Lithuania win Baltic derby against Latvia to dump hosts out of EuroBasket

Azuolas Tubelis, against Davis Bertans
Azuolas Tubelis, against Davis BertansESRA BILGIN / ANADOLU / Anadolu via AFP
Lithuania showcased their credentials and reigned victorious in the Balkan derby against hosts Latvia in the last 16 of EuroBasket.

Lithuania were second in their group, having lost only to the world champions Germany, while Latvia lost to Turkey and Serbia. Rimas Kurtinaitis's side started strongly, running out to a 28-18 lead in the first quarter, which they held on to for the rest of the game.

Porzingis not enough

Latvia tried to come back with the support of their home crowd, but it was not possible. The game became more balanced, but they were unable to ever get close enough to their rivals.

Lithuania now await their quarter-final opponent, who will be the winner of the duel between Greece and Israel.

The outstanding players for Lithuania were Arnas Velicka with 19 points, and Azuolas Tubelis and Deividas Sirvydis with 18 points each. 

For Latvia, Kristaps Porzingis had a stunning game with 34 points and 19 rebounds, but his efforts were in vain. In addition, Rihards Lomazs scored 21 points.