Under 20 Men: GB 68-72 Montenegro

The GB U20 Men suffered a close loss to Montenegro 72-68 in their final game of the European Championship group stage. The result leaves Karl Brown’s team bottom of Group A with an 0-3 record.

GB came out aggressively to start the game, attacking the hoop and hitting some knock down three pointers to take the lead in the first quarter 20-15.

Montenegro responded in the second, bringing the score even as the teams battled with one another to gain the advantage. The neck-and-neck affair continued through to the end of the first half with Montenegro hitting a huge three to beat the buzzer right before halftime with the score tied at 39-39.

Kayne Henry (13 points, 11 rebounds) turned on the jets in the second half, dazzling fans with some exciting baskets in transition. However, GB struggled to convert as a team on the offensive end, their story of the tournament so far, and allowed Montenegro to take the lead to finish the third quarter 58-53.

GB’s scoring woes continued in the fourth, despite the Men fighting back to bring the game to within 3 points with just over 30 seconds left. However, it wasn’t enough, as Montenegro held on to pull away with a 72-68 victory to claim their first win of the tournament.

Regardless of the result, GB’s competition hopes remain alive as all teams from the group stage advance to the Round of 16. Coach Karl Brown’s side now await their playoff fate as they’ll play the winner of Group B who finish their fixtures later today.

Nathan Delaney Powell was the only other player to score in double digits for GB and was top scorer for his side as he finished with 17 points for the game.