Eurobasket 2025, in Reggio Calabria Italy hosts Hungary’Hungary

After the brilliant victory in Istanbul against Turkey last Thursday, Italy è in Reggio Calabria to face Hungary (tomorrow, Feb. 23, 8:30 p.m. live DAZN, Sky Sport Uno and Now) and close the Group B in the best possible way, however already won by virtue of the four victories obtained in the five games played so far. For the occasion, the PalaCalafiore will be Sold-out (7,000 spectators).

Compared to the roster that took the court in Istanbul, head coach Gianmarco Pozzecco will recover Saliou Niang, who was forced to forfeit against the Turks due to a mild flu-like condition. He will not be of the match by technical choice Riccardo Rossato, replaced by Sasha Grant. For him and Niang this will be the absolute debut in the Senior National Team. Thus, the number of Pozzecco management rookies rises to 12.

The captain will always be Alessandro Pajola, who in Turkey updated his career high in Azzurro by scoring 12 points. Also improved the personal record of points in the national team for Giordano Bortolani (16 in Turkey and 100 in total as Nicola Akele). First two career points with Italbasket for Dame Sarr. Ten rebounds, on the other hand, is the career high in Azzurro for Momo Diouf.

Given up for dead too early, the Hungarians managed the feat of making it to the last game of the round while still retaining a faint hope of qualification. After starting with four consecutive defeats on their way to EuroBasket 2025, the Magyars surprised everyone by managing to beat Iceland at home, overturning the -5 in the first leg and closing 87-78. By virtue of this result, Hungary will arrive in Reggio Calabria with the categorical imperative to win while hoping that Turkey beats the Icelanders. With these two crosses, having the double-header on their side, the Hungarians would qualify right at the expense of Iceland. On the bench there’è Gašper Okorn, Slovenian coach of the’Estra Pistoia in our Championship and who in Hungary won two Scudetti and a Magyar Cup with Falco Szombathely. The staples of the team are, for several years now, Akos Keller, David Vojvoda and Zoltan Perl. Without Adam Hanga, fantasy è in the hands of Nate Reuvers, a big forward from Valencia born in Lakeville, Minnesota and with a past at Cibona Zagreb and especially at Pallacanestro Reggiana (2022-2023). In the’first leg in Szombathely, Italy clearly imposed 62-83 with 12 points apiece for Giordano Bortolani and Amedeo Tessitori.

Starting with the friendly win in May 1936 in Padua (48-14), there are a total of 33 comparisons between Italy and Hungary: 21 Azzurre victories including a +48 (104-56) in November 1988 in Trapani valid for the European qualifiers and 12 defeats including the -32 in May 1954 in Milan in a friendly (63-95).

EuroBasket 2025: the teams already qualified
Meanwhile, only four teams are missing to complete the grid of the 24 participants in EuroBasket 2025: in addition to the four host nations, Latvia, Poland, Finland and Cyprus, Slovenia, Israel, Portugal, Italy, Turkey, Belgium, Spain, France, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece, Great Britain, Czechia, Serbia, Georgia, Estonia and Lithuania will also take part in the continental review. They will be joined by one of Iceland and Hungary and three of the four teams in Group D: Germany, Montenegro, Sweden and Bulgaria.