By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Iceland put up a fight in the German capital but gave in in the end, losing 64-71 to Italy. Coming from another loss to Germany the previous day, the Icelanders were keeping up with their Italian counterparts, trailing by 1 at the end of the first period. They actually tied the score a couple of times midway through the second quarter and then snatched the lead with two back-to-back three-point jumpers by Haukur Palsson. But they couldn’t hold on to it for long as Italy caught up and snatched it right back, getting a 4-point advantage before half time.
The Italians just barely stayed ahead throughout a rather stagnant third period with the Icelanders doggedly following close behind. This pursuit paid off as they tied the score once again at the outset of the 4th quarter, and then regained the lead with less than 4 minutes to go. In the end, though, Pianigiani’s squad dealt with the situation and was able to scrape by.
“The win does not mean anything for the qualification,” coach Pianigiani stated, “but it is important that my players fought on defense and stayed mentally in the game, because Iceland plays a different style of basketball and for us switching on defense for 40 minutes is challenging. We now have three games against – in my opinion – the top three teams in the group.”
Marco Belinelli, who had a good start with 6 points and 4 boards in the first quarter, finished the game with 12 points and 8 rebounds (plus 3 assists). Team captain Luigi Datome also started strong but didn’t keep it up, overall tallying 7 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists. Alessandro Gentile had a great game, chalking up 21 points, 5 boards, and 4 assists. Danilo Gallinari was quiet offensively with just 4 points but he did collect 10 rebounds before fouling out near the end.
Gentile congratulated the Icelandic team and the effort they made, saying that, “they played a really tough game both yesterday and against us today. They’re proving that they deserve to be here.”
For Pedersen’s team, Hlynur Baeringsson got 7 points in the first quarter and by the end of the game had doubled that number and gotten 7 rebounds plus 1 assist. 33-year-old Jon Stefansson wasn’t bad either with 11 points and 6 assists. Palsson was the team’s top scorer, though, with 17 plus 5 boards and 2 assists.
“I’ve been playing this game for a long time,” Stefansson commented after the game, “and I’ve never experienced anything like this. It is a great feeling to play in front of our fans here. I’ve been kind of the only one playing in big leagues and I am really enjoying this, this time with my teammates. They deserve to experience this time on the big stage.”