Israel stuns Spain in Euro championship
National team beats Spanish opponents 85:77 paving the way to the next stage
Israel's national basketball team achieved an impressive victory Sunday evening, beating powerful Spain 85:77 in a crucial European Championship game.
The victory brought Israel one step closer to the next stage in the tournament, and the team must now await the outcome of the final game in the group between Serbia and Latvia.
A Latvian victory would automatically send Israel to the quarter finals, by virtue of being the top seed in its pool. A Serbian win would mean Israel would need to win another game to qualify.
National squad celebrates victory over Spain (Photo: AP)
The first three minutes of the game saw a complete lack of scoring by both teams, but Israel quickly began to stack up the points, beginning with a three pointer by Tal Burstein. The Israeli captain became the dominant scorer and passer within the first quarter, and finished the game with 19 points.
The Spaniards failed to find their offensive touch, and attempted to catch up with Israel throughout the game.
Strong fourth quarter
By halftime, Israel opened up a small 33:29 lead, and extended it during the third quarter, before Spain responded with six straight points, cutting the lead to two points. However, the third quarter ended with Israel on top 65:60.
The four quarter mostly belonged to Israel, which opened up a double digit lead, running away to 77:64. Spain tried in vain to come back but by the last moments of the game the victory was assured, with the final buzzer prompting a huge celebration on the Israeli bench.
In addition to Burstein’s big night, Israel got a strong effort from Gur Shelef, with 15 points, and forward Yaniv Green, with 11 points and some good work in the paint.
The latest victory, following a win against Latvia earlier and a defeat at the hands of powerful Serbia, gives the national team an opportunity to emerge as one of Europe’s top teams but requires the players to come up with more big efforts if they hope to move forward in the tournament.
So far, Israel has been able to overcome more talented squads with its team defense and tenacious performance on the court.
Notably, with two consecutive Euroleague championship victories, Israel's top team, Maccabi Tel Aviv, has already cemented its place in Europe's basketball hall of fame. However, the national team has had no such luck and has never won the European championship – up until now.
