SPIRITED GREAT BRITAIN FALL TO CZECHIA
Great Britain battled but fell 90-82 to Czechia in their second FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Qualifier in Pardubice on Monday night.
Competitive for the first three quarters but GB – who fought back from a double-digit deficit in the third – faded for good in the mid-way point of the fourth, dropping to their first loss of the qualifiers as Czechia raced clear to secure their first win in Group F.
Despite the loss, Great Britain finished strong in the final minutes to keep the point differential down, giving Marc Steutel’s side a decent chance, when the two sides meet again in their final Group F encounter on February 24 of next year.
“It was a very hard-fought and physical basketball game,” Steutel said.
“I’m really proud of our group, I thought that the game had runs and flows and I thought we did a good job of maintaining that, and trying to play a standard of basketball that we wanted to play, trying to execute a game plan.”
Steutel added: “I was really proud of how my group competed, how we battled and I think I’ve said to our guys throughout this week that qualification is a long process. We understand that we are a very competitive group and coming here only magnifies that.”
Sacha Killeya-Jones led the way for Great Britain with 19 points and nine rebounds, with Carl Wheatle posting an impressive double-double of 17 points and 10 assists. Amin Adamu added 14 on 6/11 shooting.
“The guys fought from start to finish,” Adamu said. “We were executing when it really mattered and we were locked in. The guys was ready to go.”
Tomas Satoransky led Czechia with 21 points and 10 assists.
It was a positive beginning for Great Britain as Akwasi Yeboah and Killeya-Jones continued where they left off on Friday with back-to-back triples for a 6-0 start within the first two minutes.
Looking settled at both ends, GB played brightly as their counterparts were slow and missing looks uncharacteristic of them.
Wheatle got in on the three-point party as the visitors raced to a seven-point lead half-way through the first.
Noah Horchler made it a perfect 4/4 from deep as Great Britain – looking to match their compatriots who won in this very building in 2008 – led by as many as nine points in the opening ten.
However, GB succumbed to a late Czechia run to settle for a 25-24 lead in a blistering first exchange.
Taking the fight to a team ranked in the top 20 was undoubtedly easy on the eye heading into the second, as was looking at the boxscore as the Brits continued their assault.
They hit 12 of their first 14 shots, but careless turnovers were slithering back into the picture as giveaways from Myles Hesson and Killeya-Jones allowed the hosts to take a 34-30 lead early doors.
Great Britain were executing when given their look, but ball security was an issue, with eight turnovers in 12 minutes of action. It forced Steutel into a timeout.
The break had no effect as Czechia steamrolled their way to a 42-34 lead as Vojtech Hruban fed Martin Peterka from three-point land mid-way through the second as Great Britain couldn’t get anything to work.
Killeya-Jones got busy inside to give the visitors hope, and a Yeboah block led to a driving lay-up Adamu to narrow matters to 44-40, forcing Czechia to call a halt.
The hosts again made a run, with Satoransky pulling the strings, as he had ten first-half points, but GB clawed their way back again, as Hesson and Adamu went inside for scores, leaving Czechia to lead 49-47 at the break.
Like in the latter stages of the second, Great Britain could not regain the advantage they proudly held in the first quarter.
They narrowed the gap to 51-50 through Hesson, but Czechia would answer back with a bucket of their own. A three from Peterka made it 54-50 with two minutes of the third played.
The visitors were starting to miss shots they would usually make. Satoransky punished those errors with a triple to make it 57-50, and GB were in trouble.
And when Patrick Whelan spurned an opportunity, Tomas Kyzlink made no mistake with his chance, leaving Steutel no choice but to call timeout with the hosts up by ten.
GB’s credentials were being tested.
Adamu and Killeya-Jones were up to the task as they led from the front to bring the visitors back, but the hosts stood firm to lead 68-62 after three.
Frustratingly for GB, whenever they got to within a single possession, Czechia would answer.
And with the home crowd finding their voice, Kyzlink rewarded them with a lay-up as the hosts took a 77-69 lead with five minutes left.
Steutel again called a timeout as GB needed a burst of magic.
Sadly, on this night, it didn’t materialise.
The other game in Group F saw Greece edge Netherlands 74-72.