How Omer Mayer Performed in Israel's Quarterfinal Game vs. Italy in FIBA U20 EuroBasket
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Israel's run in the FIBA U20 EuroBasket tournament has come to an end. Despite another solid performance from Purdue guard Omer Mayer, Israel dropped an 89-80 contest to Italy in the quarterfinal round and will now move on to the classification games. Italy moves on to the semifinal round.
Mayer finished the game with 18 points, five rebounds, five assists, and two steals. He really struggled to find his shot Thursday, connecting on just five-of-18 attempts from the floor and ending the game making just one of his 10 tries from three-point range.
The Purdue guard had been shooting an impressive 52% from behind the three-point line through the first four games, connecting on 13-of-25 shots from distance. After Thursday's loss, that clip dropped to 40% for the event.
Mayer got off to a strong start, scoring 15 points on five-of-10 shooting from the floor in the first half. He also had five rebounds, two assists, and a steal through the first 20 minutes of the game. Israel owned a 53-39 advantage at the break.
Out of halftime, Israel was able to extend its lead to 19 points and appeared to be in complete control of the game. However, Italy ramped up its defense and completely shut down Israel in the fourth quarter. Italy outscored Israel 25-9 in the final 10 minutes to advance to the semifinals.
In the second half, Mayer did not make a field goal, missing all eight attempts. He accounted for just three points in the final two quarters, all coming from the free throw line.
With the loss, Israel falls to 4-1 in FIBA U20 EuroBasket. It made it through group play with a perfect 3-0 record and pummeled Romania in the Round of 16 prior to the loss to Italy.
Israel also reached the quarterfinal round of the FIBA U19 World Cup earlier this summer, but was eliminated by Slovenia. Mayer also participated in that event.
After five games, Mayer is now averaging 16.0 points, 6.0 assists, and 2.8 rebounds per game in FIBA U20 EuroBasket. Israel is 4-1 in the event and moves on to the classification games, where it will play for spot Nos. 5-8. Israel will play the loser of Spain and Slovenia.
Classification games will continue on Saturday, July 19. A tipoff time has not been announced for Israel's game at this time, but it will stream on FIBA TV on YouTube.
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Dustin Schutte is the publisher of Purdue Boilermakers on SI and has spent more than a decade working in sports journalism. His career began in 2013, when he covered Big Ten football. He remained in that role for eight years before working at On SI to cover the Boilermakers. Dustin graduated from Manchester University in Indiana in 2010, where he played for the men's tennis team.
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