Israel's under-20 men's team shed every trace of relegation anxiety on Thursday, beating Italy 84โ59 in Ljubljana to secure its place in the top division of the European championship. Oren Aharoni's side seized control in the second quarter and kept stretching the lead after half-time, delivering its most complete performance since Wednesday's round-of-16 defeat to Greece.
Italy led 16โ15 late in the first quarter, but Israel closed it on a 21โ16 run and never let the game drift back into one-possession territory. The second quarter went 18โ16 in Israel's favor for a 39โ32 half-time lead, then a 20โ11 third period pulled the contest open. A 25-point fourth quarter sealed it, giving Israel the night's largest winning margin at 25 points.
Yonatan Keller led all scorers with 19 points, and Oren Sahar added 18 while posting the game's highest efficiency rating, 23. Four Israeli players finished in double figures โ a spread that mattered as much as the top numbers, since it left Italy unable to load its defense against a single creator while Israel kept pace and pressure flowing through its rotations rather than leaning on one late shot-maker.
The shooting numbers explain why the margin only grew. Israel shot 40 percent from the field to Italy's 31 percent, converting 46.8 percent on two-point attempts and 30 percent from three. Italy managed just 37.2 percent inside the arc and 16.7 percent from long range. Israel was also 81.3 percent from the free-throw line, locking in the advantage whenever the game stopped.
Once ahead, Israel was rarely troubled again. The official lead tracker recorded only one lead change all night, with Israel in front for 37 minutes and 16 seconds against 1:36 for Italy, and its biggest lead reaching 28 points. Those numbers point to a game controlled from the front rather than a late escape โ a notable contrast to the 79โ66 loss to Greece that had ended the medal path just one night earlier.
The win also resolved the tournament's most pressing competitive question. At this age level, the classification bracket carries real consequences: finishing in the bottom positions means relegation to Division B. By winning the 9โ16 classification opener, Israel locked in its spot in the top European division for 2027, with the remaining fixtures left to determine an eventual finish anywhere from ninth to twelfth.
Arena Stoลพice II hosted a crowd of 100, with Yener Yilmaz, Lukasz Jankowski and Sinisa Prpa officiating โ a modest setting that did nothing to ease the stakes. With less than a day to reset after the Greece loss, Israel played with clearer spacing, sharper shot selection and the defensive discipline to hold Italy to 43 points over the final three quarters. Survival was the minimum requirement; the manner of the win restored some authority to the campaign.
