Britain’s head coach Chris Finch reflects on the exit from FIBA EuroBasket – Basketball Update
In spite winning the last two group games, Great Britain’s Men’s basketball team crashed out of the EuroBasket tournament on Tuesday. Looking back at the tournament, Britain’s head coach Chris Finch has now revealed that although
he was bitterly disappointed at the early exit, he still believes that his players could hold their heads high.
The European Basketball Championship which is being held in Lithuania is being used as a testing ground by many teams in preparation for the 2012 London Olympics. The winner and the runner up of the tournament will also secure
an automatic berth in the London Olympics. The teams finishing from 3-6 positions will play a qualifying round.
Britain, being the Olympics host, was not expected to set the tournament on fire, especially given the fact that their best player, Ben Gordon, didn’t even participate. However, an entry in the second round was a possibility, especially
with Luol Deng in their ranks, Ben Gordon, who plays for the Detroit Pistons in the NBA, could not join up with the team because they couldn’t afford his insurance. His insurance from the Pistons is currently void because of the NBA lockout.
In the circumstances, Finch believed the team did well to compete at the level they did and hoped they would improve in the future.
"I've just told our guys that I'm extremely proud of how they played today and all week. Our aim after the first three games was to win both remaining games.”
"We played very well against a Poland team who've impressed all tournament. We knew our energy would be key as it's hard to lift yourself after a game like they had yesterday. We found ways to make plays at the right time today."
Britain endured a tough time in the tournament losing to the likes of Lithuania, Turkey and Spain. However they are still underdogs at this level and would have taken heart from their 85-73 win against Portugal, which was a historic
first win for any male British side at a EuroBasket tournament. They also defeated Poland in their penultimate game to deny the Poles entry in the second round.
In that game Chicago Bulls forward Luol Deng led the way for Britain with 28 points while Joel Freeland scored 27 as Britain won 88-81.
After the game Joel Freeland looked upbeat and raved about the performances of his side in the tournament. He conceded that Britain were simply not up to the mark against powerhouses like Spain and Turkey but believed the side
did well to recover from the defeats and end the tournament on a high.
"We played well and showed a lot of composure after three tough games at the beginning of the tournament.”
"We were focused, mentally prepared, and showed we could get a close win. It was very special for us today and we're really proud of our performance."
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