The first new “final” for the National team comes with “good evening” in its second phase World Cup. He faces Friday Lithuaniain the 27th appointment in the history of the two teams at Men’s level. The paradox of prehistory is that while the National team has the lion’s share with 16 victories, “Lithuania” has won six of the nine official matches between the two teams. However, in the last meeting between the two teams, Greece had a great victory in EuroBasket 2017 with 77-64 in Istanbul for the knockout stage of the “16”.
Christos Robolis writes from Manila
The blackest page for Greece in prehistory with Lithuania was written on 1996, in the quarter final of the Olympic Games in Atlanta, when the National team was defeated 99-66, with Giorgos Sigalas saving himself with 18 points.
The national team had suffered a heavy defeat from “Lithuania” and the 2004 at the Athens Olympic Games98-76, with 18 points from Nikos Zisi and 13 from Lazaros Papadopoulos.
The 1995 Lithuania had defeated Greece 89-73 in the OAKA for the first phase of Eurobasket despite the efforts of Fanis Christodoulou (19p.), Panagiotis Giannakis (17p.) and Nikos Oikonomou (14p.).
and 1999 history repeated itself in nightmare organization of Dijon with 82-64, with 21 points from Dimitris Papanikolaou and 14 from Nikos Boudouris.
The 2007 Lithuania deprived the national team of the bronze medal by winning 78-69 in short final of Eurobasket of Spain, with the current Men’s general manager Nikos Zisi having 23 points and Dimos Dikoudis, now in charge of the national teams, adding another 10.
Greece has to remember the 73-66 in the premiere of its second phase Eurobasket 1997 in Girona with 15 points from Dimitris Papanikolaou and Yiannis Giannoulis and Angelos Koronios adding 11 each…
… and 81-76 in overtime in its first phase World Basketball 2006 with 15 points from Vassilis Spanoulis, 11 from Antonis Fotsis and 10 from Michalis Kakiouzis.
The 2011 in Eurobasket, in Kaunas, Lithuania won 73-69 to take fifth place against a National Team that had already achieved the goal of securing qualification to the Pre-Olympic Tournament by defeating Serbia and played in its last game without Zisis and Kaimakoglou. Nick Kalathis with 16 and Kostas Koufos with 14 points were the first scorers.
Finally, in Eurobasket 2017for the knockout phase of the “16”, the National team, with Kostas Missas on the bench, after a disappointing first phase in Helsinki (without the then-injured Yannis Antetokounmpo), played its best game in the tournament and had prevailed 77-64, with 21 points from Nick Kalathis and 14 from Kostas Sloukas, while current leader Kostas Papanikolaou had 11.
The prehistory in detail:
06/09/1992 (Piraeus-Filiko) 83-81
03/06/1995 (Lyon-Friendly) 80-84
22/06/1995 (Athens-Eurobasket) 73-89
30/06/1996 (Berlin-Friendly) 77-57
07/16/1996 (Chicago-Friendly) 83-85
30/07/1996 (Atlanta-Olympic Games) 66-99
29/06/1997 (Girona-Eurobasket) 73-66
07/08/1998 (Nicosia-Friendly) 82-68
23/06/1999 (Dijon-Eurobasket) 64-82
23/08/2001 (Marousi-Friendly) 75-73
16/06/2002 (Marousi-Friendly) 78-44
06/20/2002 (Alasio-Filiko) 84-69
17/07/2004 (Bormio-Friendly) 79-92
28/07/2004 (Glyfada-Filiko) 65-64
07/08/2004 (Madrid-Friendly) 88-75
19/08/2004 (Greek-Olympic Games) 76-98
20/08/2006 (Hamamatsu-Mundobasket) 81-76
20/08/2007 (Marousi-Friendly) 78-71
16/09/2007 (Madrid-Eurobasket) 69-78
26/08/2009 (Marousi-Friendly) 75-73
17/09/2011 (Kaunas-Eurobasket) 69-73
06/17/2012 (Kaunas-Filiko) 82-70
28/08/2013 (Marousi-Friendly) 80-62
16/08/2014 (Kaunas-Friendly) 67-86
29/08/2015 (Marousi-Friendly) 67-62
09/09/2017 (Istanbul-Eurobasket) 77-64
Source: Sport Fm
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