RIGA - The Latvian U-20 men's national basketball team has begun its campaign to reach the final eight in the 2004 FIBA European Basketball Championship, which is being held in Brno, the Czech Republic, and win a spot in the A league for next year's World Championship in Argentina.
The top five teams in the European Championship will be guaranteed a place in the 2005 World Championship, but making the final eight will give Latvia enough international points to be eligible to compete in the A league. The A league is where the best teams compete to qualify for major tournaments and championships.
Latvia is playing in Group 1 of the championship against Israel, Spain, Croatia, Russia, and the Czech Republic. According to Ha'aretz.com, an Israeli newspaper, Lithuania, Israel, and Croatia are among the favorites to win the tournament.
The Latvian coach Vairis Krumins talked with the Latvian daily Diena about the team's chances in the tournament. "The desire to fight is great. With physical conditioning everything is in order, the only thing missing is good experience," he said.
This is the first time since 1998 that Latvia has qualified for the tournament. The last time was with the U-22 team that managed to finish in 12th place. Needless to say, this year's team hopes to improve on such an unimpressive record.
However, Latvia's tournament got off to a bad start. It lost its first game 68-73 to Israel on July 23. While Latvia fought hard during the game it was simply outplayed by the more experienced Israeli team. But Latvia kept its hopes alive with a 76-69 victory over Croatia on July 24. The first four teams of both groups will move on to the next round to compete for the title.
On July 25 Latvia played its eternal rival Russia in what was inevitably a heated game. Latvia dominated for much of it, but in the end couldn't hold on to the lead and lost 73-78.
After three games Russia now tops the group with three wins. Latvia needs another win either against Spain or the Czech Republic in order to have a chance of progressing. The next round of games begins on July 30.
It is hoped that this U-20 team will form the basis of a more successful national team. Basketball fans were extremely disappointed with the older national Latvian team for failing to even qualify for the 2003 European Championship when it lost all three of its qualifying games against Israel, Germany, and a nail biter against Lithuania, which Latvia only lost by one point.
