Spain has shown its resurgence in European basketball during the current continental tournament after being knocked out of the semifinals at the 2021 European Championship, where they hosted, and the 2022 World Cup in Australia. Now, they are in a prominent position and are the favorites going into their clash against Hungary in the semifinals, which will take place on Saturday at 15:45 GMT in Ljubljana.
Although Spain started their European tour without the presence of center Astou Ndour, who was absent for personal reasons, they suffered a surprising defeat against Latvia (67–63). However, they managed to recover quickly and finished first in their group, securing a direct place in the quarterfinals after defeating Montenegro (78-57) and Greece (76-60).
With three European titles in the last decade (2013, 2017, and 2019), Spain has the advantage of experience against Hungary, which has not contested a continental semifinal since 1997. The Hungarian team has been one of the surprises at the tournament in Slovenia, achieving an important victory over Serbia in the group stage, which secured them first place in their group and avoided a possible clash with Belgium.
In the other semifinal, the Hungarian team will face France in an anticipated high-level clash, as both teams are the only undefeated teams in the European Championship so far.
The semifinal schedule sets Hungary to face Spain on Saturday at 15:45 GMT, while Belgium will take on France at 18:45 GMT. On Sunday, the third-place match will be played at 15:00 GMT, followed by the grand final at 18:00 GMT.
Importantly, the top five teams from the European Championship, along with France (as host country for the Paris 2024 Games), will earn a place in the Olympic qualification tournament to be held in February 2024.