Lithuania win the ticket to the WC - Aug 4, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel

Jasaitis is going to the WC

  Yugoslavia win the 7th place - Aug 4, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel

Sekulic shined

   Quarterfinals, Aug.2, 2002:
Croatia - Greece 80-81
Greek NT got a narrow 1-point escape as they defeated Croatia 81:80 in the European Championship Quarterfinals.
L.Milanovic, the Head Coach of Croatian NT: "The Greek team played a superb game. In the 3rd period our opponents managed to gain a 17-point margin. Though we were able to catch them up and even outweigh the result. But at the end we felt short off accuracy as well as concentration. It's a great pity we've lost. The players are deeply disappointed that's why they didn't come to the press conference."
N.Keramefs, the Head Coach of Greek NT: "We were eager to get to the Final Four, thus we planned the game accurately. Firstly, we tried to defend very carefully. But still didn't avoid certain downs in our play. I was disappointed that the Head Coach of Croatian team didn't shake the hands. I hope for even better performance in the upcoming games."
K.Kaimakoglou, Greek NT: "The fight was tough from the very beginning, but I think we played a better game. We kept our dominance during the whole game. If M.Popovic had hit the last shot it would have been dishonest. Now our goal is to improve our play in each game."

Slovenia - France 73-84
M.Becirovic, the Head Coach of Slovenian NT: "We knew that would be a tough game as our team is much weaker physically. We tried to switch on zone defense but that didn't help. Our opponents got 22 offensive rebounds. With 2-3 min remaining the result was quite satisfying, yet we didn't manage to keep it."
M.Bursic, Slovenian NT: "I agree with the coach completely. We demonstrated a normal play in the 35-36 min, but the end was very unsuccessful and we lost. Congratulations to the French team."
R.Billant, the Head Coach of France NT: "We were worth of getting to the Semifinals. We knew that Slovenians played a reasonable game. We started well defensively and managed to gain a 10-point advantage. But Diaw and Evtimov's fouls were worrying and I had to substitute them, which caused some sort of destruction in the team. Thus the Slovenians got close. The 2nd half of the game was very persisting. At the end we strengthened our defense and that was the right choice for our win."
B.Diaw, France NT: "It's been the best game of our team in the Championships from the offensive as well as defensive point of view. Only the foul efficiency is really worrying, but that's mainly my fault  -  I hit 2 foul shots out of 9. One of the main reasons of our win  -  our wish to play as well as we can after Slovenian NT finished leading Group A. It was very important to get to the Semifinals for us. After our win in the last Championship we wouldn't be satisfied with 5-9 places."

Russia - Lithuania 83-75
R.Endrijaitis, the Head Coach of Lithuanian NT: "Our midrange accuracy was very low, contrary to our opponents. Also we committed a number of turnovers. Besides, our one of the leaders S.Jasaitis scored only 9 pts, that's too little for him. We were too strained throughout the game."
A.Kieza, Lithuanian NT: "We failed to come back to the baskets, that allowed our opponents to score easy points. Our key-players performed unsuccessfully today."
V.Radionov, the Head Coach of Russian NT: "I've told before the game that it would be rather difficult to play against the hosts. But we played like a real team. S.Monia was unlucky today, but G.Zelenskiy performed efficiently scoring decisive points."
V.Khriapa, Russian NT: "This game was very important and we're glad to get among the strongest 4. We won 3 friendly games against Lithuania that made us easy at the end and the opponents got close. We managed to concentrate and proved our superiority."

Yugoslavia - Spain 71-72
J.Arsic, the Head Coach of Yugoslavian NT: "That was the worst way to lose a game. We were leading the whole match; played good defense in the first half. Though after the break we started making too many mistakes and the Spanish team scored numerous easy points. My players are extremely disappointed about this loss. They are not used to such failure, thus it's very difficult to say how they'll manage to play tomorrow."
R.Casas, the Head Coach of Spanish NT: "It's an achievement for us to defeat such a strong team as Yugoslavia. We worked hard throughout all 40 min. The opponents were leading for the most of the time until we improved our defense. That allowed us to make some easy points and dominate the courts through the rest of the game."
R.Guerra, Spanish NT: "It was a tough game from the very beginning. Already in the first half the Yugoslavians led by 11. We won mainly thanks to our good defense and self-confidence. Also we were luckier. During the last 2 sec we scored 2 pts. We are very happy to win this game."

   9-12th Places Games: Turkey  -  Ukraine 101-98
E.Arslan increased the gap for the Turkish team at the beginning of the 2nd. C.Ozseven added a far-range shot to bring his team forwards 38:27. But in the midst of the quarter the Ukrainians managed to reduce the score to 33:38. The Ukrainian players switched on zone defense but E.Arslan hit a three to end the period at 52:42.
S.Lishchouk started the 3rd with a precise shot  -  45:52. Both the teams exchanged several attacks to make it 48:57, 52:60. I.Skurupiy performed efficiently, followed by Lishchouk they caught back with the opponents to get to 59:62. E.Arslan fought back to increase the bulge to 10  -  64:72. The Ukrainians got stuck in Turkish zone defense for a moment, but managed to get it through and appeared close 74:76. The quarter ended at 80:74 with Turkish team ahead.
Lishchouk made another try to bring the team back in the 4th  -  80:82. Yet not for a long. Strengthening the defense the Turkish team still kept ahead. Lishchouk appeared once more  -  89:93. With 1:30 remaining E.Ekmen hit a three and ran away 98:89. The Ukrainian players didn't manage to catch the opponent up and lost the game 98:101.
E.Taslitskiy, the Head Coach of Ukrainian NT: "The players didn't fulfill my tasks. They also failed to resist the zone defense of the opponents. Those were the main reasons of our loss."
M.Ozgul, the Head Coach of Turkish NT: "We are glad about our first win. We played well in defense and offense. We succeeded to neutralize the Ukrainian perimeter players who failed to shoot from behind the arc."
Israel  -  Italy 75-67
V.Deraffaele, the Assistant Coach of Italian NT: "We played two different parts of the game. We managed to deal with the first, but too relaxed during the second. The Israeli players though showed their character and won."
S.Druker, the Head Coach of Israeli NT: "We demonstrated our superb character. Moreover, we played for all our injured teammates."

;  Quarter Finals Preview:Russia (B1) - Lithuania (A4) - Aug 2, 2002 - by Mindaugas Veromejus
Tomas Delininkaitis (190-G-82) decisive shot at the buzzer in the game against Italy gave Lithuanian U-20 NT a 87-85 victory and the last ticket to the Quarterfinal stage. Lithuania has been the biggest dissapointment so far in the tournament. Lithuanians lost first 3 close games against Yugoslavia, Greece and Slovenia. However Lithuanian team has played much better in the games against Turkey and Italy. But injury of point-gaurd Tomas Delininkaitis in the 2 quarter in the game against Italy showed that his back-ups are not equal substitutes for him. Lithuanian team lost it's advantage when Delininkaitis was benched. Delininkaitis has been one of the few surprises in Lithuanian team. More steady than flashy, Delininkaitis' floor leadership and deadeye shooting make him one of the best point-guards in the tournament. Tomas Delininkaitis is 2nd leading scorer in Lithuanian team with 12.2 points, 1.8 assits, 1.8 steals per game, while shooting 2pointers 62.50%. Aurimas Kieza (203-F-82) was one more surprise for Lithuanian fans as expected to be backup and get limited playing time, Kieza managed to collect 16 points and 12 rebounds in the game against Turkey. Kieza's averages of 9.6 points, 7.2 rebounds in just 23.4 minutes per game speaks for itself. Nevertheless Simas Jasaitis (199-F/G-82) has been main contributor for Lithuanian team in group competitions and his averages of 18 points and 8 rebounds per game are not noly the best among Lithuanians, but also among top 5 in tournament. Jasaitis guided his team to the victories against Turkey and Italy with 29 and 28 points respectively. However there were more dissapointments than surprises in Lithuanian team. Saulius Kuzminskas (211-C/F-82, college: California) has solid averages of 10 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, but he was expected to be more consistent and dominate under the boards. Other starting five players Vaidotas Peciukas (197-G-82) and Tadas Klimavicius (202-F-82) averages 7.2 and 7.8 points respectively but neither one of them provides as big scoring as expected. Russians have been much more consistent in the group competitons and only powerful and skillful French players managed to overcome Russian team. Russian success is based on versalite big guns of the squad: Viktor Khryapa (205-F/G-82), Sergei Monya (205-F-83) and Aleksei Zozoulin (200-G/F-83). Khriapa has long arms and can block shots and hit the boards with most post men. Scores from anywhere inside or outside the three point line. Besides great front-line Russian have solid contributor among the guards  -  Aleksei Zozouline, who is team player, handles ball with ease and has a sweet stroke from downtown. Victor Khriapa leads the team in scoring and averages 16.4 points, 5 rebounds, 4.2 assists per game. Serguei Monya has averages of 15.2 points and 5 rebounds, while Aleksei Zozouline 10 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. Summarizing, it's expected to be tough battle, as always between all age groups national teams from Lithuania and Russia, and Lithuanians has the last chance to realize their goals in the tournament in sight of Lithuanian fans.

  Quarter Finals Preview: Croatia (B2) - Greece (A3) - Aug 1, 2002 - by Mindaugas Veromejus

Christos Tapoutos

  Slovenia is #1 in Group A - Aug 1, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel

Beno Udrih

  Meaningless win for Croatia - Aug 1, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel
Group B: Croatia 92 - Ukraine 89
In the last game of the Championship in Alytus Sports Palace the Croatian team overpowered Ukraine 92:89. Since the game could not influence on the standings, both teams entered the game without the main starters: S.Lishchouk, A.Onufriev and V. Boyko were absent in the Ukrainian squad whilst Croatians played without their main force M.Popovic, K.Loncar and M.Rozic. Tough and even fight continued till the center of the 1st period. But soon V.Morovic's foul shots brought Croatia into an 8-point lead 12:20. S.Shpralja increased the score to 13  -  25:12. V.Boyko spurted up to reduce the margin by hitting a far-range shot and the quarter ended at 28:25 for the Croatian side. At the beginning of the 2nd period L.Zagainov tied the score at 28:28 and even outweighed 31:28 for the Ukrainian team. At the midst of the period the fight got even 35:35, with 2 min left to play  -  43:43. At the end of the quarter the teams exchanged several shots from behind the arc and Croatians got into lead 50:48. In the first minutes of the 3rd D.Toroman increased the gap to 6  -  57:51. After two precise shots of this player the bulge increased to 10 - 64:54. The Ukrainians fought back quickly to reduce the margin 63:67. Keeping at the same pace the teams got to 72:68 and after A.Malysh's dunk the bulge decreased to tiny 2 72:70. The score continued balancing from one side to another at the beginning of the 4th: 74:75, 79:77, 81:82. With 3 min remaining S.Shpralja increased the difference for the Croatian side  -  86:81. With 1:10 left on the game clock Lishchouk's 3-point shot brought Ukrainians to 1 89:90. Even fouls didn't help the Ukrainians to achieve the victory as V.Morovic hit two successfully to go for a 92:89 win.
V.Boyko, Ukrainian NT: "The statistics of the game witnesses an equal fight. We lacked accuracy at the end of the game."
L.Milanovic, the head Coach of Croatian NT: "My congratulations to both the teams. That was a beautiful win. Now it's very important to concentrate for the Friday's fight."
D.Toroman, Croatian NT: "It was difficult to prepare for this game as we knew we've been 2nd in the group. Those players who play less were to show their strength today. We hope to continue victoriously in the following games."

Croatia (28+22+22+20): Toroman 19, Morovic 19 + 6 rbs + 5 as, Omerhodzic 17 + 18 rbs, Spralja 14, Cuzela 8, Gligora 6, Trepalovac 3, Kurilic 3, Bulic 3
Ukraine (25+23+22+19): Zagaynoy 24 - 6/10 3FG, Boyko 14, Lishchuk 12 + 10 rbs, Onufriyev 8 + 7 rbs, Malysh 8 + 8 rbs, Gubenko 6, Sokur 5, Shkurupiy 5, Kozlov 3, Shevchenko 2, Nerush 2
By http://www.youthbasket.com

  Lithuania beat Italy after OT - Jul 31, 2002 - by Mindaugas Veromejus
Group A: LITHUANIA 87 - ITALY 85 OT
Lithuanian Youth National Team has qualified to the Championship Quarterfinals by defeating Italy 87:85 in overtime. Both the teams entered the fight highly determined. After S.Jasaitis (4) and M.Dipartas's (2) shots Lithuania burst out 5:2, 11:7. The Italians, though, answered with a couple of far-range hits from J.Zacchetti and L.Garri. With 7 min left the Lithuanians were leading 20:14. At the end of the period S.Jasaitis (9) increased the gap to 27:18 making another precise far-range shot. At the 12th min of the match the hosts went further 31:18, thanks to T.Klimavicius' efficient shot. Yet, the Italians started increasing the pace to get nearer 33:26. S.Kuzminkas came back to the courts to save up the situation for the hosts. Assisted by A.Kieza (2) they achieved the game high 42:26. T.Klimavicius' performance helped the Lithuanians to make the bulge 56:35. The Italians answered to appear close 57:43. S.Mancinelli dunked impressively to end up at 62:50 with Italians still lacking behind. The last period started with Italians' successful three as well as foul shots  -  62:55. Making use of the hosts' errant decisions in defense L.Sottana (6) almost caught up with the opponents 60:64. S.Mancinelli (10) assisted his teammate to reduced to tiny 3  -  66:63. The Lithuanians started their spurt with S.Jasaitis and T.Delininkaitis' (8) help. They managed to widen the gap 74:65. With 1:21 remaining, after L.Sottana precise foul shots Lithuanians led 76:71. J.Giacchetti hit a shot from behind the arc to balance at 2 (76:74) with 46 sec. left. After the Italians' mistake with 19 sec left and Lithuanians' turnover with 6 sec remaining, J.Zacchetti tied the score at 76:76 to go for overtime. The Lithuanians were forced to continue the fight without S.Kuzminskas (7) and T.Klimavicius who got 5 fouls. Unable to deal with J.Zacchetti, the hosts let the opponents ahead 80:79. P.Ciukinas took over the initiative to outweigh the result 83:80. S.Jasaitis (28) soon joined the friends to increase the gap to 85:80. Yet, the Italians hit a three to come back 85:83 and S.Mancinelli soon tied at 85:85. T.Delininkaitis took the leading role to hit the decisive shot and lead his team to an 87:85 victory getting the last ticket to the Quarterfinal stage.
G.Gebbia, the Head Coach of Italian NT: "That was a wonderful match. In the 1st half of the game we lacked self-confidence and proper defense allowing the opponents to score 47 pts. I'm glad we've managed to recover in the 2nd half. Our inability to rebound in offense at the last min was fatal to lose this game."
J.Giachetti, Italian NT: "We got off to a very bad start, but our performance in the 2nd half has been one of the best ever. I think we were worth to qualify for the following stage."
R.Endrijaitis, the Head Coach of Lithuanian NT: "We were highly determined for this fight. We proved our play with tough defense. We managed to get ahead, but still made a lot of mistakes. Our players lack experience in such level competition. I'm glad about our improved defense and rebounding. We should work on far-range shots."
T.Delininkaitis, Lithuanian NT: "It was a tough and interesting game we had to win at any price. We all were very concentrated, the luck was with us."
Lithuania (27+20+15+14+11): Jasaitis 28 + 9rebounds, Klimavicius 16 + 6rebounds, Kieza 11 + 7rebounds, Delininkaitis 10, Peciukas 9, Kuzminskas 7 + 12rebounds, Ciukinas 4 + 6rebounds, Pociukonis 2, Gaidamavicius, Serapinas, Dipartas, Velius - DNP.
Italy (18+13+19+26+9): Giachetti 22 + 5assists, Zacchetti 16, Sottana 12, Mancinelli 12, Garri 10 + 8rebounds, Brkic 5, Barlera 4, Fultz 3, Flamini 1, Formenti, Infante, Gigli - DNP.
By http://www.youthbasket.com

  Russia takes 1st place - Jul 31, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel
Group B: Russia 81 - Spain 71
Defeating Spain with a 10-point margin 81:71 Russia has gained the 1st position in Group B. Both the teams started an equal fight at the beginning of the game. After 3 min played the score was 4:4. In the center of the quarter Adamu led his team ahead 11:6. Zazouline added a three to increase the game to 16:12. Yet Vazquez answered with a dunk to get closer 16:14. The quarter finished at 20:18 with the Russians going ahead. At the beginning of the 2nd both the teams exchanged quick attacks to keep the score growing 27:24. Monia increased the bulge for the Russian team 34:24 hitting a far-range shot and making a dunk. Continuing his sole performance he brought the Russians forwards 43:27. The Russians kept their high pace and moved to a 49:32 half time win. After the break the result kept growing for the Russian side. Another Monia's dunk increased the gap to 18  -  61:43 in the center of the period. The Spanish players just couldn't fight the right decision in defense, more than that they didn't catch up with the quick opponents' offense. They tried to press the Russians hard, yet didn't make a considerable progress and the period finished at 67:49. The Spaniards couldn't catch up the opponents into the 4th. With 4 min on the game clock the gap increased to 17  -  78:59. However, the Spanish players spurted up to reduce the bulge 78:63 after Maralles' precise shot. With 1 min remaining they quickly went to 9  -  80:71. In spite of all Spaniards' efforts, the Russian squad celebrated the victory 81:71 to get to the leading position of Group B.
R.Casas, the Head Coach of Spanish NT: "Russia has proved its superiority in all components of the game  -  offense as well as defense. We made too much mistakes that caused such a considerable margin in the score. It's very hard to erase the deficit while playing against such a team as Russia."
I.Cortaberria, Spanish NT: "The Russians started very concentrated, whereas we didn't manage to gather strength. We made a lot of mistakes, which resulted in easy points of our opponents."
V.Radionov, the Head Coach of Russian NT: "The Spaniards were too much tired after the yesterday's match. That's the main reason of such a big point difference in the score. Now we will meet Lithuania in the Quarterfinals. Although I do not consider them the favorites, it very difficult to play against the hosts."
Russia (20+29+18+14): Khriapa 18 + 10 rbs + 6 as + 5 to, Monia 18 + 5 rbs, Adamu 18 - 8/10 FG + 7 rbs, Zelenski 12 + 8 rbs, Zozouline 8, Karpov 5, Baranov 2
Spain (18+14+17+22): Rubio 13 + 7 rbs, Miralles 12, Vazquez 9, Llorente 9, Guerra 8, Kortaberria 8, Martin 4, Mena 3, Grimau 2, Triguero 2, Miso 1
By http://www.youthbasket.com

  France qualify to the QF - Jul 31, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel
Group B: France 80 - Israel 71
Powerful and skillful French players overcame Israel 80:71 in their last game of Group B. The French players got off to an early lead 5:4. R.Limonad answered with two successful attacks to get over France 8:5. O.Shaashua got injured after his clash with M.Pietrus and the latter took over the initiative to tie the score at 10:10. In the midst of the period B.Diaw and R.Turiaf entered the courts to get France ahead 18:14. Another efficient dunk from R.Turiaf ended the quarter at 23:14 with France going in front. In the 2nd period of the match the French players took a stable position to lead safely 27:18, 32:18, 36:24. Step  -  by  -  step they moved to the half time victory 40:28. G.Yango and Y.Diawara performed efficiently not o let the Israeli players get close  -  48:38. After G.Szaszcak and I.Evtimov's true hits the score became 55:46. Switching on to zone defense the Israeli players were to mislead the opponents, yet unsuccessfully. Edged by zone pressure of the French team they kept lacking behind 47:61. R.Limonad opened up the last quarter with two precise shots to make it 61:51. Another two buckets answered by G.Pnini reduced the gap to 4  -  61:57, forcing R.Billant to call for a time-out. Adding more aggressiveness to the play the French players moved forwards 66:57, 68:60. Tough defense of the Israeli team eliminated U.Marko and A.Nanikashvily. Despite the fact, the French players climbed easily into an 80:71 victory.
S.Druker, the Head Coach of Israeli NT: "We came to the Championship without our 5 injured players. Today we have lost one more  -  O.Shaashua. We started preparing for this tournament quite ambitiously, yet didn't succeed. I'd like to express my gratitude for a wonderful welcome to the Championship."
R.Billant, the Head Coach of French NT: "Israel is a very complicated team playing very aggressively. We tried to use our tall players also applied various systems. I also gave an opportunity for our bench squad."
I.Evtimov, French NT: "It was quite a difficult game. We'd been preparing for it carefully. It was sort of rehearsal before the Quarterfinals we hope to play at against the 2nd team of Group A."
France (23+17+21+19): Turiaf 19, Pietrus 13, Szaszcak 10, Diaw 8, Diawara 8, Nijean 6, Evtimov 6, Yango 6, Tillon 3, Doreau 1
Israel (14+14+19+24): Limonad 18 + 6 as, Pnini 17 + 6 rbs, Nanikashvily 13, Itzhak 9, Gilad 8, Marko 4, Matta 2
by http://www.youthbasket.com

  Turkey still looking for a 1st win - Jul 31, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel
Group A: Greece 95 - Turkey 75
The Turkish NT has ended the performance in Group A of the Championship without a single victory in their record as they got defeated by Greece 73:65 in the last game of the tournament. Even the today's win could hardly improve the rankings for the Turkish NT. That would have been only the matter of honor. The Turkish players were the first to score the baskets, though Greeks soon caught up to get to lead 8:3. Due to hard efforts from E.Arslan (5) the Turkish squad was trying to follow closely behind  -  8:11, 12:15. Yet N.Zisis performed well to increase the gap to 19:12. After another minute G.Tsiakos (6) made the score 28:16 and the quarter ended at 30:18 for the Greek side. E.Arslan (11) together with E.Akmen (9) were the main force to cause troubles for the Greeks at the beginning of the 2nd. After their 3 successful attacks in a row the gap was narrowed to 27:36. Thought the Greek side managed to deal with the defensive system of the opponents and moved to a solid 52:35 half time win. The Turkish team entered the 3rd with a 7:0 run to reduce the bulge slightly 39:52. Yet that didn't last long as at the 25 min of the game the Greeks were leading 64:42. Despite a number of errant decisions in defense of both the teams the score kept rising 77:57 in favor of the Greek team. The situation didn't change at the final period. The Greek NT easily climbed into a 95:73 victory.
I.Beles, the Head Coach of Turkish NT: "We have expected such our performance in the tournament. After our first losses to Slovenia and Ukraine it was very difficult to prepare the players, that's why we lost the rest of the games with a considerable margin. I hope for our better performance after the rest day."
I.Okay, Turkish NT: "It was very difficult to prepare for the game after loosing all chances to qualify for the Quarterfinals. Now our goal is 9th position. We'll do our best to achieve it."
N.Toufas, the Assistant Coach of Greek NT: "It was an important game for us as we wanted to take as high position in the group as possible. We also were eager to find out our Quarterfinals opponent. During the day  -  off we'll try to analyze it properly to get ready for the game."
G.Tsiaras, Greek NT: "The game wasn't very interesting as the Turkish team had already lost the chance to qualify for the following stage. We are eager to find out the opponents in the next stage of the tournament."
Greece (30+22+25+18): Misiakos  15, Tsiakos 11, Georgalis 11, Tapoutos 10, Spanoulis 9, Bourousis 8, Kaimakoglou 8, Tsiaras 6, Zisis 6, Charitopoulos 5, Gizogiannis 4, Koumpouras 2
Turkey (18+17+22+16): Arslan 19, Ekmen 17, Veyseloglu 10, Okey 9, Ozdemir 7, Guney 4, Akin 3, Ozseven 2, Ozer 2
By http://www.youthbasket.com

  King Popovic rules - Jul 28, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel

King Popovic with 37 pts

  Russia jumps over Ukraine - Jul 28, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel
Group A: Russia 89 - Ukraine 69
After the yesterday's loss to France, the Russian youth squad proved its superiority over Ukrainians beating them 89:69. Both the teams entered into an even fight at the beginning of the game. The Russian forwards  -  Monia & Zazouline  -  took the initiative to end the period with a 3-point lead 22:25. The Ukrainian team collected efforts to apply whole  -  court  -  defense as well as more pressure in offense against the Russians who were still ahead 29:26. Getting Monia fouled with 3rd didn't save up the situation, as the difference remained 34:31 still for Russian squad. Due to efficient play of Bykov assisted by Baranov, the Russians went to a more solid lead 41:33 to finish the quarter already by 10  -  47:37. After the halftime, the teams continued at the same pace keeping margin that of 10  -  53:43. Though the Ukrainians managed to fight back 55:50 after Lishchouk's hit from behind the arc. Several mistakes in defense brought the Ukrainians back 68:54. The Russian team finished ahead 70:61. Brilliant duo show of Chriapa and Baranov opened up the last period of the game. After their efficient shots Russia got to a 77:61 lead. Clumsy Ukrainians' defense as well as Adamu's successful dunk increased the bulge to 22  -  83:61 leaving no hopes for the Ukrainian side. The Russian team finished with a considerable 20-point lead 89:69.
E.Taslitskiy, the Head Coach of Ukrainian NT: "We played below our usual level. Our players lost a psychological battle."
V.Radionov, the Head Coach of Russian NT: "We played a stabile game and managed to deal with the Ukrainian guards. Now it's important to avoid considerable ups  -  and  -  downs."
Russia (25+22+23+19): Baranov 19, Adamu 18, Khriapa 18 - 8/11 FG, Monia 10, Zozouline 10, Bykov 7, Ivanov 2, Soldatov 2, Zelenski 2, Gorolevski 1
Ukraine (22+15+24+8): Lishchuk 20 + 14 rbs, Shkurpuly 15, Onufriyev 12, Sokur 8, Shaposhnikov 8, Malysh 4, Narush 2
By http://www.youthbasket.com

  Spain beat Israel in a thriller - Jul 28, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel
Group B: Spain 64 - Israel 61
Highly supported by Alytus' crowd the Israeli players stood close to their first victory in the 6th European Championship for Young Men. However, the Spanish side appeared stronger to demonstrate more coolness and win the game 64:61. Both the teams entered into a speedy 1st quarter of the game. Highly motivated Israeli players burst out 3:6. Though winning a 3 min run the Spaniards made it 15:6 after G.Rubio's two successful hits. The Israeli squad got stick to tough defense to reduce the gap 17:13. Quick tempo opened up the 2 quarter of the match. Receiving much support from the players as well as crowd in Alytus Sports Palace the Israeli team outweighed the result 19:18. Yet the Spanish youngsters didn't get lost and C.Triguero's buckets brought them forwards 27:21 to end the period at 31:23 for the Spanish side. Much determined Israeli players decreased the margin to 7  -  37:30 at the beginning of the 3rd. After technical foul dedicated to Spaniard R.Martinez, the opponents got close again 39:35. The representatives of Spain managed to run by adding whole court pressure  -  43:35. But successful attempts of O.Shaashua and U.Marko erased the bulge to 2  -  43:41. A.Nanikashvily's far-range shot made it 46:44. One more true basket of Israeli team opened up the final quarter of the game and O.Shaashua brought his team ahead 47:46. At the midst of the period the score kept balancing  -  52:52, 54:54, 57:57. The tense kept rising. With 3 min on the game clock A.Miralles exploded to make it 61:57. A far  -  range answer from E.Itzhak got Israel to 61:60. Hitting fouls efficiently Miralles soon added to the score. Coolly determined Spaniards tore off the win 64:61.
S.Druker, the Head Coach of Israeli NT: "After the game I said to my players that I was satisfied with their performance. We were real warriors in offense as well as defense feeling much support from Alytus' crowd."
R,Casas, the Head Coach of Spanish NT: "It's very hard to concentrate properly for each game. I give credit to Israeli team for their brilliant performance and hard work on the courts. We were following strict discipline and that helped us, especially at the end of the game."
Spain (17+14+15+18): Miralles 14, Rubio 11, Miso 8, Vazquez 8, Triguero 7, Kortaberria 6, Martinez 5, Llorente 4, Grimau 1
Israel (13+10+21+17): Marko 17, Itzhak 12 + 12 rbs, Nanikashvily 9, Shaashoua 8, Limonad 7 + 5 rbs, Pnini 6 - 0/6 3FG + 7 rbs, Gilad 2
By http://www.youthbasket.com

  Yugoslavia survives Greece - Jul 28, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel
Group A: Yugoslavia 93 - Greece 89
Yugoslavian Youth National Team has been on victorious mood as it achieved the 3rd victory defeating Greece 93:89. From the very first minutes Yugoslavian players started breaking the defense wall of the Greek side. Spurting up at the beginning they quickly got a 5:0 lead. After 2 min played the Greek team nearly caught up with the opponent 5:4, but in the midst of the period Yugoslavian players regained their lead 12:4. Mainly due to the effort of N.Zisis (6) and C.Tapoutos (8) Greeks reduced the bulge. V.Spanoulis (5) and K.Kaimakoglou (2) added more to make it 21:23 at the end of the quarter. Both the teams entered the 2nd fighting closely. After 5 min played K.Kaimakouglu tied the score at 30:30 for Greece. Yugoslavian team managed to come back to their narrow lead 34:30, 40:35, but Greece didn't allow the opponents to go far ahead. B.Sekulic's far-range shot at the end of the period increased the gap to 45:38. The quarter finished at 47:40 with Yugoslavia still in front. After the halftime break the Yugoslavians increased the gap to 10 - 52:42. Despite N.Zisis' (21) far-range efforts to fight back, Yugoslavian players went on 73:58 crushing Greek defense and ended up the period at 76:66. In the final part of the game the Yugoslav players added more force to their defense to allow only 5 successful buckets for the Greek side  -  85:71. Though several errant decisions of the Yugoslavian team provided the Greeks with the opportunity to come back 85:80. With 40 sec to go on K.Tapoutos (25) dunked successfully to make it 91:88. Yet V.Spanoulis missed 2 foul shots out of 3 to lose all hopes for a victory. B.Sekulic ended up making efficient foul shots to celebrate a 93:89 victory.
N.Keramefs, the Head Coach of Greek NT: "Today 2 strongest teams of the group met. We tried to defend actively from the very first minutes of the game, yet failed in offense. Yugoslavians, on the contrary, shot precisely, especially far-range shots. We had a chance to win, though didn't use it."
V.Spanoulis, Greek NT: "We were well prepared for this match, yet failed in certain points. We'll do our best in the following game."
J.Arsic, the Head Coach of Yugoslavian NT: "We played a good game today. The players were concentrated enough. But at the end of the game we lost the concentration and started doing mistakes. Anyway, the most important is the victory."
M.Aleksic, Yugoslavian NT: "We'd analyzed the Greek team and expected a tough game. We complicated things at the end of the game by a couple of mistakes. Now we feel satisfied to get 3rd victory out of 3 games."
Yugoslavia (23+24+29+17): Bakic 19, Krstic 19 - 9/12 FG + 13 rbs, Sekulic 16 + 8 rbs, Popovic 14 + 8 rbs + 7 as, Aleksic 12, Jevdic 6, Koljevic 3, Pavlovic 2, Jovanovic 2
Greece (21+19+26+23): Zisis 25 - 5/8 3FG, Tapoutos 21 - 8/18 FG, Spanoulis 14, Gizogiannis 14, Kaimakoglou 6, Tsiakos 3, Bourousis 2, Georgalis 2, Misiakos 2
By http://www.youthbasket.com

  Big win for Italy over Turkey - Jul 28, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel
Group A: Italy 100 - Turkey 68
The Turkish NT has suffered another defeat being knocked down by the Italian squad 100:68. From the very beginning of the game Italian players started picking points to gain a solid lead over the Turkish team 27:18. Presenting weak performance E.Arslan (3) and C.Ozer (2) left their team lacking behind considerably. Even a more active play of E.Veyseloglu (6) couldn't make profits for the Turkish side. After 15 min played the Italians led safely 34:24 mainly thanks to the efforts of L.Garri (10). C.Ozer collected strength to start getting closer, yet quick Italian players fought back to rebuild the lead 48:35 at the halftime. The Turkish team managed to appear closer 46:54 after several successful attempts by E.Arslan (10) and E.Veyseloglu in the 25 min of the match. Making changes in defense they succeeded to get as near as 7 points  -  54:61. However, at the end of the period the Italians crushed all the opponents' efforts to run away 68:56. In the midst of the 4th R.Fultz opened up a 3-point artillery to make it 80:58 and soon the Italians achieved the game high difference of 25 100:65. The game ended with a considerable win of Italian players 100:68. O.Karakas, Manager of Turkish NT: "Congratulations to the Italian team. We haven't any idea to lose the game as we started. I'm here as an ambassador of the Turkish team: the coaches and the players refused to come to the press conference as the official website of the Championship didn't publish our criticism we expressed regarding the referees."
M.Sanguettoli, Assistant Coach of Italian NT: "After our unsuccessful game yesterday we concentrated enough, improved the defense, which guaranteed this win."
L.Garri, Italian NT: "After the yesterday's loss we had to considerate our defense, which was really poor. We were better prepared today for this fight and succeeded in far-range shots. We're glad with this victory and ready to fight bravely against Yugoslavia and Lithuania."
Italy (27+21+20+32): Garri 19 + 10 rbs, Zacchetti 15, Sottana 14, Flamini 9, Mancinelli 8, Fultz 8, Brkic 8, Giachetti 7, Barlera 6, Infante 4, Gigli 2
Turkey (18+17+21+12): Arslan 14, Ozer 14, Veyseloglu 12, Ekmen 8, Yoldas 5, Okay 5, Akin 5, Ozdemir 3, Yilmaz 2
by http://www.youthbasket.com

  Perfect Slovenia - Jul 28, 2002 - by Yarone Arbel

Erazem Lorbek

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Michael Pietrus

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Nikolaos Zisis

  Croatia builds the wall of defense - Jul 27, 2002 - by Eurobasket

Marko Popovic

  Turkish team missed a buzzer three - Jul 27, 2002 - by Eurobasket

Ivan Koljevic

  Slovenia got their second victory - July 27, 2002 - by Eurobasket

Beno Udrih

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Albert Miralles

  Slovenia  -  the 1st step to the success - Jul 27, 2002 - by Eurobasket

Erazem Lorbek

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Blagota Sekulic

  Italians celebrating their first victory - Jul 27, 2002 - by Eurobasket

Stefano Mancinelli

  Ukraine beats Israel - Jul 27, 2002 - by Eurobasket
Israel - Ukraine 64-76

Oded Shaasuah

  Russia: too strong to hold - Jul 27, 2002 - by Eurobasket

Viktor Khryapa

  Spain beat France in Day 1 - Jul 27, 2002 - by Eurobasket
Spain - France 89-53
Spain: Albert Miralles 19, Kortabarria 18, Miso 14, Rubio 11, Martin 7, Llorente 7, Vazquez 5, Triguero 4, Guerra 2, Martinez 2
France: Michael Pietrus 14, Turiaf 12, Evtimov 11, Yango 5, Diawara 4, Doreau 2, Nijean 2, Chelle 2, Szasczak 1