England U16s Advance Despite First Defeat

By Bradley Gains on August 23, 2014

England under-16’s suffered their first defeat at the European Championships after falling to a 56-52 defeat against Belgium on Saturday.

However, despite the loss, Alan Keane’s side qualify for the next round where 8 teams will battle it out for the three available promotion spots.

Nelson Boachie-Yiadom was the only player in double figures for England as he top scored with 12 points while there were 8 points apiece for Kemar Hawes and Luke Mitchell. Sam Japhet-Mathias added 6 points and 6 rebounds while captain Carl Wheatle finished with 6-5-5.

England made a bright start to the game opening with a 9-2 run before being pegged back by their opponents who countered with a 7-2 response. Wheatle’s first points of the game made it 13-9 and the score remained the same at the end of the first.

Jacob Iwowo made it 18-9 after netting from beyond the arc but again Belgium stayed within reach. Boachie-Yiadom closed the half with 3/3 from the foul line to give England a 25-19 advantage at half-time with both teams shooting below 30% from the field.

Belgium gained control in the third after a 19-3 start to the quarter put them up by 10 at 38-28. England responded with the next six points and a pair of free throws from Hawes meant they went into the final quarter facing a 40-36 deficit.

They levelled at 40-40 only for Belgium to push clear with a 9-0 burst with 6:33 remaining. Boachie-Yiadom sparked the comeback for England with another 3-pointer starting a 12-2 run capped by a basket from Wheatle which gave his side the lead at 52-51 with 1:31 to go. Belgium quickly re-gained the lead and would then seal the win from the free throw line as both teams progress.

Stats.

England play their final group game on Sunday against Luxembourg at 15:30 BST.

Image credit: @daysonphysio

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