– The nerves took us a little
Posted by Arild Sandven
&ball;July 1, 2022
The U16 boys led Finland early in the fourth period, but the day after the historic triumph against Estonia, it was only almost for Norway. Later in the day, the U16 girls also played evenly with the Finns.
U16 men Finland – Norway 69-61
U16 women Finland – Norway 53-42
U18 men Finland – Norway 95-51
U18 women Finland – Norway 85-29
– We play evenly with them and handle the pressure very well in large parts of the match. But it seemed like the nerves took us a bit, just like in the finish against Estonia yesterday. It is based on experience and is something we have to work with and make sure to get better in place until we have to play in the European Championships, said Baard Stoller, national team coach for the U16 boys.
Norway led 53-52 two minutes in the fourth period and was only 3 points behind (57-60) with two minutes left of the match in the Susi center in Kisakallio.
But when everything had to be decided, the Finns were sharp and good – and Norway missed and failed accordingly. The home team got the small advantage and controlled to 69-61.
– Maintains a very high level
Still, it was a new, strong match from the beloved 06 vintage. Guard pair Oscar Hellebust (Ullern) and Elias Demoniere (Centrum Tigers) controlled most, 201 cm long William Kruse (Asker Aliens) marked himself with 14 points and 9 returns and traffic in addition 2 of 5 three points. The Asker forward also scored 6 of 6 penalties.
Oscar Hellebust was by far the player the Finns were by no means the most, he was the match’s top scorer with 20 points and Finland incurred 12 errors only against Norway’s player number 6. He also had 4 assists and 6 returns.
– Oscar and Elias show again that they keep a very high level. They are able to withstand a lot of pressure and are also creative, they create both for themselves and their teammates, said Stoller.
52-30 I paint
– We play with good pressure in defense and manage to remove some of the strength of the other teams, but today we struggled with our inside defense. It was too easy for Finland to get the ball into the pain.
The Finns won the return statistics 53-44, but captured as many as 24 offensive returns. They won 52-30 in “points in paint” (52 out of 69 points!) And 18-7 in “second chance points” after attack returns.
Olavi Suutela was towering in the field and finished with 19 points and 18 rebounds. Point guard Elmeri Abbey got more and more space towards the end and ended up with 11 points.
Meets victorious Danes
Denmark and Sweden remain for the Norwegian boys, Saturday and Sunday.
– Both are the matches it is entirely possible to win, it is even between several of the teams in this tournament. Sweden probably has the strongest team individually, with athletic players. Denmark that we meet tomorrow is 0-3, but has met Finland, Iceland and Sweden and lost by only two points to the Finns.
– The Danes have large guards who can drive and shoot, have a size of the largest up to 2.10 and a deep layer where many contribute, says Baard Stoller.
Scoring Norway: Oscar Hellebust 20, William Ljones Kruse 14, Elias Demoniere 12, Mathias Jacobsen 5, Ludvik Bergseng 4, Dante Olsen 4, Sivert Nordheim 2.
Top scorer Finland: Olavi Suutela 19.
The U16 girls pushed Finland
The Norwegian U16 girls played their best match so far in the Nordic countries and fought for a long time for the victory against Finland.
Norway led 28-27 midway through the second period and was down by 5 points (38-43) with 8 minutes left in the match. The Finns proved to be better in the final phase of the match and went on to win 53-42.
Thus, the championship debuting girls have lost their first three games by 11, 17 and 11 points.
– We have managed to keep all the matches even, play with increasing confidence and have gained respect from our opponents, says Frode Ramberg, who acts as coach for Stefan Pettersson during the Nordic Championships.
– This match was our best. We got to a lot of offensive play we have worked with in training, and we have had the energy and the fighting all the way. It is a layer to build on, says Ramberg.
Scoring Norway: Anna Linnea Hovig Wikstrøm 14, Fanny Dyngeland-Sundén 9, Hannah Tomren Kristoffersson 6, Ida Johansen 3, Nora Jazz Werenskiold Proctor 3, Mina Bergh Skarestad 3, Aurora Grieg Toyomasu 3, Sophia Priestley 1.
Top scorer Finland: Emma Ristola 18.
Bedding for the U18 guys
Norway’s U18 national team for men has conceded over 100 points in their first two matches, but managed to keep the top team Finland to 95.
The Norwegian team showed clear progress from Thursday’s downturn against Estonia (52-106), led 12-11 after the first period and kept a useful lead until the break (42-26).
Then Finland picked up speed and showed the class differences between the teams, but the boys in red never stopped fighting.
– Our move was much better today, Kjetil Andresen agreed.
– The guys were more ready for physical battle and had a lot to give in the beginning. We struggled a lot offensively to get the ball in and have more control, but also met a Finn who has trained a lot together over time, said the coach.
– Denmark and Sweden in the last two matches may suit us a little better, they are not AS aggressive as Finland and it may be easier for us to get into familiar situations. But this is team and stretched towards and a level that is great experience for us considering the European Championships later this summer. There the differential pressure and the level more.
Scoring Norway: Benjamin Fisher Andersen 10, Chiemeka Okoke-Nwakamma 7, Oliver Bergstad 6, Christopher Dalland 6, Niklas Sandström 6, Jonas Øye Hansen 5, Amar Pinjo 5, Eldar Alagic 3, Bjørn Vestre 2, Aksel Borg 1.
Top scorer Finland: Morris Ugusuk 16.
A fight against supremacy
Norway’s U18 girls were high up after the victory over Estonia on Thursday, but were, as expected, too small and too light against Finland.
The home team led 43-10 at the break and it was only in the third period (17-11) Norway kept a good lead.
Finland was the best in all, won the return statistics 52-34 and had 54-14 in scores in the pain. The Finns also forced 37 Norwegian turnovers.
Aurora Sørbye was Norway’s best player with 13 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals and was again the player on the field who was clearly the most missed, 8 times.
Scoring Norway: Aurora Sørbye 13, Maja Osmundsvåg 5, Ingeborg Gruber 4, Sofia Brokhaug Koch 3, Sunniva Vik Pettersen 3, Selma Deisz 1.
Top scorer Finland: Elina Aarnisalo 20.
RESULTS AND TABLES NORDIC
U16 WOMEN
Friday: Finland – Norway 53-42, Sweden – Denmark 48-45, Estonia – Ø 88-77.
Position (win-loss): Estonia 3-0, Sweden 2-1, Finland 2-1, Denmark 1-2, Iceland 1-2, Norway 0-3.
U16 MEN
Friday: Finland – Norway 69-61, Sweden – Denmark 76-69, Ø – Estonia 98-63.
Position: Ø 3-0, Sweden 3-0, Finland 2-1, Norway 1-2, Denmark 0-3, Estonia 0-3.
U18 WOMEN
Friday: Finland – Norway 85-29, Sweden – Denmark 82-65, Estonia – Ø 65-62.
Position: Sweden 3-0, Finland 2-1, Iceland 2-1, Norway 1-2, Estonia 1-2, Denmark 0-3.
U18 MEN
Friday: Finland – Norway 95-51, Denmark – Sweden 99-82, Ø – Estonia 83-77.
Position: Finland 3-0, Iceland 3-0, Denmark 1-2, Sweden 1-2, Estonia 1-2, Norway 0-3.