Greece Overcome Czech Reaction And Wins Convincingly

GREECE 62 - CZECH REPUBLIC 45

Greene started with a three pointer from EVanthia Maltsi who scored 8 pts from her team 16 and they kept their noses in front the whole first quarter, although the Czechs tied the score twice. The first was dominated mostly by Trading until when with 3:40 remaining and with the score tied at 10 after a basket from Petra Kulichova to Konstantinos Missas' team scored a 6-1 run, leaving scoreless the Czechs for three minutes and entering the second 16-11 ahead.

The second quarter was a Czech Republic-Maltsi game since her teammates struggled to score. The Greek legend after 4:40 started a 9-0 run with a trey and a three point play capped by another three pointer from Zoi Dimitrakou to put Greece ahead 30-18, with three minutes remaining for the interval. But the two minutes of lack of accuracy from the Czechs passed on to the Greek -both teams had a 30% in field goals in the first half-and they won't score in that last minutes while the Czechs won't do it either until 55 seconds before the break when Eva Viteckova scored two freebies to make it 30-20 and then Jana Vesela hit a jumper to make it 30-22 to go to the lockers.

The Czechs improved their defense at the beginning of the third with Vesela stopping Maltsi, and letting the Greeks just 5 pts in the first five minutes -all by Zoi Dimitrakou- while the Czechs claw their way back into the game - with Tereza Peckova scoring 6 from her team's first 12 points in the quarter- and finally evened the score, 34-34, with five minutes remaining with nobody being able to score for Greece. Then Maltsi reappeared. She hit the three from top of the key and passed her momentum to her team which would trade baskets in the next two minutes to enter the last act 42-38 ahead after a trey from Afroditi Kosma with 1:40 remaining, a frame in which none of the teams scored.

Maltsi overcame Vesela in the last quarter and lead her team to regain the control of the game from their great defense. After five minutes of trading Greece blocked Milan Veverka's team offense, with 51-45 in the score, which won't score in the last five minutes of the game while Greece scored a 11-0 run to clinch the victory by 62-45.

Pelaglia Papamichail had 12 pts and 11 boards for Greece, Evanthia Maltsi added 24 pts, and Zoi Dimitrakou put 12 pts more. Dimitra Kalentzou handed 7 assists and 5 pts

Jana Vesela scored 15 pts for the Czhech Republic, Eva Viteckova had 12 pts and 7 boards, Petra Kulichova had 11 boards and 4 pts and Tereza Peckova 9 pts and 8 rebounds