Greece will take on Turkey in the semifinals of 2025 EuroBasket.
Sixteen years later, Greece is back in the EuroBasket 2025 semifinals. On Tuesday afternoon, the Greek team took to the court at Arena Riga, in Latvia, to face Lithuania, in a European basketball classic. In the end, the best for Giannis Antetokounmpo and his teammates, who won 87-76 in a tight game and advanced in the tournament.
With the triumph, the Greeks are looking for their third title and secured a place to face Turkey on Friday. Earlier, the Turks beat Poland with a great performance by Alperen Sengun, returning to the semifinals for the first time since 2001.
Initially, Giannis added another high-level performance to his record in the current edition of EuroBasket. Dominant as usual in the paint, he had 29 points, six rebounds, and four steals. Largely due to his efforts, Greece had 20 fastbreak points to just four from their opponents.
This time, Giannis also had the help of Vasileios Toliopoulos, who scored 17 points on an inspired afternoon (or evening, local time) from the perimeter, where he made three of four attempts. Still in the Antetokounmpo family, younger brother Kostas Antetokounmpo also shone. He had only four points, but also four blocks and the best plus/minus of the entire team, with 19 points.
Lithuania, on the other hand, had another strong performance from Jonas Valanciunas. The Denver Nuggets center was the team’s main offensive option, especially in the low post. He scored 24 points and grabbed 15 rebounds. The team, however, missed Rokas Jokubaitis, its number one point guard.
The Bayern Munich player suffered a knee ligament injury in the group stage match against Finland and is expected to be out for at least six months. Arnas Velicka, his immediate replacement in the starting lineup, shone against Latvia in the round of 16 and went viral online for his resemblance to Alex Caruso. He also finished as the team’s second-highest scorer against Greece, with 12 points, seven assists, and five rebounds. However, it wasn’t enough for the Lithuanians.
Motivated by the cheers of their fans, who made up the vast majority of the crowd, Lithuania started out with a strong pace. They took a 7-0 lead with a strong defensive sequence from the double-team on Giannis. The Milwaukee Bucks star then responded by running in transition.
After recovering from their slow start, the Greeks began to dominate the action. Antetokounmpo shone in the paint, imposing himself physically and creating space for his teammates on the perimeter. The three-pointers also began to fall, and the first quarter ended with a 24-19 lead.
On the defensive side, Greece was largely successful closing the paint. With eight minutes remaining in the second quarter, Kostas Antetokounmpo already had four blocks, which generated transition points. Even with Giannis on the bench, the team remained relentless on the perimeter, opening up an 11-point lead.
The Lithuanians began to recover when Valanciunas entered the game. The center received the ball with his back to the basket and had an advantage over virtually all opposing defenders, thus helping to reduce the deficit. Lithuania’s defense began to deny Giannis the ball, and a brief dip in perimeter efficiency was enough to level the playing field again.
Velicka hit a three-pointer late in the period to bring the score to just one point. The Greek team, however, responded well and, with five consecutive points, went into halftime leading 44-38.
Returning from the locker room, Giannis Antetokounmpo began to focus on mid-range shots. And he was successful. The star player took advantage of the space his opponents left on those attempts and quickly restored the Greek lead to double digits. The match then became extremely physical.
The final two quarters were marked by excessive fouls on both sides. The slow pace favored Greece, which already held the lead and was showing good free-throw accuracy. The defense also remained relentless until the final stretch of the fourth quarter.
Even without a brilliant attack, the Greeks still held a 16-point lead. In the end, Lithuania attempted a final push and, after five consecutive points from Velicka, cut the deficit to eight with about a minute left on the clock. But they conceded a quick layup to Toliopoulos shortly thereafter. Despite the beautiful celebrations by Lithuanian fans, it was Greece who had the last laugh, securing their place among the four best teams at EuroBasket 2025.
Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
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