The first two knockout round games were played on Monday to give the Riga-based teams time to travel to Serbia.  Frida Eldebrink and Sweden used a fast start to leave Latvia at home 77-62.  Great Britain also started well, but Montenegro did close the gap before the duo of Temi Fagbenle and Karlie Samuelson proved to be too much and got them the 92-71 win.  Tuesday’s games were the first in Belgrade, which also hosts the rest of the tournament.  The first game was excellent as Slovenia looked to pull off the upset, but Julie Allemand took on a bigger scoring role than usual for Belgium and helped them escape with a 72-67 win.  Cecilia Zandalasini and Italy had the early advantage, but Russia gathered itself in the second half on their way to a 63-54 win.  The teams will now all be well rested for the all-important quarterfinals games on Thursday with automatic spots in the next phase of Olympic qualification on the line.

July 1, 2019

Sweden vs. Latvia 77-62 SWE F. Eldebrink 21 Loyd 14 Zahui B 12/10r Drammeh 12 E. Eldebrink 9/8a Halvarsson 5 Magarity 2/11r Lundquist 2 Nystrom 0 Hamilton-Carter 0 Vesterberg 0 Abdi DNP LAT Dikaioulaku 14 Brumermane 13/9r P. Strautmane 8 Jakobsone 7 Pulvere 5 Kreslina 5 Melnika 4/6r D. Strautmane 2 Pilabere 2 Septe 1 Ikstena 1 Vitola DNP

Great Britain vs. Montenegro 92-71 GBR Fagbenle 29 Samuelson 28 Vanderwal 15/9a Leedham 13/8r/7a Green 7 Handy 0 Monakana 0 Jones 0 Simpson 0 Collins 0 Shaw 0 Campbell DNP MNE Mujovic 16 Jovanovic 12/6r Johnson 12/6r Aleksic 10 Vucetic 8 Kovacevic 6 Pasic 5 Jaksic 2 Popovic 0 Lazarevic 0 Zivkovic 0 Matovic DNP

July 2, 2019

Belgium vs. Slovenia 72-67 BEL Allemand 25 Meesseman 18/9r K. Mestdagh 13/11r Raman 6 Delaere 6 Linskens 2 Wauters 1 H. Mestdagh 1 Carpreaux 0 Vanloo 0 Nauwelaers 0 Geldof DNP SLO Evans 15/6r Oblak 15/6r Baric 15/9a Prezelj 11 Lisec 9/7r Friskovec 2/7r Jakovina 0 Senicar 0 Kroselj 0 Rupnik 0 Gorsic DNP Dautovic DNP

Italy vs. Russia 54-63 ITA Zandalasini 24 Andre 8/6r Penna 8 F. Dotto 6/7r Cinili 4 Romeo 2 Crippa 2 Cubaj 0 Sottana 0 De Pretto 0 C. Dotto DNP Ercoli DNP RUS Vadeeva 19/9r Shilova 10 Vieru 9/9r Levchenko 6 Musina 5/7r Leshkovtseva 4 Belyakova 2 Beglova 2 Logunova 2 Fedorenkova 2 Maiga 2 Gladkova DNP

Bracket:
Spain vs. Russia
Serbia vs. Sweden
France vs. Belgium
Hungary vs. Great Britain

June 30, 2019

All groups finished play on Sunday.

Group A:

The day started with an elimination as Temi Fagbenle and Great Britain tossed out Alina Iagupova and Ukraine 68-54.  The picture was looking rather clear early, but Latvia surged late to make everyone pull out the calculators before Spain held on to a 59-56 win.

Ukraine vs. Great Britain 54-68 UKR Iagupova 21/7r Naumenko 11/7r Bilotserkivska 6 Malashenko 6 Udodenko 4 Radulovic 4 Yatskovets 2 Horobets 0 Kondus 0 Voloshyna DNP Uro-Nile DNP Olkhovyk DNP GBR Fagbenle 22/8r Leedham 10/7r Samuelson 10/6r Vanderwal 8/7r Handy 6 Simpson 6 Green 4/7r Monakana 2 Collins 0 Jones 0 Shaw DNP Campbell DNP

Latvia vs. Spain 56-59 LAT Dikaioulaku 19 Brumermane 10 Melnika 8 Kreslina 5 Septe 4 P. Strautmane 4 Jakobsone 2 D. Strautmane 2 Ikstena 2 Pilabere 0/8r Pulvere 0/6r Vitola DNP ESP Ndour 16/12r Cruz 9 Nicholls 8/10r Xargay 7 Ouvina 6 Palau 5 Dominguez 5 Pina 2 Abalde 1 Gil 0 Casas 0 Vilaro DNP

Standings: Spain 3-0, Great Britain 2-1, Latvia 1-2, Ukraine 0-3

Group B:

Montenegro got a fantastic game from Glory Johnson, not only getting the win, but a 70-57 triumph also pushed them past the Czech Republic in the tiebreaker scenario.  Sweden needed a win to top the group and closed the margin late, but France took care of business and won 71-65.

Czech Republic vs. Montenegro 57-70 CZE Hejdova 16/9r Kat. Elhotova 11 Kar. Elhotova 9 Krakovicova 6 Stepanova 4/6r Vyoralova 4 Brezinova 4 Bartakova 3 Vorackova DNP Adamcova DNP Pudlakova DNP Vojtikova DNP MNE Johnson 27/14r Jovanovic 19/14r Mujovic 19/9a Vucetic 2 Kovacevic 2 Pasic 1 Aleksic 0 Zivkovic 0 Popovic 0 Jaksic DNP Lazarevic DNP Matovic DNP

Sweden vs. France 65-71 SWE E. Eldebrink 18 Zahui B 13/14r Loyd 8 Magarity 7/9r Halvarsson 7 F. Eldebrink 6 Nystrom 3/6r Drammeh 3 Lundquist 0 Abdi DNP Hamilton-Carter DNP Vesterberg DNP FRA Gruda 16/6r Hartley 13 Ayayi 12 Epoupa 10/7r/7a Chartereau 8 Miyem 8 Bankole 2 Rupert 2 Johannes 0 Chevaugeon 0 Badiane 0 Fauthoux 0

Standings: France 3-0, Sweden 1-2, Montenegro 1-2, Czech Republic 1-2

Group C:

The first game had no impact on either team in the standings and Turkey at least left with a win, edging Hungary 59-58.  The other game did matter for placement and Italy beat Slovenia 75-57.

Hungary vs. Turkey 58-59 HUN Hatar 15/7r Dubei 11 Studer 11 Zele 11 Lelik 3 Horvath 3 Horti 2 Varga 2 Pusztai 0 Turner 0 Kiss 0 Raksanyi DNP TUR Stokes 11 Cakir 11 Canitez 10 Caglar 8 Koksal 7 Bilgic 4 Cora 4 Alben 2/7a Guclu 2 Ural 0 Yalcin 0 Senyurek DNP

Italy vs. Slovenia 75-57 ITA F. Dotto 18 Crippa 15/7r Andre 13/10r Zandalasini 9 Sottana 7 Penna 5 Cinili 4 Romeo 4 Cubaj 0 De Pretto 0 Ercoli 0 C. Dotto DNP SLO Baric 15 Evans 13/9r Prezelj 12 Jakovina 7 Friskovec 4 Oblak 4 Gorsic 2 Senicar 0 Kroselj 0 Rupnik 0 Dautovic 0 Lisec DNP

Standings: Hungary 2-1, Italy 2-1, Slovenia 1-2, Turkey 1-2

Group D:

Belarus had the stronger start, but Russia was finally able to get their first win 76-62 and the margin was enough to eliminate Belarus from prevailing in the tiebreaker.  The last game got to the point of drama before a leak stopped play and then Serbia did enough late to beat Emma Meesseman and Belgium 70-66 and win the group.

Belarus vs. Russia 62-76 BLR Papova 15/7r Bentley 12/6r Hasper 11/6r Likhtarovich 10/11r Snytsina 6 Verameyenka 5 Rytsikava 3 Tarasava 0 Ziuzkova 0 Masko DNP Brych DNP Inkina DNP RUS Vadeeva 21/13r Musina 13 Beglova 12 Belyakova 7 Shilova 6 Fedorenkova 6 Maiga 5/8r Vieru 4/6r Logunova 1 Leshkovtseva 1 Levchenko 0 Gladkova DNP

Belgium vs. Serbia 66-70 BEL Meesseman 21/9r K. Mestdagh 15 Delaere 12 Allemand 4 Vanloo 4 Linskens 4 Raman 2 Wauters 2 H. Mestdagh 2 Carpreaux 0 Nauwelaers 0 Geldof DNP SRB Brooks 16 Petrovic 13/7r Dabovic 13 Jovanovic 11 Milic 5 Miljkovic 5 Stankovic 3 Crvendakic 2/11r Skoric 2 Butulija 0 Cado 0 Stanacev DNP

Standings: Serbia 3-0, Belgium 1-2, Russia 1-2, Belarus 1-2

Bracket:

Spain vs. winner Italy-Russia
Serbia vs. winner Sweden-Latvia
France vs. winner Belgium-Slovenia
Hungary vs. winner Great Britain-Montenegro

June 28, 2019

Group A:

Hosts Latvia got on board with their first win in a battle of great individual scorers as Elina Dikaioulaku led them past Alina Iagupova and Ukraine 82-74.  Upset-minded Great Britain managed to hang tough with Spain behind Temi Fagbenle, but Astou Ndour and Spain sealed it late to win 67-59 and maintain control of the group.

Latvia vs. Ukraine 82-74 LAT Dikaioulaku 33/6r/7a Melnika 18 Pulvere 10/6a Kreslina 10 Brumermane 6/9r Jakobsone 5 P. Strautmane 0 D. Strautmane 0 Pilabere 0 Ikstena DNP Septe DNP Vitola DNP UKR Iagupova 28/8r/7a Malashenko 19 Radulovic 8 Bilotserkivska 8 Udodenko 5 Naumenko 3 Horobets 3 Olkhovyk 0 Kondus 0 Voloshyna DNP Uro-Nile DNP Yatskovets DNP

Spain vs. Great Britain 67-59 ESP Ndour 23/8r Nicholls 11/6r Cruz 9 Dominguez 7 Ouvina 5 Gil 3 Xargay 3 Palau 3 Pina 3 Casas 0 Abalde 0 Vilaro DNP GBR Fagbenle 20 Leedham 9 Samuelson 9 Handy 6 Green 4 Vanderwal 4 Monakana 4 Jones 3 Simpson 0 Campbell 0 Collins 0 Shaw DNP

Group B:

A long day of games started in this group again as the Czech Republic flipped the script this time, getting a big game from Renata Brezinova to beat Sweden 71-64 after a dominant second half.  France took care of business with an 88-53 win over Montenegro.

Czech Republic vs. Sweden 71-64 CZE Brezinova 23 Stepanova 14/7r Kat. Elhotova 14 Hejdova 11 Bartakova 4 Vyoralova 3 Krakovicova 2 Kar. Elhotova 0 Vorackova 0 Vojtikova 0 Adamcova DNP Pudlakova DNP SWE Zahui B 19/7r Halvarsson 12 F. Eldebrink 11 Loyd 9 E. Eldebrink 6 Drammeh 6 Magarity 1 Lundquist 0 Abdi 0 Vesterberg 0 Nystrom DNP Hamilton-Carter DNP

Montenegro vs. France 53-88 MNE Mujovic 12 Pasic 10 Kovacevic 9 Jovanovic 6 Zivkovic 4 Johnson 4 Vucetic 4 Aleksic 2 Lazarevic 2 Popovic 0 Jaksic 0 Matovic DNP FRA Johannes 15 Ayayi 12/7r Gruda 11 Miyem 10 Hartley 9 Chartereau 9 Chevaugeon 7 Badiane 5 Fauthoux 4 Bankole 4 Rupert 2 Epoupa 0/6a

Group C:

A battle of winless teams saw Slovenia grind out a result late against Turkey to win 62-55 and put a team that was expected to be in good shape on the ropes after two tough games.  Hungary put themselves in position to win the group by beating Italy 59-51.

Slovenia vs. Turkey 62-55 SLO Oblak 18 Prezelj 13 Evans 10/6r Baric 9/12a Jakovina 7 Friskovec 3/7r Senicar 2 Gorsic 0 Kroselj 0 Rupnik DNP Lisec DNP Dautovic DNP TUR Stokes 17/19r Alben 13/6r Cakir 13 Koksal 9 Canitez 3 Bilgic 0 Yalcin 0 Senyurek 0 Caglar 0 Cora 0 Guclu 0 Ural DNP

Italy vs. Hungary 51-59 ITA Sottana 16 Cinili 12 Zandalasini 9 Romeo 7 Cubaj 4/10r Andre 2 C. Dotto 1 Crippa 0 F. Dotto 0 Penna 0 De Pretto DNP Ercoli DNP HUN Horti 13/6r Turner 10/11r Hatar 10/9r Raksanyi 8 Zele 7/6r Studer 6 Dubei 5 Varga 0 Lelik 0 Pusztai DNP Kiss DNP Horvath DNP

Group D:

Belarus bounced back from a tough loss to beat Emma Meesseman and Belgium, helping throw the group into more unpredictability.  Russia erased Serbia’s early lead by halftime, but the home fans helped their team dominate the last quarter to win 77-63 leaving Russia in a possible position to be eliminated even if they win their last game.

Belgium vs. Belarus 61-69 BEL Meesseman 23/9r K. Mestdagh 17/7r Allemand 6/7a Delaere 4 H. Mestdagh 3 Linskens 2/9r Vanloo 2 Carpreaux 2 Wauters 2 Raman 0 Geldof DNP Nauwelaers DNP BLR Bentley 19 Verameyenka 15/7r Snytsina 9 Hasper 7/6r Papova 6/8r Tarasava 5 Rytsikava 4 Likhtarovich 2 Ziuzkova 2 Masko DNP Brych DNP Inkina DNP

Serbia vs. Russia 77-63 SRB Dabovic 16/7r/6a Butulija 15/6r Milic 14 Brooks 12 Petrovic 8 Jovanovic 6/7r Skoric 2 Crvendakic 2 Cado 1 Stanacev 1 Stankovic 0 Miljkovic DNP RUS Shilova 11 Belyakova 9 Vadeeva 8 Beglova 8 Maiga 8 Levchenko 6 Musina 5/15r Leshkovtseva 4 Logunova 2 Fedorenkova 2 Vieru 0 Gladkova 0

June 27, 2019

The tournament started on Thursday with all groups in action in three locations.  Games continue on Friday and then Sunday.

Group A:

Hosts Latvia were looking for a good start, but Great Britain’s star trio, led by Johannah Leedham, got them the 74-60 win.  Alina Iagupova and Ukraine had the better start, but Marta Xargay and Spain controlled the rest of the game to win 95-77.

Great Britain vs. Latvia 74-60 GBR Leedham 24/6a Samuelson 15 Fagbenle 13/10r Handy 6 Vanderwal 4 Green 4 Jones 3 Monakana 3 Simpson 2 Collins 0 Shaw DNP Campbell DNP LAT Dikaioulaku 17/11r/7a P. Strautmane 14/6r Melnika 11/7r Pilabere 8 Brumermane 3 Kreslina 3 Pulvere 2 Vitola 2 D. Strautmane 0 Ikstena 0 Septe DNP Jakobsone DNP

Ukraine vs. Spain 77-95 UKR Iagupova 38/6r/7a Olkhovyk 10 Udodenko 9/6r Bilotserkivska 9 Naumenko 6/6r Malashenko 2 Kondus 2 Radulovic 1 Horobets 0 Yatskovets 0 Voloshyna 0 Uro-Nile DNP ESP Xargay 31 Palau 16/6r/7a Nicholls 11/9r Dominguez 10 Cruz 8 Gil 8 Ndour 5/8r Pina 2 Ouvina 2 Casas 2 Abalde 0 Vilaro DNP

Group B:

The day started in this group in Riga and Amanda Zahui B and Sweden took the lead early on their way to a 67-51 win.  The Czech Republic had an upset on their mind as they started well against France, but could not keep it up in the second half, as a tie score before the final period turned to a 74-61 final margin.

Sweden vs. Montenegro 67-51 SWE Zahui B 21/12r Halvarsson 11/11r Abdi 11 E. Eldebrink 9 Lundquist 4 Loyd 4 F. Eldebrink 3 Drammeh 2 Magarity 2 Nystrom 0 Hamilton-Carter 0 Vesterberg DNP MNE Johnson 15/9r Mujovic 11/6a Pasic 8 Jovanovic 6 Vucetic 5 Kovacevic 4 Aleksic 2 Popovic 0 Matovic 0 Zivkovic DNP Jaksic DNP Lazarevic DNP

France vs. Czech Republic 74-61 FRA Epoupa 18/6a/6s Hartley 13 Miyem 11/8r Chartereau 9/7r Johannes 9 Ayayi 5 Gruda 4/8r Fauthoux 3 Chevaugeon 2 Badiane 0 Rupert 0 Bankole 0 CZE Hejdova 19 Kat. Elhotova 15 Brezinova 8/6r Stepanova 6 Kar. Elhotova 5 Krakovicova 3 Vyoralova 3 Bartakova 2 Vorackova 0 Adamcova DNP Pudlakova DNP Vojtikova DNP

Group C:

This first game in Serbia was in this group in Nis and it was a good one between teams knowing that this was the most important game for their chances to advance.  Hungary’s inside-outside combination of Bernadett Hatar and Yvonne Turner got them the 88-84 win over Teja Oblak and Slovenia.  The other game was also close, but with less scoring as Italy’s comeback got them the 57-54 win and put them in pole position in the group.

Hungary vs. Slovenia 88-84 HUN Turner 23/6a Hatar 21/11r Studer 17 Zele 8 Dubei 7 Horti 4/6r Varga 4 Raksanyi 2 Lelik 2 Pusztai DNP Kiss DNP Horvath DNP SLO Oblak 21/6a Evans 18 Lisec 13/8r Prezelj 13 Baric 7/10a Friskovec 7 Jakovina 5 Kroselj 0 Rupnik 0 Gorsic 0 Senicar DNP Dautovic DNP

Turkey vs. Italy 54-57 TUR Cakir 13 Koksal 11 Stokes 10/8r Bilgic 10 Caglar 4 Canitez 3 Alben 3 Cora 0 Senyurek 0 Yalcin DNP Guclu DNP Ural DNP ITA Sottana 16 Zandalasini 13 Crippa 7 F. Dotto 6 Romeo 5 Cubaj 3/7r Cinili 3/6r Andre 2 Penna 2 C. Dotto 0 De Pretto DNP Ercoli DNP

Group D:

The first game from a highly anticipated group in Zrenjanin saw club teammates Emma Meesseman and Maria Vadeeva battle in the post with Meesseman helping Belgium come out on top 67-54 over Russia.  The last game of the day saw hosts Serbia get a big challenge from Belarus, but survive 55-53.

Russia vs. Belgium 54-67 RUS Vadeeva 20/11r Fedorenkova 8 Musina 6/6r Maiga 6 Levchenko 5 Vieru 3/6r Belyakova 3 Shilova 2 Logunova 1 Leshkovtseva 0 Beglova 0 Gladkova 0 BEL Meesseman 29/9r K. Mestdagh 11 Delaere 8 Allemand 5/7r/6a Wauters 5 Linskens 4 Vanloo 3 Carpreaux 2 Raman 0 Nauwelaers 0 H. Mestdagh 0 Geldof DNP

Belarus vs. Serbia 53-55 BLR Verameyenka 13/10r Papova 10/10r Likhtarovich 9/8r Hasper 8 Snytsina 6 Bentley 4 Rytsikava 3 Tarasava 0 Ziuzkova 0 Masko DNP Brych DNP Inkina DNP SRB Petrovic 18/6r Jovanovic 9 Crvendakic 7/6r Stankovic 7 Brooks 4 Milic 4 Cado 3 Dabovic 2 Miljkovic 1 Butulija 0 Stanacev 0 Skoric DNP

The champion of the continent will be determined again in this year’s tournament running from June 27th through July 7th.  Automatic Olympic qualification is no longer on the line in this new format, but the top six teams will move on to the next stage.  Each group has four teams with games on Thursday, Friday, and Sunday, with the last place team eliminated and the first place team moving directly to the quarterfinals.  Group A and B will be played in Riga, Latvia and the first knockout round games for teams from those groups will be played there on Monday while Group C is in Nis and Group D is in Zrenjanin.  The second and third place teams from those groups will play in Belgrade for the first knockout round on Tuesday as the two Latvia-based groups will also travel there with Serbia hosting all the games from the quarterfinals on to the end.

The story leading up to the tournament has been players who will be missing for the event, but with teams going through the preparation process, they will be ready with the squad they have.  The teams at the top know are chasing continental glory, but they also know that all teams will be in the same boat for Olympic qualification.  This process will give the chance to one more team as previous cycles only saw one automatic qualifier and four qualifying tournament entries from Europe.  With some favorites spread out across the groups, it will be intriguing to see if either the Latvia groups or the Serbia groups have an advantage when they cross over for the quarterfinal games.

Group A:

Great Britain returns to this stage after failing to qualify for the last tournament.  While many familiar names have returned, the team is also in the middle of a transition period.  Having the star duo of Johannah Leedham-Warner and Temi Fagbenle spend all club season together should give them a chemistry boost for this format.  The team will also be hoping for Karlie Samuelson to hit the ground running with less game sharpness than the rest of the players.  Cheridene Green is one of the young players who tried out for the team that made the cut and showed promise during the exhibition schedule.  With injuries hurting Latvia, the head-to-head matchup will be a chance for the team to get the win that would send them to the next round.

Latvia was excited to be named one of the hosts, especially coming off a fantastic performance two years ago.  Unfortunately they have been rocked hard by injuries and other absences, missing half a team’s worth of players.  The presence of Elina Dikaioulaku gives them a player whose scoring can win them a game at any time while Kristine Vitola will lend her experience to a side continuing to integrate young players.  The advantage that they will have is chemistry from past tournaments and also club play.  The homecourt advantage could end up making the difference in whether the team can grind out a result that will get them to the next round, but a repeat of the heroics that propelled them onto the world stage seems unlikely with this current group.

Spain figures to be among the favorites again having won two out of the last three titles.  Their path grew harder immediately after finding out that their key player and last tournament’s MVP Alba Torrens would not be available, but they have had longer than other teams to prepare for absences so they should have a plan without her.  This group is not nearly as difficult as it could be and a group win would give them significant rest before the key games.  As always, Spain has fantastic depth in the backcourt and many combinations to choose from, but less in the frontcourt behind the duo of Astou Ndour and Laura Nicholls.  While they have been flying under the radar, it would be no surprise to see them lift the trophy again.

There have been moments of confusion surrounding Ukraine in the run-up to this event, but their roster is set and ready to go.  An absolutely full strength team would be very dangerous, but any team with Alina Iagupova has a player who can single-handedly win any game.  While the team is lacking a second star that can reduce the scoring load on her, they do have reasonable depth and team full of players in the primes of their careers.  There remains some mystery on how strong this group will be when competitive games start, but there is room in this group to get the second spot and set up a favorable matchup for a path to the quarterfinals.

Group B:

The Czech Republic has been left scrambling after losing all of their frontcourt depth before the tournament, which means that they may be unable to advance to the next round once again.  The Elhotova sisters, Katerina and Karolina will be the experienced leaders of this team and will be asked to provide a lot of offense.  Fans will be happy to see young Veronika Vorackova take the court again after not seeing her for an entire season.  They will need contributions to pop up from unexpected places to get them the win that could keep them from swift elimination.

France has been the runners up for three consecutive tournaments and there were early suggestions that this might be their year.  A variety of absences up and down the lineup have dampened expectations suddenly, but new talent will have the chance to emerge.  Alexia Chartereau was a breakout star two years ago and Iliana Rupert or even Marine Fauthoux could play that role this time.  Sandrine Gruda figures to be the key player in the post again and the team will have solid wing play between Marine Johannes, Valeriane Ayayi, and Endy Miyem, but there are questions about how the guard situation will be handled and how the offense should be structured, especially late in games.  Bria Hartley may have the advantage, having worked with coach Valerie Garnier all club season, although she did arrive in camp late and has had to be eased into preparations, but her scoring ability is a big plus.  The team should be able to win this group, but settling for another silver medal may not meet their expectations this time.

Montenegro had a promising start two years ago before big losses left them with the worst record out of all the teams.  The task of surpassing that effort became more difficult when Jelena Skerovic retired, but she will still be on this team as coach.  Naturalized players will have less of an impact than expected in this tournament, but Glory Johnson may well end up being the biggest difference maker of any of them and her scoring ability will be needed here.  Finding a consistent second scorer like Milica Jovanovic could prove critical in what figures to be the most important game against the Czech Republic with both teams trying to avoid repeat first round eliminations.

Sweden may not have qualified for the last tournament, but they have been a very trendy pick this year.  Their share of absences means that the top of the standings may be too tough an ask, but having Amanda Zahui B is certainly an offensive boost that could help them in critical moments.  The Eldebrink sisters will be counted on for offense from the backcourt and Binta Drammeh is a less heralded name who could emerge for the team.  Getting Regan Magarity in the team now after she was unavailable for qualifiers due to school means that they can continue to integrate young players into the mix with Klara Lundquist being the player that many are excited to see in the near future.  This group is weaker than it was when it was on paper originally so there is certainly a good chance for them to finish second here, which could net them a favorable matchup in the first knockout round game.

Group C:

Hungary’s youth development has been a marvel from a global perspective as their investment into the sport is starting to pay dividends.  That talent has not fully developed to completely impact the senior level, but there will be plenty of youth on this roster again.  Depth and experience are a major concern as a number of impact players will be missing from this group.  Yvonne Turner has played some of her best club basketball in the country and her recent naturalization shows that there are hopes that can translate to this format as well.  With point guard play going from a strength to a weakness in two years and a severe lack of post depth, there are plenty of holes to fill in this roster and plenty of chances for somebody new to step up on the big stage.  While this may be the weakest group overall, any chance of advancing again is likely to come down to their game with Slovenia.

Italy has been looking for their chance to return to the global stage for a long time and a long-term youth movement has given them some new and exciting options.  Many of the veterans that had tried so hard to lead their team in this tournament are now out of the picture and the search for players to replace them has been exhaustive.  Giorgia Sottana will be expected to be a key player again and Cecilia Zandalasini is more ready to be one of the leaders now, but young players like Elisa Penna, Lorela Cubaj, and Olbis Futo Andre’ will also have something to contribute.  Their ability to bring Nicole Romeo on board in the prime of her career gives them an added dimension that might not have been expected.  A one point loss to Turkey prevented them from winning the group last time and that could be the critical matchup again this time with the top spot holding additional significance beyond the bye to the quarterfinals as the winner avoids a dreaded crossover matchup with one of the Group D teams.

Slovenia returns to this stage after starting the last tournament with a pair of impressive performances only to be undone by a poor final game.  They have no issue at point guard with Teja Oblak and Nika Baric available to pull the strings.  Expecting them to do better than last time might be tough, but the young talent on this team means that they should be expected to continue to come back to this stage.  Zala Friskovec is the latest addition to that group, following in the footsteps of Annamaria Prezelj and Eva Lisec.  Like the last tournament, Shante Evans will give them additional strength in the paint and if they can catch fire from distance in one of these games, they could succeed where they failed in the last tournament.

Turkey has been a consistent team this decade, making it to the next stage each time, but it has been a while since they have been a genuine medal contender in a tournament.  While many of the same names have been included in this edition, the slow transition process continues as the team does not want to ignore past success, but does need to be wary about rivals emerging.  Kiah Stokes was chosen as the new naturalized player and is not the only new post player as young Inci Guclu was included and there will be hopes that the tall players will get to face each other in the Hungary-Turkey matchup.  Isil Alben will be called upon to be the leader again both on the court and emotionally and they will try to surround her with players who can score from the outside as consistent offense has become the team’s undoing in the past.  The group draw here is favorable with a top two finish the only acceptable outcome and the top spot as they expectation, but they will need to be ready for the knockout stages with more teams than usual in position to compete for the qualification places.

Group D:

Belarus had been planning for a resurgence after being unceremoniously dumped out of the last tournament, but were not feeling any better after seeing their opposition this year.  Late hopes of a full strength frontcourt were dashed, but Anastasiya Verameyenka returns to give the team a steadying veteran presence.  Maryia Papova will be looking to fill the hole in the paint and the team will be looking for Aliaksandra Tarasava to provide some extra scoring punch alongside their usual backcourt of Tatsiana Likhtarovich, Katsiaryna Snytsina, and Alex Bentley.  Without their expected main scoring threat, they will certainly need other players to emerge to avoid early elimination again after having such a string of successful tournaments.

Belgium burst on the scene with a medal in the last tournament and are aiming even higher this time.  As always, Emma Meesseman will be the key force in how far they advance.  Kim Mestdagh will lead the charge to provide spacing around her and Julie Allemand has continued to grow into her role as a point guard.  The team is not quite at the full strength that it could have been when initial roster suggestions were announced, but the core that helped establish them at this level has been kept intact.  A roster spot has been used on Ann Wauters despite a lack of club play for her recently, but her veteran presence and experience will certainly be welcomed for the tough games to come.  This group will provide them with a supreme challenge and all the teams will have designs on the top spot and a chance to rest for a game.

Russia has fallen short of the global stage multiple times in recent years and they certainly feel that they have paid a big enough price and are ready to return.  They had a multiyear plan that revolved around them returning to prominence and there were hiccups in the process, but the young duo of Maria Vadeeva, who has been playing with a vengeance throughout their exhibition slate, and Raisa Musina are ready to lead the team.  Evgeniya Belyakova provides a veteran presence and her shooting has been strong in the preparation period.  A shakeup in the backcourt could yield interesting results if one of Anna Leshkovtseva or Julia Gladkova emerges as an additional scorer.  The team has high expectations, but they will not be able to ease into the tournament with a difficult group and if they once again fail to hit a top six spot, the situation will truly become a crisis for program management.

Serbia will have high expectations as hosts, but they certainly got no advantages from the draw, which will not give them any easy tasks.  Marina Maljkovic is back as coach after being so critical to their success, but she did not coach club play in Europe this season so she will have had a lot of catching up to do to be prepared for what their opponents will throw at them.  The most important roster news is that Jelena Brooks is ready to return and even though she will need to shake off some rust, she and Sonja Petrovic will be able to create a dynamic duo again with their creativity making the offense hum when they are at their best.  While many familiar faces are back, there are some intriguing new names with Nikolina Milic possibly being someone to look out for as a new scoring threat.  This group will be tough, but all the teams will still be position to make runs as long as they can qualify.  With the home fans behind them for the entire tournament, it’s hard not to see Serbia returning to contender status.