By Nikos Varlas/ varlas@eurohoops.net
In Vassilis Spanoulis’ last game with the national team, Greece came back from a 17-point deficit (39-56) in the middle of the third quarter and beat Latvia 97-90 to claim the ticket for the 2016 Olympic Qualifying Tournament, whereas Latvia will have another chance on Friday afternoon to advance to the Tournament as well.
With a 21-5 run at the end of the third quarter, the Greeks turned things upside down and managed to take a six to eight-point advantage, however the Latvians stayed close and tried to win the game. But, Spanoulis, Nick Calathes and Yiannis Antetokounmpo scored crucial field goals and Latvia didn’t have much time to make a big comeback and, as a result, Greece earned the victory.
Yiannis Bourousis was the top scorer for the winners with 20 points and six rebounds, while four more players were in double digits. On the other hand, Kristaps Janicekoks led Latvia with 22 points, as four more players were in double digits as well.
Latvia made a great start to the game, as they played tough defence and hit some three-point shots to earn an 11-point advantage (5-16), as only Calathes had scored for the Greek national team (five points), with the team playing very poor defensively. The Latvians retained a double-digit lead (10-20, 14-24) and ended the first period in front by seven (17-24).
However, the situation seemed to change in the second quarter, with Fotis Katsikaris’ squad enhancing their performance and taking a nine-point lead (37-28), behind an impressive 20-4 run. But, this was the last time that the Greek team scored until the end of the half, as Latvia dominated the last four or five minutes of the second quarter and with a 16-0 run took a seven-point advantage after the first 20 minutes of the game (37-44).
The second half started with the Latvians extending their streak to 24-0 and the lead to 15 and 17 points as well (37-52, 39-56). The Greeks played without energy, but behind a 9-0 run they cut the deficit to eight points (48-56). Greece was better both offensively and defensively, as the match was a close derby (60-61), with Greece outscoring their opponents 21-5 in the last five minutes of the quarter.
In the final quarter,crucial three-point shots from Spanoulis and Calathes gave the Greeks a six-point advantage (76-70) with five minutes to go. But, Janicekoks cut the deficit to one point (76-75, having 5/5 from the three-point range). Bourousis and Giorgos Printezis retained the small lead for Greece (81-75) and Giannis Antetokoumpo extended it with a crucial three-point shot two minutes before the end (86-75). Latvia tried to make a comeback (86-79, 92-86) but Greece remained solid and earned the victory and the qualification to the 2016 Olympic Qualifying Tournament