Latvia shut down Serbia in second half to get Riga rocking

RIGA (Latvia) - Latvia produced an impressive defensive display as they boosted their World Cup dream with a 66-55 victory over Serbia to the delight of their home fans, in Riga.

The previous 101-100 loss in Belgrade would still have been fresh in the mind for Latvia, but they put any lingering disappointment behind them with a statement of success to start the third window of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 European Qualifiers in style.

Turning point: While points may not have been accumulated as easily as they did in the first meeting in November, there was still little to separate the teams in a tightly contested first half. Serbia had opened up a nine-point lead at 34-25 before momentum swung in favor of Latvia with a 26-4 spell across quarters with the visitors held to just 10 points in 15 second-half minutes.

Game heroes: Arturs Kurucs sparked the pivotal run in the third quarter with back-to-back threes for Latvia and finished with a team-high 13 points along with 4 rebounds and 6 assists in an all-round display. Klavs Cavars and Anzejs Pasecniks shared 19 points and 5 blocks between them as they set the tone in the paint in the defensive effort.

Stats don't lie: Serbia were held to just 59 points - their lowest total in the World Cup Qualifiers - as they shot an uncharacteristic 21-of-60 from the field. Nemanja Bjelica was restricted to just a solitary point and Aleksa Avramovic was unable to add to his first-half tally of 16 points.

Bottom line: Just what Latvia needed. If Belgium advance, as expected, then Luca Banchi's side will enter the Second Round at 2-2 with the added bonus of welcoming Kristaps Porzingis - who was supporting in attendance - into the fold in August. Meanwhile, early concern for Serbia as they now head back home with added pressure on their reverse fixture with Belgium.

What they said:

FIBA