Ireland U18 women’s basketball team 'excited' ahead of European Championship clash
Ireland U18 women’s basketballers will face Group C winners Czech Republic tomorrow evening in the round of 16 of the FIBA European Championship in Udine, Italy.
Being the only Irish team to play Division A basketball in history, the girls faced an uphill battle from the outset and finished fourth in their group following losses to Poland, Russia, and a 62-39 loss to France last night.
The Czechs topped Group C following wins over Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and a narrow loss to Spain.
Looking back at last night’s game against France and ahead to the Czech Republic game, Ireland head coach, Patrick O’Neill said, “We took the French out of their rhythm a bit last night, and our last quarter was phenomenal – to actually outscore France in that quarter was brilliant.
“We’re excited now about the Czech Republic. They’re not as tall as the other teams we've played, but they’re a high-scoring team and have a lot of threats.
"They’ll be different to what we’ve faced so far, so we’ll have to adjust our defence to be ready for them.”
