Greece and Slovak Republic clock up overtime, Germany and Belarus stay undefeated

EILAT (FIBA U20 Women's European Championship 2017, Division B) - Belarus and Germany continued to make strides towards securing places in the FIBA U20 Women's European Championship 2017, Division B Semi-Finals, while Greece and Slovak Republic clocked up overtime in Group A with a thrilling defensive-minded battle.

Germany improved their still-unbeaten record to 3-0 in the Group A standings, with Satou Sabally pacing the side to a 65-53 victory against Czech Republic with 13 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists and 2 steals.

Michaela Gaislerova countered with 18 points and 4 boards for the Czechs, who couldn't make up for a double-digit deficit on the boards, as Germany dominated the rebounding 49-39.

Over in Group B, Belarus have first place all to themselves after also winning their third game in as many tries, defeating Ireland 68-42 in spite of committing 27 turnovers along the way.

Natalia Harbachova was the top contributor for the Belorussians with 16 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals to her name, while Anna Kelly had a double-double of 16 points, 10 rebounds and 5 steals for Ireland.

After suffering a one-possession loss to the still-undefeated Germany on Sunday, Greece got back to winning ways and improved to a 2-1 record with a 52-51 grit-and-grind overtime victory against Slovak Republic.

Star center Maria Fasoula was once again the top scorer for the Greeks with 20 points and 8 rebounds, but Garyfallia-Parskevi Ntanou was the real game-changer for the winners with 10 points, 11 steals, 6 assists and 5 rebounds to her name.

Ukraine ticked off their maiden win in Group A by cruising to a 73-54 victory against Iceland, who are rock-bottom in the standings and still waiting to get on the board. Olga Yatskovets double-doubled with 24 points and 13 rebounds for the winners, while Emelia Osk Gunnarsdottir scored 17 points, grabbed 5 rebounds and came up with 3 steals.

Meanwhile, tournament hosts Israel ended Great Britain's undefeated run in Group B by steamrolling the visitors 88-50 to catch them in the standings at 2-1.

It was the usual suspects for both sides doing the heavy lifting, with Eden Rotberg posting 19 points, 5 assists and 5 steals for Israel and Gabriele Nikitinaite scoring 18 points and grabbing 8 boards on the other end.

Croatia, also 2-1, strengthened their position in the tournament table as well with a 73-63 win over Romania, who dropped to a 0-3 mark and will need to start winning games fast in order to stay in the hunt for higher places.

Andrea Maric dominated inside the paint with a 17-point and 17-rebound double-double for Croatia, also adding 3 blocks and 2 steals, while Romania’s Alina Podar finished with a game-high 23 points in a losing effort.

FIBA