ANDORRA LA VELLA, Andorra–Team Armenia, which dominated from the first day of the FIBA European Championships and, and finished the tournament with six wins in as many games won the gold, a day after beating Azerbaijan 88-76 in the U16 (under 16) competition, reported the International Basketball Federation, commonly known as FIBA. Armenia’s Women’s U16 team also won the championship when it beat Malta 63-44.
On Sunday, Armenia U18 beat Gibraltar 88-70 triumph to claim not only their first gold at the event, but also their first-ever medal at the FIBA U16 European Championship, Division C.
Georgii Shakhnazarov led the way in the final with 27 points, connecting on 4-of-10 from three-point range. Aleksey Chizhenok had a higher player efficiency rating, a game-high 38, with his 20 points on 9-of-14 from the field, 18 rebounds, 3 blocks and 2 steals. David Karamyan scored 17 points, Nikita Galtsev was the leading rebounder with 20 points, and he also had 10 points in the Final, FIBA reported.
On Saturday, Armenia beat Azerbaijan in the U16 competition with a score of 88-76
Anna Aslanian of the Armenia’s U16 team secured her the most valuable player honors, paving the way for Armenia’s 63-44 win over Malta in the 2017 FIBA U16 Women’s European Championship Division C finals.
Aslanian took home the trophy after averaging 17.4 points, 16.2 rebounds, 3.6 block,s and 3.6 assists per game for the gold medal winner, Armenia. She scored in double-digits in every single game, including a monster performance in Armenia’s win in the final versus Malta on July 29, with 22 points, 31 rebounds, and 12 blocks.
The entire team from Malta had six blocks throughout the Championship. Aslanian saved twice as many just for the Final outing, finishing the game with 22 points, 31 rebounds, 12 blocks and sevan assists. She almost singlehandedly outrebounded Malta, who had 39 rebounds.
Aslanian’s performance gave her a 57 player efficiency rating, and she had a nice supporting cast in Kristina Melikyan and Ani Hovhannisyan. Melikyan collected 17 points, Hovhannisyan had 16, as Armenia played superb defense in the second half and held Malta to just 19 points after the break.
Malta struggled with their shooting percentage, connecting on 19-of-79 shots from the field. With such a poor shooting performance, they could not make their 18-7 edge in steals count. Michaela Zammit Cordina was their lone ranger in double figures with 15 points.
Joining Aslanian in the All-Star Five in the tournament are Mariam Okropiridze, Agnesa Rrahmani, Mireya Benitez Lopez, and Michela Zammit Cordina. Okropiridze had 32 points for Georgia in the Third-Place Game, hitting 6-of-13 from the great beyond, and her tournament averages were 19 points and six assists per outing.
