Israel's World Cup Dream Ends with Loss to Latvia
The Israel National Basketball Team walked off the floor in Riga on Sunday night knowing the numbers were now official, not theoretical. An 85-70 loss to Latvia, on the back of a 20-point defeat to Poland, slammed the door on their World Cup qualifying campaign.
A window that began with hope ended with elimination.
A lead built, a lead lost
For a spell in the first half, Israel looked like a team fighting for its life.
Lior Carrera and Netanel Artzi set the tone early, pushing Israel in front before Latvia punched back inside. An Arturs Strautins three swung the momentum, but Eitan Burg responded with a couple of sharp plays to nudge Israel ahead 22-21 after the first quarter.
The second period briefly belonged to the visitors. Guy Palatin and Burg drilled back-to-back threes, forcing a Latvian timeout and quieting the home crowd. Israel’s confidence surged. A 12-2 run stretched the lead to 40-29, their biggest of the night, and the blue-and-white suddenly looked in control.
Then it all unraveled.
Latvia came out of a timeout with a 12-1 burst that flipped the game’s rhythm. Israel’s offense stalled, the ball stopped moving, and by halftime the scoreboard read 41-41. A double-digit cushion had vanished in minutes.
Coach Ariel Beit Halachmi knew exactly where the game turned.
“We started the game well, but toward the end of the second quarter we lost the momentum,” he said. “In the second half, we got into foul trouble, and that changed the momentum of the game. They shot a high percentage from 3-point range and took advantage of the mistakes we made.”
The momentum never came back.
Strautins catches fire, Israel fade
Artzi tried to drag Israel forward again to open the third quarter, scoring five straight points. Latvia simply raised the stakes. An 8-2 run flipped the lead to 49-48, and Strautins took over from there.
He scored, then scored again, stretching the gap to 58-52 and forcing another timeout from Beit Halachmi. It didn’t help. Strautins stayed hot, Latvia’s shooters stayed fearless, and the advantage ballooned to 67-58 by the end of the third.
The fourth quarter was ruthless.
Latvia buried three triples in quick succession, pushing the lead to 76-62 with seven minutes to play. Israel had no answer. The offense bogged down, the legs looked heavy, and the belief seemed to drain away. The hosts controlled the tempo, controlled the glass, and calmly closed out the 15-point win.
Yam Madar led Israel with 15 points, Artzi added 11, while Itay Segev and Roman Sorkin chipped in 9 apiece. It wasn’t nearly enough to offset Latvia’s outside shooting and Israel’s offensive drought after halftime — just 29 points in the entire second half.
“We don’t have that luxury”
Beyond the box score, Beit Halachmi’s frustration cut deeper than one bad night.
“I think we don’t have the luxury of showing up for international windows without our leading players,” he said. “We were missing quite a few players, and that had an impact. Different players have been available for each window, and it’s difficult to implement a style of play. Israeli basketball doesn’t have the option of throwing away games; we need everyone with us.”
He pointed to the continuity enjoyed by their rivals.
“Other national teams have been playing with the same roster for a long period of time, but unfortunately, that’s not the case for us,” he added, while also taking a moment to thank the Latvian Basketball Association for its extended hospitality in Riga.
On the floor, the players felt the sting just as sharply. Sorkin, one of Israel’s key big men, didn’t look for excuses.
“From the players’ side, which I’m part of, we have to look better. We can’t look like this. We need to play better,” he said. “I’m speaking about myself right now and not criticizing anyone else. I have no excuses; the only thing I know is that we have to play better and show up differently for games.”
Poland set the tone for a brutal window
The loss to Latvia didn’t come in isolation. The damage had already begun two nights earlier against Poland.
Poland opened that game in commanding fashion. Mateusz Ponitka, Jordan Loyd and Aleksander Balcerowski imposed themselves early, driving their team to an eight-point lead after the first quarter. Israel never really settled defensively, and the second quarter punished them.
Loyd found his rhythm, the Polish attack flowed, and Beit Halachmi’s side trudged into halftime down 55-42.
The pattern held in the third. Sorkin, Madar and Tamir Blatt tried to respond, but Andrzej Pluta and Jarosław Zyskowski kept firing, stretching the lead with accurate shooting. Israel finally produced an excellent final quarter, threatening briefly to claw their way back, yet the hole was too deep. Poland stayed composed and finished off a 106-86 victory.
By the time Latvia stepped onto the court on Sunday, Israel were already reeling. The early surge, the double-digit lead, the flashes of aggression — they all hinted at a reaction. Latvia’s response and Israel’s second-half collapse told the real story.
Two games. Two heavy defeats. World Cup qualifying over.
The question now isn’t what went wrong in Riga. It’s whether Israel can build the continuity, depth and presence of their best players to make sure the next qualifying campaign doesn’t end the same way.
