Overcoming a slow start in an early knockout game, Turkiye advances to the Quarterfinals of EuroBasket 2025

By Semih Tuna/ [email protected]

Riga, Latvia - Following a narrow win for Turkiye in the Round of 16, Shane Larkin talked about necessary adjustments for the next challenge or challenges in EuroBasket 2025.

"It was a difficult game," he recapped the meeting with Sweden during a postgame media session on Saturday, "I don't think many people expected it to go the way that it did. But I think it was a good test for us. I think it was a good wake-up call to help us understand that, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter who we're playing against. From now on, every team has a chance and is fighting for a medal."

"Maybe we were a little to confident going into this game and this is a great reminder for us that it doesn't matter who you're playing against, every team can beat you, and this is a great test for us to have to fight some adversity and a big win," added the 32-year-old combo guard, "I think this was a good test for us to kind of get punched in the face and we were able to respond in the right moment to get a win."

"There are a lot of different factors to this game," Larkin mentioned, "Playing at noon is something that none of us really do on an often basis. Winning the group, I don't know why we had the game at 12 o'clock."

"I'm not going to sit here and make any excuses, but as professional players, we're not accustomed to playing at noon, so this is a different time frame for all of us to wake up and play at this time. Both teams, not just for our team," furthered the Cincinnati native, "I wouldn't say it was directly affecting us, but I think it is something different, and whenever you do something different, it takes you some time to kind of get accustomed to it."

"So, I'm not going to say and make an excuse and say that's the reason the game the game went the way it did, but I would say it definitely affected us a bit mentally, physically," he added, "Just the overall rhythm of not having a shootaround, getting up early, going to the gym, playing at noon, it's just a very different experience."

"We came here to win a medal"

Advancing to the Quarterfinals, the next opponent will be Poland or Bosnia-Herzegovina in Xiaomi Arena on Tuesday.

"I've said this before, I think pressure is a privilege. I think it's a blessing to be in these kinds of situations because we could be home right now. We could not be playing. I think we all are excited and happy, being able to have an opportunity to do something special for our national team that we haven't done in quite some time," pointed out Larkin, "We came here to win a medal and we have to win at least two more games to guarantee a medal and if we win three, we have a gold."

Larkin put in five out of his ten points in the fourth quarter, helping his side get the job done.

"Just trying to go out there and be aggressive. I wasn't as aggressive in the first half. So, in the second half, I tried to get my legs underneath me and get some shots up and be aggressive," he explained.

Photo Credit: FIBA

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