Green means go: Lithuania dominate Poland in Vilnius

MUNICH (Germany) - Lithuania kick started their FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Qualifiers campaign by taking down the 2022 Semi-Finalists Poland in front of a crowd of 5,682 fans at the Avia Solutions Group Arena in Vilnius.

The game was a close one for the first 15 minutes, but then Lithuania started making their long distance shots to keep the volume up in the stands, winning the game 83-64.

Turning point: Poland had the stronger start to the game, getting to the painted area with ease against the Lithuanian defense. However, coach Kazys Maksvytis had the right remedy - if Poland dominate inside, make Lithuania dominate outside of the arc.

His men knocked down nine three-pointers in the two middle quarters, erasing a six-point deficit, making it a +13 game from their point of view by the time the fourth quarter started. A quick 5-0 run to start the final stanza put the game beyond Poland's reach.

Game hero: Osvaldas Olisevicius is a well known name in Italian basketball, and since the Polish head coach Igor Milicic calls the plays in Napoli, he must have warned his players about the hot shooting 31-year-old who's averaging 16.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game for Treviso this season.

All to no avail. Olisevicius was unstoppable on the day, getting 20 points off the bench, hitting 8-of-12 shots from the field, and Lithuania were a +24 team with him on the floor.

Stats don't lie: Turnovers were a problem for Poland. The number itself isn't all that bad at 14, but since Lithuania had just 4 turnovers in 40 minutes, it looked like the men in white were way more careless with the ball.

Bottom line: Lithuania enjoyed the packed stands in Vilnius, and that love will fuel their jets en route to Tallinn, Estonia. The Baltic Brawl will happen in the Unibet Arena on Gameday 2 on Monday.

At the exact same time, coach Igor Milicic and Poland will search for their first win of the campaign, playing host to North Macedonia. Michal Sokolowski's 26 points go to waste in this one.

They said:

FIBA