GB FADE OUT
(Image taken from MVP 24/7)
Things wren't going to plan for Team GB in the second round of Eurobasket Women 2011. OK, that's slightly harsh. After all, Lithuania were the toughest team they were due to face in that stage. Still, when you have an 0-3 record, what's the ideal team to face? Another side with an 0-3 record. Enter Turkey, a side that like our girls had made things interesting in the first round and also hadn't disgraced themselves in their opening encounter of Group E. So, the two sides met in Bydgoszcz in what was a must win encounter for both sides. If GB lost the match then they would need favours from elsewhere just to stay in contention. Showtime.
The early stages of the match were all GB in terms of offence but we couldn't hit anything for ages, though we did still open the scoring. We went on to extend our lead and the bottom line was, the Turks couldn't get through our defence, giving us a 5-0 lead with 6:16 left in the 1st quarter before the Turks got their act together and turned the game round. We weren't done though, managing to duel for the lead as the quarter entered it's closing stages. THe Turks had the edge down the stretch though and our earlier efforts counted for nothing. Nevriye Yilmas proved to be our biggest problem with 8 points. The Turks went 17-15 at the end of one.
The Turks opened the scoring in the 2nd quarter but sure enough, our girls weren't done and tied the game but weren't able to retake the lead. Then came a drought period of over two minutes with neither side able to get their offence working, which was ultimately fine by the Turks. Before our opponents could run away with things though, a GB jumper tied the game at 27 with 3:34 left in the half, but again parity didn't last long though another turnaround was still doable. Once again though the Turks had the better of us in the latter stages of the quarter, our brave defence running out of fuel in the last minute. Saziye Ivegin was now leading the Turks with 10 points. GB were down 33-27 at the half.
The Turks were clearly in no mood to hang around early in the third quarter and GB were soon left having to deal with a double digit deficit. For the next couple of minutes our girls effectively treaded waternot many shots were made but what shots there were were Turkish. In the middle of the quarter both teams hit a two minute drought from which GB were the first to recover and cut into the lead, not prepared to give the game up just yet. The Turks hoped to have the last word before our girls cut the gap back down to five with seconds left in the period. Still, Yilmaz was now on 14 points, Ivegin still on 10, Nev Nevlin providing further backup on 7 points. GB now down 45-40.
GB opened the scoring in the 4th quarter but the Turks replied with a decent run. That was followed by a gamewide drought of over two minutes before the Turks found their scoring touch again and GB were facing another double digit deficit! Cue combeback attempt as our defence held firm for well over two minutes and a now desperate offence was finally working smoothly and we were back in contention going into the final stages. With just over two minutes left in the match we had the gap cut to two. Yet once again we collapsed down the stretch. Yimz finished with 18 points, Ivegin 14, Nevlin 13, Birsil Vardali providing further backup with 7. GB lost 64-57 and were now at the mercy of other teams.
Specifically Russia, who faced the Czech Republic later on. You'd have thought the Czechs would have taken care of business but the 1st quarter was an absolute disaster for them. The 2nd quarter just got worse - where were the Czech girls that had outclassed us in the first round? The thirsd quarter saw the Russians keep the heat up though - it wasn't quite game over but it looked as though it would need an awesome performance to turn this round. Well credit where credit's due, the Czechs made a really good effort in the 4th but it was just not their day. Elena Danilockina led the Russians with 16 points. They won 69-55 and with that, GB's time in Poland was going to come to an end.
There was one last game to go for GB though, an attempt to restore some pride against Russia. Early on and the girls looked hungry as they dominated the first quarter. The awesomeness continued in the 2nd quarter as though the Russians were starting to step it up, GB still led 27-22 at the half. The third quarter was a tight affair but that was ultimately fine by our girls who were able to hold on to their lead going into the final period. However the Russians' experience told as despite resorting to some seriously ugly tactics at one point, they forced their way through, our girls clearly have a lot of lessons to learn from this campaign. Elena Danilockina again grabbed 16 points. GB lost 62-59.
So, that left GB finishing the Group E campaign with an 0-5 record and an unhappy coach. The teams that made it through were Czech Republic, with a 4-1 record and having wom the tiebreaker against Lithuania, pushing them down to 2nd place, also on 4-1. Russia finished 3rd with a 3-2 record. Turkey finished 4th with a 2-3 record but having won the tiebreaker with Belarus.