Portugal keeps Vezenkov’s Bulgaria out of EuroBasket 2025 qualifiers

Botevgrad Arena, a 3,200-seat stadium, was not only packed, it had far more people than it could hold. The game was a final for Bulgaria and Portugal, with Sasha Vezenkov’s team (awarded before the jamball) taking the win 90-82, but their opponents won the qualifiers for EuroBasket 2025 qualifiers.

Bulgaria needed a win by at least 11 points to reach their goal, this year’s EuroLeague MVP was there to support them, but it all went awry for the hosts in the end. At 42″ Cody Miller-McIntyre committed an unsportsmanlike foul with a score of 90-79, while at 9″ Pavlin Ivanov was charged with steps at a score of 90-80. At 5.9″, Diogo Ventura won an unsportsmanlike foul from Vezenkov, who was sent off second, his team had 2/4 shots and in the final Miller-McIntyre missed a difficult shot that, if it had been on target, Bulgaria would have led.

In 36:54, Vezhenkov had 30 points (6/8 2-pointers, 4/8 3-pointers, 6/6 shots), four rebounds, two assists, three steals and 32 points in the rating system against such a consistent defense fronted him with traps and didn’t let him try in the fourth quarter. Chavdar Kostov (19 points) and Pavlin Ivanov (18 points) followed him, with Travante Williams (21 points) and Diogo Ventura (916 points, 7/10 shooting) standing out for Portugal.

The Bulgarians will now fight for a second chance as they are drawn in this third round of professional qualifying in a group with seven other eliminated teams and four others from the first round (Ireland, Luxembourg, Albania, Kosovo). to claim a ticket from the… window.