MISSION: EUROBASKET QUALIFICATION IN GREECE

Great Britain will prepare for a very different Greece side in Thessaloniki in Sunday’s FIBA EuroBasket 2025 qualifier, but the mission remains the same.

Thanks to Great Britain’s 73-72 win over the Greeks, a win on Sunday, coupled with a Czechia win over the Netherlands, would ensure Marc Steutel’s men a spot at next year’s EuroBasket.

Thoughts are not locked in on that, though. GB’s mindset is more focused on playing the game at their pace, settling into what is expected to be a hostile atmosphere in Greece’s second city.

“We want to dictate our style of play more, keeping the pace high and try to be aggressive defensively,” Great Britain captain Carl Wheatle said.

“We take away our second half defensively and go into Sunday with that mentality we can have that success against.

“For sure, they will make adjustments too; Greece is a very strong unit too, especially in their home; it’s going to be a very hostile atmosphere, but we have to play our way; that’s the best way to give ourselves a chance of coming out successful on Sunday.”

A vocal and intimidating crowd awaits off the court, and on the floor, Greece will be reloading its ammunition.

Olympiacos duo Kostas Papanikolaou and Giannoulis Larentzakis, as well as Panathinaikos’ Panagiotis Kalaitzakis, are included in their roster for Sunday’s game.

They missed Thursday’s clash in London due to the conflicting EuroLeague schedule.

GB coach Marc Steutel will not be fazed or drawn in. Instead, he will prepare his troops for round two. They won the battle at the CopperBox, and now they want to win the war on Sunday in Thessaloniki.

“You always want to try to get the balance right of covering different scenarios and different situations,” Steutel said.

“Looking forward, I think we have to review some areas from our performance; there are some things that we want to do better,” The GB coach added.

“I don’t think we imposed our style on the game for long enough, and I think there’s definitely some decision-making possessions that we would like to review again, but that’s part of it; we’re all learning.”

Sunday’s game will tip-off at 4:30 pm GMT, with all the action available on Courtside 1891.

Great Britain are next in action on Sunday when they travel to Greece. For more information, please follow Great Britain Basketball on YouTube, X and Instagram.