Greece get their FIBA EuroBasket 2017 preparations off to winning start in Patras
Greece wrapped up a friendly four-team tournament in Patras with another emphatic victory to get their FIBA EuroBasket 2017 campaign off to a winning start, just like they had anticipated.
Still playing without star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is expected to join the team in the near future, the Greeks hammered home a convincing 92-64 victory in the Final against Great Britain.
"With the return of Giannis Antetokounmpo, we will improve both athletically and skill-wise."Greece guard Kostas Sloukas
Having dominated play right from the tip-off, the hosts of the tournament had all 12 players get on the board, with Nikos Pappas and Georgios Printezis leading the way with 12 points apiece, while Dimitrios Agrevanis added 10.
Gabriel Olaseni was the game's top-scorer with a 13-point and 8-rebound performance for Great Britain, with his frontcourt partner Daniel Clark chipping in with 12 points.
"It was only the second preparation game after intensive workouts, but we played with a good level of defense and intensity," said Kostas Sloukas, who finished the game with 9 points and 4 assists.
"Great Britain is a good team. We didn't perform well enough in rebounding and we need to get better in a couple of other areas as well, but we will be better every day. With the return of Giannis Antetokounmpo, we will improve both athletically and skill-wise."
The two teams will meet for a rematch later in the month, with Great Britain hosting the Greek national team, already with Antetokounmpo, at the Copper Box in London on August 19.
To get to the Final in Patras, Greece blew out one of the FIBA EuroBasket co-hosts Romania 106-48 in the Semi-Finals, while Great Britain took care of business against Ukraine, registering an 88-64 win.
Ukraine secured the third place in the tournament with a 91-57 victory against Romania, who got their campaign underway with a win over Tunisia in July and were much more competitive in their two friendly encounters with Israel.
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