Finalists of 2015 meet again in Group C

RADOM (FIBA U16 European Championship 2016) – Reigning champions Bosnia and Herzegovina and last year’s silver medallists Lithuania headline a very competitive Group C field at the FIBA U16 European Championship that tips off Friday in Radom, Poland. France and Montenegro, which finished fifth and 12th, respectively, in the 2015 edition of the tournament, complete the Group.

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s gold last summer was not only their first medal success in the U16 competition, but also the first-ever time the Balkan country won a European Championship in any age group. Lithuania’s silver on the other hand was the Baltic country’s fifth medal conquest at U16 level, which breaks down to one gold (2008), three silvers and one bronze.

France have lifted the U16 title on two occasions (2004 and 2014) while they also have two silver medals in their collection. Montenegro stepped on the third step of the U16 podium in 2006, the last year they competed together with Serbia before the two countries split up.

Bosnia and Herzegovina have a new head coach this year in Dragan Micic and an entirely new roster, since forward Nikola Dakovic was the only player among the 2015 European champions who was eligible to return this year but it appears that he will not step out in Radom. The entire golden 1999-born generation competed in the FIBA U17 World Championship this summer, where Bosnia and Herzegovina finished in ninth place.

While the reigning champions have not yet announced their final 12-man roster for the Championship in Radom and it remains to be seen whether they can successfully defend the title in Radom, it is safe to assume that they will field a team with an eye on next year’s tournament as they included as many as seven 2001-born players in the 15-strong preliminary squad.

Lithuania on the other hand arrive in Radom as one of the strongest candidates to step on the podium, based on their impressive displays in warm-up games. The Baltic side marched undefeated to the top in the international tournament of Samsun, with guard Domantas Vilys leading the way in scoring.

Vilys and Tomas Balciunas played at the FIBA U17 World Championship and helped Lithuania reach the bronze-medal game, where they triumphed against Spain. Balciunas also has European silver along with a World Championship bronze as he is the only player on the 2016 Lithuanian team to have played in last summer’s U16 Final. The 2.01m power forward who belongs to FC Barcelona averaged 8.6 and 6.2 rebounds per game in the 2015 tournament.

France collected mixed results in their warm-up encounters but have shown a great ability to keep games tight even if they do not end up victorious. Les Bleus will present an all-new roster in Radom since all 12 of their players on the 2015 team were born in 1999. Swingman Joel Ayayi is expected to lead this new team on the offensive end, with plenty of assistance from forward Dossou Yovo who is likely to emerge as France’s main option inside.

Montenegro are aiming higher than last year and with good reason as 2.06m center Nikola Zizic is joining the team this summer and is considered one of the leading candidates to top the tournament’s rebounders table. The Montenegrins have two 2000-born players returning from the 2015 team, in guard Igor Drobnjak and forward Danilo Brnovic, both of Buducnost. Drobnjak was already one of the best players for Montenegro in the 2015 edition, where he averaged 8.1 points and 1.8 assists per game.

FIBA