In an emphatic display, Latvia stamped its ticket to Manila for the quarterfinals of the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup by crushing Brazil, 104-84, in the Indonesia Arena on Sunday, Sept. 3.
The bout for one of the two tickets of Group L en route to the Final Round was still tight at the first 1 ½ minute of the third frame until Davis Bertans, Arturs Zagars, and Andrejs Grazulis went unconscious offensively – waxing up Latvia’s 36-point rally to enter the final frame holding a commanding 81-63 lead.
The helpless Brazil squad wasn’t able to match the scoring fireworks of Latvia as the Kristaps Porzingis-less squad even built a 24-point advantage and ultimately sealed their first World Cup quarterfinal appearance in program history.
Grazulis poured a sizzling 24-point shootout for Latvia while shooting 11-of-15 from the field. Zagars chipped in with 17, while Bertans hit 14 with four treys
Artus Kurucs churned a flawless 12-point output as well to aid his Latvian team, sinking four major treys.
