Ukrainians suffered two defeats in the selection for the 2023 World Cup
Head coach of the Ukrainian national basketball team Ainars Bagatskis commented on the defeat Italy (89:97) and Iceland (88:91) in qualifying matches for World Cup 2023.
“Iceland at home and away are two different teams and it’s not for nothing that they defeated Italy at home, won a hopeless match against the Netherlands. Here you need to keep the focus throughout the distance. This is a team that plays with a small squad and makes a huge number of three-pointers. We needed to focus offensively on those moments where we had an advantage and play disciplined in defense.
“The first 5-6 minutes did not look like we could fall out of the game or we did not appreciate the opponent, we played calmly and confidently. We played defensively and it worked, but everything changed dramatically when the rotation started. Usually in such situations, Sanon came off the bench, but we must learn to play without Issouf. We lost the rhythm of the game and swam away on defense.”
“In these matches, especially against Italy, we played a good two quarters and spent a lot of energy. But, yes, in both matches we failed everything that was prepared in the third quarters. On these stretches we were a completely different team. Many factors can be noted: fatigue, our condition, opponent’s pressure. But, first of all, it’s not about the opponent, but about how we change. Perhaps some extra self-confidence appears, but this should not be close. ”
“We give the opponent too many chances, which the opponent, of course, uses. Imagine, we have 16 losses on average for control matches and two official games. This is a lot. But the paradox is that even despite the many stupid decisions on the floor that lead to losses, we always stay in the game. We need to find peace and not make losses, or it is better to quit. We’d rather look like an adventurous team than constantly losing the ball. We can’t play calmly, everyone wants to prove something, we need to calm down.”
Recall that the Ukrainian national team lost in overtime to Iceland in the qualifying match for the 2023 World Cup – 88:91.
With 7 points after 6 matches, Ukraine is fifth in qualifying group L. The chances of our team getting into the 2023 World Cup are now minimal.
After the 2023 World Cup qualifiers, Ukraine switches to the EuroBasket 2022 matches. The first game of the blue-yellows in the tournament is already on September 2.
Source: Sportarena
