FIBA 348
Best of the (basketball) net: Never Gonna Give You Up edition
Found in Ball in Europe’s meanderings online this week: A buncha stuff on Eurobasket, the Allen Iverson-in-Memphis deal, and what Ron Artest was doing on September 11th this year. Happy Surfing Sunday! As Eurobasket progresses, the Euroleague page on Facebook has naturally had capsule blurbs on the action posted this week, and a certain team’s […]
Momentum shift! (Or, fearless predictions for Eurobasket 2009 day six)
Two days may not seem like much in reality (thus the bliss of a three-day weekend); in Eurobasket 2009, the 48 hours off for Group F teams could prove to be the most crucial stretch of the tournament. Today’s thought: Beware shifts in momentum. Fearless predictions for tonight’s three matches follow. Turkey v. Spain. Turkey […]
Eurobasket 2009, day 3: What the hell happened to Lithuania? (Also, increasingly fearless predictions)
After Lithuania fell to unheralded Poland for its second consecutive Eurobasket loss against teams they really should have outclassed, coach Ramunas Butautas had some choice quotes for his team and the public at large. “We played terrible,” Butautas said, getting no argument from any quarter. “We had no defense, no offense. We lost our game.” […]
FIBA 2009 Hall of Fame class includes Chazalon, Ferrándiz, Big O
FIBA yesterday announced its 2009 Hall of Fame class and will induct 11 new members into the hallowed halls at Alcobendas (near Madrid) on September 22; a ceremony honoring the great figures of European ball will be held on September 20 in Katowice, Poland, before the Eurobasket 2009 finals. European luminaries in the class include […]
High marks for Lithuania in leadup to EuroBasket 2011
Though Team Lithuania suffered an unexpected and defeat at home in the final game of the FIBA U16 European Championship Men on Sunday, the country at least received some good news from off the court. FIBA Europe President George Vassilakopoulos held a press conference prior to the game along with secretary-general of the Lithuanian state […]
Team Spain takes U16 tourney, garners sixth medal in 2009
Congratulations this morning go out to – believe it or not – Team Spain, who managed to knock off host Lithuania in Kaunas, 70-64. Jaime Fernandez led all scorers in the final game, putting in 20 points just as he had in the semifinal against Serbia. For those of you keeping score at home, Spain […]
Best of the (basketball) net: Everybody's YouTubing edition
Was everybody YouTubing this week? Seriously, all the best basketball-related websites from tiny to massive/official have been plastered with YouTube clips as though it’s all part of a vast conspiracy to assist us in wasting valuable work time. Not that that’s a bad thing…
Donatas Motiejunas on FIBA U20 Euros: “I played bullshit here”
Over at heinnews.com runs an interview with Donatas Motiejunas, the center touted as the next international superstar to come out of Lithuania. The site contends that Motiejunas is “projected as the number three pick in the 2010 NBA Draft” in leading an interview that took place during the FIBA U20 Championship Men. When asked about […]
Underdogs France, Bosnia & Herzegovina draw first blood (Hungary wins, too)
In last night’s EuroBasket 2009 additional qualifying round games, favorites Italy and Portugal fell victim to upsets to immediately throw a handy spanner in the AQR works. It was Bosnia & Herzegovina 62, Portugal 56 in the Group A game (told ya Portugal was ripe for an upset – call it The Curse of Cape […]
Inaugural Champion U18 All-Star Game participants named
At the close of the FIBA U18 European Championship Men tournament last weekend, FIBA Europe announced yet another international event to put on the youth basketball calendar. Christened the “Champion U18 All-Star Game,” FIBA officials will gather together 30 of the top U18 players from Europe, including 24 from the championship tournament, to tip it […]
FIBA U18 men, U19 women tournaments wrap
FIBA’s U18 European Championship Men and U19 World Championship for Women wrapped this weekend, with Serbia topping France in the former, 78-72, and Spain succumbing to Team USA in the latter. In Metz, France, Serbia repeated their success of 2007, when their U18s won this tournament. In breaking pattern with the typical games of the […]
Betting on basketball: Lines on today’s championship games
Two international competitions close today, with Spain and USA battling it out in the FIBA U19 World Championship for Women in Thailand while Serbia and France vie for the FIBA U18 European Championship Men title. The lines, as provided by Ball in Europe sponsors Bet on Bet and Sporting Bet, respectively, imply that today’s action […]