The Greek national team was defeated 82-76 by Ukraine at the neutral venue of Riga in a decisive game for the World Cup Qualifiers. Greece now faces a challenging path to qualification, making the upcoming Monday game against Spain at the “Telekom Center Athens” a critical fixture. Conversely, Ukraine took a significant step toward qualifying for the final stage of the tournament.
Ukraine controlled the pace from the opening minutes, led offensively by Svi Mykhailiuk and Oleksandr Kovliar. Greece fell behind early (22-14) but managed to reduce the deficit to 24-19 by the end of the first quarter. In the second quarter, Nick Calathes and Tyler Dorsey provided offensive solutions, tying the game at 28-28 and giving Greece a temporary 36-37 lead. The designated home team, however, went into halftime with a slight advantage (40-37).
In the third quarter, despite the efforts of Dinos Mitoglou alongside Dorsey and Calathes, Kovliar maintained the lead for Ukraine. The quarter concluded with a score of 64-59. The fourth quarter finalized the outcome. Struggling with execution and focus, Greece deviated from its game plan, allowing Ukraine to extend the lead to 14 points (80-66). A late 0-8 run by the Greek team (80-74) was not enough to alter the result, and the game concluded at 82-76.
With this outcome, Greece drops to a 3-4 record, placing them at the bottom of their group in the race to qualify for the 2027 World Cup. In contrast, Ukraine solidifies its position in the top two spots with a 5-2 record.
Oleksandr Kovliar finished the game with 18 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals for Ukraine. For Greece, Nick Calathes led the team with 17 points and 8 assists.