Greece earn home win over Bulgaria in first EuroBasket qualifier
EUROBASKET QUALIFIERS - MATCHDAY 1
Greece defeated Bulgaria 73-63 at home in Patras in the first match of the 2021 EuroBasket qualifying campaign.
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The EuroBasket competition, which will take place in September 2021, will be hosted by the Czech Republic, Georgia, Germany and Italy. Greece have been placed in Group H of the qualifying campaign alongside Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria and Latvia.
The top three teams in the group will qualify for the final 2021 EuroBasket tournament.
In the first game of Group H, the Greeks dealt well with the challenge of Bulgaria in Patras, claiming a 73-63 victory. Greece, playing without the leading lights such as Nick Calathes and Kostas Papanikolaou, won all four quarters.
Lefteris Bochoridis, tallying 19 points, five assists and three rebounds, took a leading role for the Episimi Agapimeni. Linos Chrysikopoulos also registered double figures as he scored 13 points.
Dee Bost scored 14 points and dished out eight assists for the Bulgarians.
On Monday, Greece will face Bosnia on the road, while Bulgaria host Latvia.
THE MATCH
In the first period, Bulgaria stayed in touch with Greece while making a positive start, eventually only losing the quarter by two points. The visitors then took a brief lead in the second quarter as they gained momentum.
However, the Greeks gradually took a more firm grip on the game during the second stanza, and the team held a solid six-point advantage with 20 minutes in the books.
A lead which was extended by a further two points in the third quarter.
Bulgaria were within two points in the closing stages of the fourth period. Greece, however, weathered the storm and subsequently held on to emerge victorious.
