HOME COMFORTS AS GB BEAT CZECHIA TO END EUROBASKET CAMPAIGN

Great Britain comfortably dismissed Czechia 96-75 in Newcastle on Monday night to end their FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Qualifying campaign unbeaten at home.

Qualification already secured before tonight, but a big win that could strengthen GB’s seeding going into this summer’s continental event with a big double-digit victory against a side placed number 19 in the FIBA World Rankings.

This latest win however was an awe-inspiring, dazzling team performance where all 11 players registered a field goal and scored three points or more.

There was a minor stutter to end the second quarter when the Czechs trimmed the lead to five points at the half, but a blistering start to the third from the hosts, en route to a 32-18 ambush settled matters once and for all.

“We wanted to tighten up a bit in our defence and our communication,” GB captain Carl Wheatle said about the third quarter performance.

“We did that a little better in the third quarter and we managed to create the gap that then broke open the game.”

Jubrile Belo-Osagie led the winners with 21 points on 6/9 shooting, Akwasi Yeboah added 13 and Luke Nelson shot 4/6 from three-point land for 12 along with five assists.

“It was a proud night, a proud defensive performance,” said Great Britain coach Marc Steutel.

“I felt that we had contributions and collective contributions from everybody on the roster. Beyond that, it’s really positive for us to finish the qualifying campaign 4-2 and it’s really positive for us to have an undefeated record at home.”

Former London Lions star Vojtech Hruban amassed 16 points for Czechia who end their campaign 2-4, but like Great Britain, have also qualified for EuroBasket.

To start, both teams looked to run and play in transition, but with little success. They could not register a point between them in the first two minutes, but as the quarter progressed, Great Britain started to enjoy its home comforts.

Three-pointers from Josh Ward-Hibbert and Nelson gave the hosts a slight advantage, and GB only got better as they raced to a 19-9 lead thanks to a steal and one-hand slam from Tarik Phillip with more than three minutes to play in the first.

Entering the second quarter, GB led 23-15. Defensively, GB was fierce, forcing the Czechs into seven turnovers and playing tough perimeter defence, holding them to just 1/6 from three-point land.

At the other end, Great Britain had no such issues; Nelson buried his second triple of the game, followed by Jelani Watson-Gayle as the home side splashed five of their 12 attempts for a 29-22 lead with 6:21 left in the half.

Briefly, Great Britain enjoyed a double-digit lead, with the points beautifully shared, as 10 of the 11 players on the scoreboard. But as the quarter wore on, Czechia came back.

With 2:09 to go, a lay-up in traffic from Petr Krivanek narrowed matters to 35-31, but GB held their nerve and fought through the pressure that the Czechs were building and led 40-35 at the break.

Triples from Wheatle and Phillip restored that double-digit lead, highlighting an 8-0 start to the third quarter, forcing Czechia into several early turnovers as they couldn’t get into their sets.

GB’s passing was crisp, everyone was on the same page at both ends, Nelson buried another triple from the wing for a 51-37 lead with under four minutes played as Czechia coach Diego Ocampo had no choice but halt proceedings.

The timeout had no effect. GB’s movement and execution at both ends was flawless and when Gabe Olaseni buried a rare three-pointer with 4:02 left in the third, all Great Britain players had registered a field goal to showcase the unselfish offensive play.

“There were some possessions there that I want our junior teams all the way down the pathway to look at,” Steutel said.

“[It has] shown how you can impact winning and how you can play the right way as a Great Britain basketball player.”

Up 72-53 and the game blown open by the hosts in an electric third period, Great Britain refused to put the gear stick into neutral, continuing the onslaught as the lead peaked at 25 points in a big victory.

“We wanted to impose our style from the jump,” said Wheatle.

“I thought we were very solid defensively. We wanted to finish off our campaign the right way and play in the right style of basketball to finish off this qualifying sequence.

“I think we did a good job imposing ourselves early. We pushed the pace at the right times, and I think our offence flowed pretty well.”