Great Britain Under-20s took a big step towards advancing to the quarter-finals after beating Slovakia 67-53 in Oradea, Romania, on Sunday.
Andreas Kapoulas’ side followed up their win over Russia to improve to 2-1 in Group B ahead of their final game against Azerbaijan.
“We wanted to make our win yesterday count and we did that by producing a solid team performance versus a good Slovakia side,” said Kapoulas.
“It was great to see our players approach in such a consistent manner. We defended very well and got good looks on the offensive end throughout the whole game.
“Now we have a day of rest to recover and prepare for the important game versus Azerbaijan.”
Victory on Tuesday would be enough to secure a top-two finish and make it to the last eight stage.
Akwasi Yeboah top scored again with 16 points, while Josh Steel was also in double figures with 13 points.
Another big win for GB Under-20s as they defeat Slovakia 🇸🇰 67-53 to improve to 2-1 at #FIBAU20Europe. Yeboah 16p, Steel 13p. 🇬🇧🏀 pic.twitter.com/aa4KDrBMYh
— Hoopsfix 🇬🇧🏀 (@Hoopsfix) July 16, 2017
After a slow start at 0-6, GB began to get going with Carl Wheatle scoring their first points after almost four minutes. Yeboah and Steel both netted from downtown in a 13-2 run as GB started to hit their stride.
An 8-0 run across quarters saw Slovakia close to within two points at 19-17, but Steel knocked down two more triples to move to 13 first-half points before Kyle Carey’s huge throwdown from RJ Eytle-Rock’s threaded assist made it a 10-point game.
Danny Evans beat the buzzer to keep the double-digit advantage in tact as GB headed into the break up 33-23. There was no let up when play resumed with the gap continuing to grow throughout the third.
GB closed on a 6-2 run to take a commanding 52-33 lead into the final quarter. Despite a rallying start to the fourth from Slovakia, the damage had been done and GB were able to round out a resounding victory.
Note: The starters were Eytle-Rock, Steel, Wheatle, Yeboah & Langton.
GB U20s play their final Group B game on Tuesday at 2:15pm UK time against Azerbaijan.
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