Finland’s Lauri Markkanen catches a ball during the Eurobasket, European Basketball Championship quarter final match between Finland and Georgia at the Riga Arena in Riga, Latvia, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
Finland fans cheer their team ahead of the Eurobasket, European Basketball Championship quarter final match between Finland and Georgia at the Riga Arena in Riga, Latvia, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
Finland holds off Georgia 93-79 to reach EuroBasket semifinals for the first time
RIGA, Latvia (AP) 鈥 Finland held off a Georgia fightback to win 93-79 and reach the semifinals of EuroBasket for the first time in its history Wednesday.
Finland’s Lauri Markkanen catches a ball during the Eurobasket, European Basketball Championship quarter final match between Finland and Georgia at the Riga Arena in Riga, Latvia, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
RIGA, Latvia (AP) 鈥 Finland held off a Georgia fightback to win 93-79 and reach the semifinals of EuroBasket for the first time in its history Wednesday.
Mikael Jantunen led Finland with 19 points and Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen contributed 17 points and six rebounds.
The Finns also showcased their depth by scoring 44 points from the bench to Georgia鈥檚 four.
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Finland led by 20 points in the third quarter before Georgia cut the deficit to six with just under eight minutes left in the fourth.
海角社区官网Raptors forward Sandro Mamukelashvili led Georgia with 22 points.
Coming off an , Finland surged into an early lead on strong three-point shooting and doubled up Georgia 30-15 early in the second quarter.
Highly-rated 18-year-old forward , who is projected to be a potential NBA first-round pick in 2027, scored 7 points off the bench.
It was the first time in the quarterfinals as an independent nation for Georgia, which knocked out in the round of 16 and beat defending EuroBasket champion Spain in the group stage.
Finland faces either or Slovenia in the semifinals. They were playing their quarterfinal later Wednesday. Both have won the title once: Germany as host in 1993 and Slovenia in 2017.
Coming off a 42-point game against Italy in the round-of-16, Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Don膷i膰 is looking for his fifth game of the tournament with at least 30 points scored.
The semifinals are on Friday and the final is on Sunday, with those matches also in Riga. ___
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