Montenegro faced all its group rivals, with Lithuania as the sole team that did not secure a victory.
Montenegro will compete in the European Championship for the fifth time, Photo: FIBA
Montenegro will face Germany, Lithuania, Finland, Sweden, and Great Britain in the upcoming EuroBasket.
The matches will take place at the Nokia Arena in Tampere, Finland, which has a seating capacity of approximately 13,500. This venue not only hosts sporting events but also concerts, allowing for a maximum capacity of 15,000 during such occasions.
Following the draw, it’s confirmed that Boško Radović’s team will kick off the tournament on August 27 against the reigning world champions – Germany. The schedule includes a match against Lithuania two days later, followed by games against Finland on August 30, Sweden on September 1, and Great Britain on September 3. The top four teams from the group will advance to the knockout stage, where they will compete with teams from Group A, consisting of Serbia, Latvia, the Czech Republic, Turkey, Estonia, and Portugal. All knockout matches will be held in the capital of Latvia, Riga.
Historically, Montenegro has faced all these teams since gaining independence, having shared a qualifying group with Germany and Sweden for the upcoming tournament.
In their previous five meetings, Montenegro and Germany have experienced mixed results. Germany prevailed in both recent qualifiers (85:61 and 95:76) and triumphed in the round of 16 at the last EuroBasket (79:70).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1t04XPZJD4
Previously, in qualifiers for EuroBasket, Montenegro defeated Germany twice – once 80:74 on neutral ground in France and the other 82:75 in Podgorica.
Montenegro has faced Lithuania four times without a win. Their initial encounter at EuroBasket in Slovenia in 2013 ended in a 77:70 victory for Lithuania. They also lost twice during qualifiers for the previous World Championship (90:73 and 65:56) and again during the World Basketball Championship (91:71).
Notably, Lithuania will be competing without NBA star Domantas Sabonis at this European Championship.
The third opponent in the group is host nation Finland. Montenegro has faced the Finns thrice before—winning twice during the EuroBasket 2011 qualifiers (74:60 and 91:71), however, Finland emerged victorious during the championship with a score of 71:65.
Another Nordic competitor is Sweden. Montenegro has played against Sweden four times, achieving victory in three matches—twice in the B division in 2009 (70:50 and 88:71) and once in Podgorica during the last qualifying cycle (95:70). The Swedes managed their singular victory in the recent EuroBasket qualifiers, winning 86:83 in overtime in Stockholm.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1P5RwMQZQX8
Montenegro holds a mixed record against Great Britain, with two previous qualifying matches leading to one win for each team. The British team won 74:59 on neutral ground, while Montenegro claimed a 81:74 victory in Podgorica. Although Montenegro finished behind Great Britain in their qualifying group, they later gained entry to the championship as the team with the best qualification performance after Russia was expelled.
Eurobasket is set to take place from August 27 to September 14.
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