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RIGA (Latvia) – Türkiye had already qualified for the Round of 16, and have a game against Serbia coming up to determine the group winner in Group A, but they did not relax for one second of their matchup with Estonia on Monday.
They took care of business, unfazed by the travelling Estonian fans in Riga, as they won the game 84-64.
Turning Point
The second half of the first quarter showed how much firepower Türkiye have on their roster. With the starters doing their part and Adem Bona brining plenty of energy of the bench, Ergin Ataman’s men opened up a +12 advantage after 10 minutes and did not look back the rest of the way.
Estonia tried making it interesting with three consecutive triples to end the third and start the fourth period, but they could not crawl into single digit deficits the rest of the way.
TCL Player of the Game
Sure, Ercan Osmani and Adem Bona had great stretches; sure, three other players were in double figures, but this is Alperen Sengun’s playground.
The big guy was simply amazing one more time, finishing with 21 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists, making two of his three three-point attempts to get an efficiency rating of 30 – exactly his average efficiency rating per game through these four games.
His massive dunk put the game out of Estonia’s reach midway through the fourth quarter.
Sengun is now the first player to have 20+ points, 5+ rebounds and 5+ assists in three consecutive FIBA EuroBasket games over the past 30 years.
Stats Don’t Lie
Türkiye had 5 blocks in a single game for the first time since their encounter with Germany exactly 10 years ago, and while that alone wasn’t the biggest advantage looking at the boxscore, the fear factor was obvious.
Estonia only shot 11-of-30 from inside the arc, with Bona, Sengun and Omer Yurtseven altering shots simply by being under the rim to make the Estonians think twice about shooting over them.
Bottom Line
The dream start continues for Türkiye, as they picked up four wins in a single FIBA EuroBasket tournament for the first time since 2009.
Back then, coach Bogdan Tanjevic led them to a 5-0 start to the competition, before losing the remaining four games and finishing eighth in Poland.
The last time Türkiye won four EuroBasket games was in 2009
The last time Türkiye won four EuroBasket games was in 2009
The last time Türkiye won four EuroBasket games was in 2009
The last time Türkiye won four EuroBasket games was in 2009
The last time Türkiye won four EuroBasket games was in 2009
The last time Türkiye won four EuroBasket games was in 2009
With the way they have been playing and dominating in Riga, it feels like they could not only repeat an elite eight finish, but eclipse it and fight for a medal.
As for Estonia, they dropped to 1-3 ahead of their final group phase game in Latvia. They face Portugal on Wednesday, a win there could be enough to send them to the Round of 16.
They Said
For more quotes, tune in to the official post-game press conference!
FIBA