Giannis Antetokounmpo and his teammates didn’t just believe—they made it happen.
With a commanding performance against powerhouse Lithuania, featuring Denver Nuggets’ center Jonas Valančiūnas and backed by 10,000 Lithuanian fans at Arena Riga in Latvia, Greece sealed a 87–76 win in the EuroBasket 2025 quarter-final and advanced to the semi-finals.
This marks the first time in 16 years—since the bronze medal at EuroBasket 2009 in Poland—that the national team has reached the final four of any major tournament. It is also Greece’s 10th appearance in the semi-finals of the European Championship in its history.
Greece’s success was built on ferocious defence. Antetokounmpo dominated with 29 points (9/14 two-pointers, 11/16 free throws), six rebounds and two assists. Vassilis Toliopoulos added 17 points with 3/4 from three-point range, Kostas Sloukas contributed 11 points, four rebounds and four assists, while captain Kostas Papanikolaou posted eight points, seven rebounds, three assists and one steal.
Dinos Mitoglou worked tirelessly in his assignment to guard Valančiūnas, despite foul trouble, while Kostas Antetokounmpo produced four spectacular blocks to halt Lithuania’s advances.
After an early 7–0 run for Lithuania, Greece stormed back, powered by Antetokounmpo’s 15 first-half points, Toliopoulos’ hot shooting, and Papanikolaou’s clutch three-pointer that extended the lead to double digits. From there, Greece built an advantage of up to 16 points (55–71), keeping control until the final buzzer.
Valančiūnas finished with a double-double (24 points, 15 rebounds) for Lithuania, while Arnas Velička (12 points) and Gytis Radzevičius (10 points) also scored in double figures.
Greece will now face Turkey, led by coach Ergin Ataman, in the semi-final on Friday, September 12.
Quarter scores: 19–24, 38–44, 52–64, 76–87
Greece (Vassilis Spanoulis): Dorsey 6 (1), Toliopoulos 17 (3), Sloukas 11 (1), Kalaitzakis 2, Papanikolaou 8 (2), Samontourov 5 (1), G. Antetokounmpo 29, K. Antetokounmpo 4, Mitoglou 5 (1)
Lithuania (Rimantas Kurtinaitis): Blaževič 4, Normantas 5, Velička 12 (3), Radzevičius 10 (1), Sedekerskis 3 (1), Tubelis 1, Birutis, Valančiūnas 24, Giedraitis 7 (1), Sargiūnas 4, Sirvydis 6 (2).
