IWBF Euros: Dutch dominance continues
The women’s basketball team continued their campaign toward a consecutive European Championship crown, while the Turkish and German men stay undefeated. 02 Sep 2015
Germany remain undefeated in pool-play so far at the IWBF European Wheelchair Basketball Championships.
Day five of the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF) European Wheelchair Basketball Championships wrapped up on Tuesday (1 September) in Worcester, Great Britain. The Netherlands saw victories from both sides, while Turkey and Germany looked like strong contenders for men’s gold.
Women
For the fourth straight game, the Netherlands women’s team held their opponents to fewer than 25 points, as the defending champions downed Turkey 106-16. The Netherlands’ Sanne Timmerman had a game-high 19 points, while teammate Mariska Beijer added 18.
The Dutch are now 4-0 so far in the tournament, along with Germany, who had Tuesday off after serving home favourite Great Britain their first loss.
The British rebounded, however, on Tuesday with a strong 69-10 victory over Italy. Jude Hamer led the British with 14 points.
France held off Spain 51-39. Fabienne Saint-Omer Delepine led the charge for France, finishing with a double-double 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Day five results
Netherlands 106, Turkey 16
Great Britain 69, Italy 10
France 51, Spain 39
Men
Turkey and Germany remain undefeated in pool-play so far.
Turkey defeated Switzerland 79-52 and had control throughout the game, taking the 42-22 halftime lead. The Turkish had three men score in double-figures, with Ferit Gumus (17), Ozgur Gurbulak (15) and Fikri Gundogdu (13) getting on the board.
Meanwhile, Germany beat France 79-42 to stay atop in pool A. Germany’s Dirk Passiwan had a game-high 31 points.
Games between the Netherlands and Sweden, and Italy and Israel were much tighter, with the Dutch and Italians victorious.
Sweden entered the breakup 37-26, but the Dutch scored eight unanswered points in the fourth quarter to even the score with 4:30 remaining and went on for the 57-55 win. The Netherlands’ Mustafa Korkmaz led his team in scoring with 25 points.
Italy jumped to a commanding 22-7 lead. But Israel managed to hang in and draw within 58-54 with six minutes left. Still, with 18 points apiece from Stefano Rossetti and Matteo Cavagnini, Italy pulled the 68-63 win.
Day five results
Italy 68, Israel 63
Netherlands 57, Sweden 55
Poland 86, Czech Republic 58
Germany 79, France 42
Turkey 79, Switzerland 52
Great Britain 70, Spain 58
Medal games take place on Sunday (6 September). Also visit the event website for the IWBF European Wheelchair Basketball Championships 2015’s full schedule.
