The Israeli national basketball team bowed out of the EuroBasket 2025 competition after an 84-79 defeat to Greece in the Round of 16 in the Latvian capital of Riga on Sunday night.
Israel found it hard to contain Greek-Nigerian NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo throughout the match, who dominated the game with 37 points and 10 rebounds.
Despite the Greeks leading the score line for most of the match, played at Arena Riga, Israel narrowed the gap to two points in the third quarter, Hebrew sports outlet One reported. But as Antetokounmpo returned from the bench, Greece solidified its attack and regained control until the final whistle.
“Israel put up a fight, but in the important minutes, Greece showed the character of a great team,” One quoted Greek media as saying.
Vassilis Spanoulis, Greece’s head coach, said after the match: “We controlled the game from the start. There were moments of lost focus, mainly in defense, but we knew how to find solutions. Despite a weak shooting day, we found a way to win. I commend the players for their mentality.”
Greek sports outlet SDNA reaped praise on the Milwaukee Bucks power forward/center, who “glided across the court. Greece realized it needed to tighten its defense, and Israel was stopped. Hurricane Antetokounmpo swept the opponent away. Greece is going all out for a medal.”
For Israel, Portland Trail Blazers power forward Deni Avdija led the scoresheet with 22 points, followed by the team captain, Hapoel Tel Aviv forward Tomer Ginat, with 15 and Hapoel Tel Aviv guard Yam Madar with 10.
Israel exited the EuroBasket having beaten Iceland, France and Belgium in the group stage, and narrowly losing to Poland 66-64. Israel’s national team had not previously advanced to the Round of 16 in over a decade in the European competition.
