By Antonis Stroggylakis/ info@eurohoops.net
Chicago Bulls forward Lauri Markkanen posted a new international career-high 28 points to lead the Finnish national team to a 91 – 77 victory over Iceland in the last round of the World Cup Qualifiers First Stage.
Thanks to this performance, Markkanen surpassed the previous career-high 27 points he had with the senior national team of Finland. He had set that record in a 90 – 87 win over Poland in the EuroBasket 2017.
In today’s (2/6) key game vs. Iceland, Markkanen didn’t feel like missing a field goal attempt, finishing with 8/11 shots (2/3 3-pointers) to go with 6/11 free throws. He also grabbed seven rebounds, dished out three assists and stole the ball twice for a game-high (and also new personal record with the national team) 31 PER. Thanks to his efforts, Finland managed to finish this first round of the World Cup Qualifiers at the second place of Group F with a 3-3 record which they will carry to the next stage.
Sasu Salin added 19 points while Petteri Koponen scored 17 for Finland. Haukur Palsson finished with 16 points and Martin Hermansson had 13 points plus five assists for Iceland that finished last in the Group and was eliminated. Tryggvi Hlinason scored six points n 15 minutes.
Photo: FIBA