Great Britain U20 Women Taken Down by Host Nation in Podgorica

There were celebrations from the locals in Podgorica as hosts Montenegro recorded a 75-58 success against Great Britain at the FIBA U20 Women’s European Championship Division B 2016.

A one-sided third quarter proved to be GB’s downfall, having controlled much of the game up until that point.

Kennedy Leonard led GB with 12 points but was the only player in double figures for the U20s.

Jose Maria ‘Chema’ Buceta and his players had initially found themselves in a commanding position after the opening exchanges, with a nice spread of scoring putting them 20-14 ahead.

But the smooth road turned decidedly bumpy as Montenegro came tearing back and trimmed the gap to just one point at 34-33 by half-time. And, the interval didn’t disrupt their momentum as the host nation subsequently posted a red-hot 24-11 third period.

With a double-digit deficit to try and eradicate, GB tried in vain to haul themselves back into the contest as they came up short to move to 1-3 for the tournament.

The team’s penultimate game will take place 4.45pm on Saturday against Romania, with GB fighting to finish as high as fifth place if they can take two victories at the weekend. Sunday’s opponents will be confirmed on Saturday night.

For the full game statistics v Montenegro click HERE.

Do you like our work?

We have a tiny favour to ask. In 2018 we set out to make Hoopsfix sustainable by building our relationship directly with our readers. Up until now, Hoopsfix has been creating editorials, videos and podcasts to provide sorely missing coverage of the British game and its distinct culture and community.

We have funded Hoopsfix with our freelance work creating basketball media, but sadly that means not only does it fall behind our client’s priorities, but some of those clients are the same organisations we need to report objectively on putting us in a conflicted position.

We want to devote more time to our mission of helping British basketball reach its potential, and produce even more content for the basketball community by making Hoopsfix a sustainable 100% independent business funded directly by our readers through Patreon.

If everyone who enjoys our content chose to support us, our future would be much more secure. For as little as $3 per month, you can support Hoopsfix – and it only takes a minute.

We are tremendously honoured and humbled to have a community of people who value what we do, and we look forward to being at the forefront of the British game as it continues to evolve.

Support Hoopsfix