The Ukrainian national basketball team lost to 'Arizona Wildcats' 85:107 in the first sparring match before the 2027 World Cup qualifiers

The Ukrainian national basketball team played its first control match as part of the preparation for the second round of the 2027 World Cup qualifiers. The 'Blue and Yellows' met the American student team 'Arizona Wildcats' in Kedainiai, Lithuania, and lost with a score of 85:107 (24:33, 20:28, 24:19, 17:27). According to Sport RBC.UA, the sparring match was an important check before the official matches of the qualifying tournament, considering the fast and physical style of play demonstrated by the opponent from the American NCAA student league.

Course of the meeting: initiative with the Americans from the first minutes

From the first minutes of the match, the American students seized the initiative on the court. By the end of the first half of the game, Arizona's advantage reached +17 points, and in the final quarter, the Americans' lead reached +27 points. Although the Ukrainians reduced the gap in the third ten-minute period (24:19 in favor of the hosts for the quarter), the match remained under the control of the opponent as a whole, which ultimately reflected in the final score of 85:107.

Who stood out in the 'Blue and Yellows' lineup

The most productive players in the Ukrainian national team were Oleksandr Kovyar and Ivan Tkachenko, who scored 16 points each. Also in the team's credit: Bobrov (9 points + 6 rebounds), Voynalovich (8), Klychko (8), Kobzisty (6), Kovalev (5), Lukashov (4 points + 5 assists), Shelist (4), Novitsky (3), Skapintsev (3), Tirtyshnyk (2), Sushkin (1 point + 5 assists). It was these players who formed the basis of the national team's attacking actions in the sparring match.

Who and why was absent from the roster

Players with NBA experience did not make it into the 'Blue and Yellows' roster for the sparring match: resting Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and Alexey Len, who left the team's camp due to injuries. According to the report, Maksym Shulga will join the team on August 21. The duties of the head coach in this match were performed by Ainars Bagatskis's assistant — Serhiy Gladyr: the national team's coach missed the game by prior agreement, as he is currently working at the camp of Portuguese 'Benfica', which he recently took over.

The opponent and the meaning of such a sparring match

'Arizona Wildcats' represents the University of Arizona and is one of the strongest teams in the American NCAA student league. According to the source, last year the 'Wildcats' made it to 'March Madness', where they stopped only in the semi-finals, losing to 'Michigan' (73:91), which subsequently became the champion. That is why the match against such a fast and physical team was an important test for Ukraine on the eve of the official qualification matches for the 2027 World Cup.

Further preparation calendar

After the match with 'Arizona', the Ukrainian national team will play another control match — on August 23 in Riga against Latvia. And on August 28, the team will play against Greece in the second round of the 2027 World Cup qualifiers, after which on August 31 they will meet Montenegro. Thus, before the start of the official part of the selection, the 'Blue and Yellows' have a window to refine the composition and tactics, taking into account returning players.