I give credit for winning the U19 Worlds to the MVP Jonas Valanciunas, no doubt, but the real champs are Lithuanian fans! The Basketball Nation created a tremendous atmosphere in the Arena Riga – singing, chanting – all together, helping their team propel to the title. I literally had cold chills down my back every [...]

What a comeback. Do you call cutting a 29 point deficit to a 3-point game a comeback? Anyway, Team Latvia just fell short of what coulda been a magnificent victory over Poland who started out ballin in the 1st half. And guess who buried the hopes of a small Baltic nation? The refs. Coach Jansons, [...]

To continue the U-19 Championship in style and get more W’s, Team Latvia needs to boost assists and steals, and reduce turnovers. The host team has shown poor performance in all three of these categories in the preliminary round. Latvia is next to last in assists – just 10.3 dimes per game – which is [...]

The USA U19 Hoops Squad is ballin out of control this World Championship in Latvia (3-0 so far, the only undefeated team after preliminary round). And what helps a healthy man stay on top of the game? Right, good proper nutrition. Liepaja catering hasn’t been all good for the US team though.. Anthony Brown tweeted [...]

I am enjoyin being accredited for the FIBA U19 for real. Just got home from Valmiera where I spent a basketball-filled afternoon yesterday. And media reception at the event is perfect, I tell ya. Everything is in tact, organizers working like a swiss clock. Nice and smooth registration (check out my media pass, what!), personal [...]

I mean, what Chinese Taipei really is? A Chinese cuisine dish? I heard it’s a country.. As the U19 World Championship approaches, people here in Latvia are wondering: “What in the world is the host’s first opponent?”. Easy googlin’ and we got it – Chinese Taipei is Taiwan. Looks like that’s what most of Latvian [...]

Latvian starting C for the upcoming FIBA U19 World Championship Davis Bertans is ready to be ballin!! In a recent interview with FIBA, Young D said he’s real excited to play in the Worlds in Latvia. “This is going to be really special, because all of the relatives, friends can come and watch, so we’ll [...]

I got some fantastic news last week – The email from FIBA has arrived confirming that I have been accredited as a blogger for the 2011 FIBA U19 Basketball World Championship that’s taking place here in Latvia June 30 to July 10. Yup, I’m gonna cover the event here on Riga Talk, it’s official!! I [...]