Lithuania qualified to the World Cup, Spain survived Latvia

Lithuania became the fourth European team that advanced to the World Cup, while Spain edged Latvia at home.

The Lithuanians beat the Netherlands in double overtime to remain undefeated (8-0) and seal their ticket for China.

Mantas Kalnietis’ three-pointer, with five seconds to go, gave Lithuania the victory (95-93) and the qualification to the World Cup.

Kalnietis led the way with 21 points and five assists, while Lukas Lekavicius added 14 points. For the Netherlands, who dropped to 3-5, Charlon Kloof had 19 points and five assists, with Thomas Van Der Maars contributing 16 points.

Latvia came back from an 18-point deficit, yet Quino Colom’s two-pointer helped Spain edge the visitors (85-82) and come closer to advancing to the World Cup.

Colom scored a team-high 18 points and the Spaniards improved their record to 7-1. On the other hand, Janis Timma and Janis Strelnieks scored 20 points each for Latvia, who dropped to 5-3 in the standings.