Loud, and you can buy it on Amazon now. It’s here as a book and here in Kindle form.
For Finland, this is uncharted territory. If they keep it all together, they might get to go on last at EuroBasket 2025 on Sunday.
Embrace being underdogs
This may be the part that’s toughest. Finland will have all of Europe rooting for them because everyone likes to see the little guy taken down the giant. Embrace it. For Finland to win, they need to know that they belong on that floor with Germany but also force the pressure to get to the favourites.
Lauri Markkanen is a hungry man. He won’t be happy settling for a shot at bronze. With Sasu Salin as the veteran, he can rally this side. Similarly Miikka Muurinen is made of more confidence than he is carbon. Finland have the players to rattle Germany.
The odds are against them and that’s a good thing. The Susijengi have saved their best basketball of EuroBasket 2025 for when they were counted out. This is a time for Sisu, a time for fire, and a time to just show what they can do.
Leave a Reply