Israel's U18 Basketball Team Suffers Heavy Defeat to Greece, Ending World Championship Hopes

Israel's under-18 national basketball team was decisively defeated by Greece 84-64 on August 1, 2026, in the classification match for 5th to 8th place at the European Championship. Coached by Nadav Zilberstein, the Israeli squad, which had shown promise earlier in the tournament, collapsed in the second half and lost any chance to qualify for the U19 World Championship scheduled for next year in the Czech Republic. The team now aims to finish seventh by facing the loser of the Turkey-Germany match in their final game.

During the match, Israel started relatively well but Greece took control, especially in the second half, outscoring Israel 47-31. Key Israeli players David Moses and Aviv Aronov, who had been instrumental in earlier victories, struggled significantly; Moses scored 14 points on 4-of-10 shooting, while Aronov managed only three points. Other contributors included Rom Stoller with 13 points and 6 rebounds, Oren Trushkin with 11 points, and Karam Ashkenazi with 10 points.

Israel's youth team had entered the tournament with hopes of reaching the U19 World Championship by winning two crucial games after their quarterfinal elimination. However, the loss to Greece dashed those hopes. The team will now focus on securing seventh place in their final match, closing a tournament marked by both impressive moments and a disappointing finish.