On Saturday, August 16, the Latvian men’s national basketball team beat Slovenia 100 – 88 (21:31, 50:52, 77:65) in a friendly game in Riga. The match drew a record crowd of 11,911 spectators. Both teams are preparing for the upcoming EuroBasket finals – Latvia will play its group stage in Riga starting on August 27, while Slovenia begins in Katowice.
Latvia will play its final two preparation games next week at the Acropolis Cup in Athens: against Greece on Wednesday, August 20 (20:00) and Italy on Thursday, August 21 (20:00), both broadcast live on TV6.
Slovenia started strong with an early 8 – 0 run, led by Luka Dončić, who dominated the first half with 26 points, 5 assists, and 5 drawn fouls. Backed by his leadership, Slovenia built a 29 – 16 advantage in the opening quarter. Latvia responded in the second period, with Rolands Šmits’ energy and captain Dairis Bertāns’ shooting (celebrating his 150th national team appearance) helping the hosts briefly take the lead at 41 – 39. Slovenia recovered to edge ahead at halftime, but Latvia stormed into the third quarter with an 18 – 0 run, pulling away 68 – 52. After Dončić left the court following a collision, Slovenia never got closer than 71 – 63 and 87 – 78.
Latvia’s edge came from superior shooting accuracy (2-pointers 13/22 vs. 12/21; 3-pointers 15/34 vs. 14/40), more free throws (29/36 vs. 22/23), and rebounding (39 – 28).
Top scorers: Kristaps Porziņģis 20 points, Dāvis Bertāns 16 (all in the second half), Rihards Lomažs 12 (plus 4 assists), Dairis Bertāns 12, Rolands Šmits 10.
Captain Dairis Bertāns admitted the team “started too passively,” but was encouraged by the turnaround:
“The good thing is that we regrouped and found our rhythm. Once we turned up the intensity on defense, we made life difficult for Slovenia. We can’t afford to relax with a big lead, but overall the improvements are clear.”
Head coach Luca Banchi emphasized the value of the tune-up games:
“Both Lithuania and Slovenia gave us important tests. The team reacted well after a poor first quarter today, even against one of the best players in the world. We’ve built a strong foundation, but there are still details to adjust before EuroBasket.”
Latvia’s EuroBasket 2025 group stage games in Riga:
Aug 27 – vs. Turkey
Aug 29 – vs. Estonia
Aug 30 – vs. Serbia
Sept 1 – vs. Portugal
Sept 3 – vs. Czech Republic
The top four teams will advance to the Round of 16 on Sept 6 against qualifiers from Group B (Germany, Lithuania, Finland, Montenegro, Great Britain, Sweden).
