Jerusalem, June 17 (Agency) Belgium on Friday remained unbeaten after Game Day 2 of the FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2023, co-hosted by Israel and Slovenia.In the 4-team Group B, played at Shlomo Group Arena in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv, Belgium beat the Czech Republic 84-41, mainly thanks to a double-double of 24 points and 11 rebounds by Emma Meesseman, and 13 points scored by Julie Vanloo. In the same group, Italy overcame hosts Israel 88-68, with 33 points from Cecilia Zandalasini and 16 more scored by Laura Spreafico.
On Sunday, in the group’s last game day, Belgium will play Italy, which has a 1-1 record, while winless Israel will face the Czech Republic, which has a 1-1 record. The team that finishes first in the group will advance directly to the quarterfinals, while the 2nd and 3rd places lead to the Qualification phase, from which it is also possible to advance to the last eight.In Group A, played in the same arena in Tel Aviv, all four teams, Spain, Montenegro, Latvia, and Greece currently have a 1-1 win-loss record each.Greece beat Latvia 73-65, with Mariella Fasoula logging a double-double of 22 points and 11 rebounds for the winners and her teammate Artemis Spanou also contributing 22 points. Latvia’s Aleksa Gulbe finished with 15 points and 9 rebounds.Spain bounced back from their surprising loss to Latvia the day before with a 78-57 win over Montenegro, including an impressive 26-6 last quarter.Maria Conde led Spain’s scorers with 20 points, alongside 6 rebounds, while her teammate Alba Torrens added 11 points. Marija Lekovic scored a team-high 15 points for the Montenegrin team. On Sunday, Montenegro will play Latvia while Spain will face Greece to decide the close group.