Germany show class in opener, Hungary beat Finland for first time in 29 years | FIBA Basketball

MIES (Switzerland) – After a breathtaking opening day of action, the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 European Qualifiers came back for an exciting second day with reigning champions Germany rolling past Israel while Hungary registered their first win over Finland in 29 years; Estonia took down Slovenia in overtime; and two assists records were set.

The remaining 16 teams were in action across the continent on Friday after eight games were played on the opening day. The European Qualifiers action will continue on Sunday with the final games of the first window following on Monday.

Daily Highs

Efficiency: Mario Hezonja (CRO) – 36
Points: Jerrick Harding (POL) – 32
Rebounds: Isaac Bonga (GER) – 10
Assists: Ludde Hakanson (SWE) – 15
Steals: Marcell Pongo (HUN) / Norbert Lukacs (HUN) / Gregor Hrovat (SLO) – 4
Blocks: Four players – 3

Germany show class in opener, Croatia set assists record

Reigning world champions Germany started their Road to Qatar in style with an impressive 89-69 home win over Israel in Group E. Germany and Israel have faced off in qualifying for both the 2019 and 2023 FIBA World Cups, but the freshly-crowned FIBA EuroBasket 2025 champs took care of business with a 24-9 second quarter to set the tone.

Oscar da Silva paced Germany with 19 points, David Kramer scored 13 points and Isaac Bonga tallied 6 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Roman Sorkin top-scored for Israel with 18 points.

Croatia meanwhile were never tested against Cyprus with a dominant 100-60 home win. The hosts led 28-8 after 10 minutes and never took the foot off the gas, dishing out a European Qualifiers record 32 assists.

Read about Croatia’s record-setting night

Croatia set European Qualifiers record with 32 assists

Hungary picked up an upset to start their Group G campaign with an 89-82 home victory over Finland – their first win over the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Semi-Finalists in 29 years.

The hosts, who failed to reach this summer’s EuroBasket, raced ahead 31-17 after 10 minutes and the lead was up to 26 points in the second period, which ended with the hosts up 60-39. Finland pulled within seven points in the final quarter but Hungary fought through for the win.

Perl finished with 25 points, Nate Reuvers had 16 points and 6 rebounds and Adam Somogyi chipped in 11 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. Sasu Salin knocked down 5 three-pointers for 16 points to pace Finland.

How long has it been since Hungary beat Finland? Only three of the current Hungary players were even alive back on October 30, 1996. David Vojvoda was 6 years old and both Zoltan Perl and Szilard Benke were still just 1 year old.

France for their part took care of business in the other Group G game with a strong defensive showing for a 79-63 home win over Belgium. France took the second half 50-32 in front of the home fans in Rouen. Benjamin Sene was France’s top weapon with 15 points and Lionel Gaudoux had 13 points and 8 rebounds, and Retin Obasohan scored 14 points for Belgium.

Netherlands grab big win in Latvia, Poland too much for Austria

Netherlands registered a surprise of their own to tip off action in Group F with a 78-86 victory at Latvia. The Netherlands put together a dominant first 27 minutes in building a 60-37 lead in Riga. The hosts fought back into the game but could only cut the gap to seven points in the final frame as Netherlands won their first game ever over Latvia.

Nathan Kuta scored 17 points to pace five players in double figures and Keye van der Vuurst collected 16 points, 3 rebounds and 8 assists. Rihards Lomazs’ 17 points and 5 assists were not enough.

Poland were the other opening night winner in the group with a 90-78 home triumph over Austria. Poland answered every Austria run with a surge of their own, putting the game out of doubt in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter. Poland turned 19 offensive rebounds into 26 second chance points.

Jerrick Harding shined in his debut for Poland with 32 points and 5 assists while captain Mateusz Ponitka collected 17 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. Austria could not take advantage of 20 points from Sylven Landesberg

Estonia win OT thriller in Slovenia, Hakanson’s assist record not enough

Estonia and Slovenia gave basketball fans a real thriller in Group H and it was Estonia who came out on top 94-93 on the road in overtime. Kristian Kullamae drained the game-winner in the waning seconds after the end of regulation saw two scores in the final 4 seconds.

Estonia, who wasted an 11-point fourth quarter lead, were led by Henri Drell with 29 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks and Kullamae finished with 24 points. Gregor Hrovat scored 23 points in the loss.

Read about the madness in Slovenia

Overtime madness: Kullamae, Estonia steal a road win in Slovenia

In the other Group H game, Czechia overcame a record performance by Ludde Hakanson in a 97-80 home win over Sweden. The Czechs took over the game with a 27-17 third quarter en route to the victory.

Tomas Satoransky scored 16 points with 6 assists and Martin Peterka and Ondrej Sehnal both had 15 points for the winners. Hakanson meanwhile collected 15 points and 15 assists – a new World Cup Qualifiers record, eclipsing the mark of 14 assists he held with three other players.

Find out more about Ludde Hakanson’s record night

Hakanson breaks his own World Cup Qualifiers assist recordResults

Group E
Croatia 100-60 Cyprus
Germany 89-69 Israel

Group F
Latvia 78-86 Netherlands
Poland 90-78 Austria

Group G
Hungary 89-82 Finland
France 79-63 Belgium

Group H
Slovenia 93-94 (OT) Estonia
Czechia 97-80 Sweden

FIBA