Iceland men's national basketball team
The Iceland men's national basketball team (Icelandic: Íslenska karlalandsliðið í körfubolta) represents Iceland in international basketball tournaments. The team is controlled by the Icelandic Basketball Association.
| FIBA ranking | 49 (18 November 2022)[1] |
|---|---|
| Joined FIBA | 1959 |
| FIBA zone | FIBA Europe |
| National federation | KKÍ |
| Coach | Craig Pedersen |
| Nickname(s) | Strákarnir okkar (Our Boys) |
| FIBA World Cup | |
| Appearances | None |
| EuroBasket | |
| Appearances | 2 |
| Medals | None |
| Championship for Small Countries | |
| Appearances | 3 |
| Medals | Gold: (1988, 1990) Bronze: (1994) |
| Games of the Small States of Europe | |
| Appearances | 14 |
| Medals | Gold: (1991, 1993, 2007) Silver: (1987, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2015) Bronze: (1989, 1995, 1997, 2013, 2017, 2019) |
| First international | |
| Denmark 38–41 Iceland (Copenhagen, Denmark; 16 May 1959) | |
| Biggest win | |
| Iceland 123–59 Norway (Reykjavík, Iceland; 15 April 1968) | |
| Biggest defeat | |
| Iceland 51–124 Croatia (Murcia, Spain; 24 June 1992) | |
Iceland has qualified for the EuroBasket twice, with the national team making their first ever appearance in 2015. They also participate at smaller European tournaments, such as the Games of the Small States of Europe. Although Iceland has yet to make their debut entrance on to the global stage at the FIBA World Cup.
History
EuroBasket 2015
On 28 August 2014, Iceland qualified for the EuroBasket 2015, entering the finals of the top European competition for the first time in its history. The national team though didn't fare too well in their maiden voyage at the EuroBasket. Finishing (0-5) in their Group B pool, played in Berlin with defeats at the hands of Germany, Italy, Serbia, Spain, and Turkey. Overall it was a memorable moment for Iceland, where they finally achieved the feat of competing at a major international tournament, after numerous failed qualifications in the past.[2]
EuroBasket 2017
On 17 September 2016, Iceland repeated their success and qualified to the continental tournament once again. The national team finished its qualification group as the runners-up behind Belgium, and above Cyprus and Switzerland, with four wins and two losses.[3][4][5]
As in the previous edition though, Iceland finished their participation with five loses in five matches played in their Group A pool in Helsinki.[6]
EuroBasket 2022 qualification
After failing to qualify for the 2019 FIBA World Cup,[7] Iceland turned the page toward EuroBasket 2021. To attempt to qualify for three consecutive EuroBasket appearances, Iceland was placed into Group C to begin their pre-qualifying campaign, which began with two straight loses to Portugal, and Belgium. Although the national team would pick up their first win in their third game, a rematch with Portugal at home in Reykjavík. In their final match of group play the team fell to Belgium, and would have to survive the final window of pre-qualifiers if they were to advance.
For the final phase of pre-qualifiers, Iceland was placed into Group H, alongside Portugal once again, and Switzerland. The national team opened up group play with a tough loss on the road against Portugal 80–79. Looking to even their record at (1-1), Iceland was at home against Switzerland. The match stayed close throughout until Martin Hermannsson's heroics showed up late in the fourth quarter for Iceland; where his jumpshot in the final seconds gave the home side an momentous 83–82 victory.[8] Heading into their next match the national team looked to capitalize on their last win. They did so in thorough fashion, dismantling Portugal 96–68 to set up one last show down with the Swiss.[9]
Heading into the final match day with a place in the qualifiers on the line, Iceland needed to defeat Switzerland on the road in an hostile environment. The specifics for Iceland was clear, either win to clinch a spot, or avoid losing by 18 or more points. Unfortunately, the unthinkable happened. As the national team not only lost to Switzerland, but failed to cover the point difference needed to advance. Losing 109–85, eliminating any chance for Iceland to reach the finals for the third straight time.[10]
Competitive record
FIBA World Cup
Olympic Games
Games of the Small States of Europe | EuroBasket
Championship for Small Countries
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Results and fixtures
Win Loss
2021
| 26 November 2021 | Netherlands | 77–79 | Iceland | Almere | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:30 | Scoring by quarter: 19–23, 22–21, 17–18, 19–17 | |||||
| Pts: Franke 17 Rebs: De Jong 7 Asts: Van der Vuurst de Vries 7 | Boxscore | Pts: Hermannsson 27 Rebs: Hlinason 8 Asts: Steinarsson 6 | Arena: Topsportcentrum Attendance: 0 Referees: Sergii Zashchuk (UKR), Zafer Yılmaz (TUR), Zdenko Tomašovič (SVK) | |||
| Note: | ||||||
2022
| 24 February 2022 | Iceland | 107–105(2OT) | Italy | Hafnarfjörður | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20:00 | Scoring by quarter: 21–18, 23–15, 21–26, 20–26, Overtime: 9–9, 13–11 | |||||
| Pts: Hlinason 34 Rebs: Hlinason 21 Asts: Friðriksson, Hermannsson 7 | Boxscore | Pts: Mannion 23 Rebs: Vitali 9 Asts: Mannion 7 | Arena: Ásvellir Attendance: 902 Referees: Luis Castillo (ESP), Blaž Zupančič (SLO), Ivor Matějek (CZE) | |||
| Note: | ||||||
| 27 February 2022 | Italy | 95–87 | Iceland | Bologna | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20:30 | Scoring by quarter: 27–28, 26–17, 21–17, 21–25 | |||||
| Pts: Della Valle 26 Rebs: Biligha 5 Asts: Della Valle 5 | Boxscore | Pts: Friðriksson 30 Rebs: Ermolinskij 9 Asts: Ermolinskij 10 | Arena: PalaDozza Attendance: 3,240 Referees: Nicolás Maestre (FRA), Fernando Calatrava (ESP), Can Mavisu (TUR) | |||
| Note: | ||||||
| 1 July 2022 | Iceland | 67–66 | Netherlands | Hafnarfjörður | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20:00 | Scoring by quarter: 16–20, 5–15, 26–16, 20–15 | |||||
| Pts: Friðriksson, Hlinason 20 Rebs: Hlinason 11 Asts: Guðmundsson 5 | Boxscore | Pts: De Jong 15 Rebs: De Jong 11 Asts: Van der Vuurst de Vries 4 | Arena: Ásvellir Attendance: 952 Referees: Yener Yılmaz (TUR), Geert Jacobs (BEL), Goran Šljivić (AUT) | |||
| Note: | ||||||
| 24 August 2022 | Spain | 87–57 | Iceland | Pamplona, Spain |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21:00 CEST (UTC+2) | Scoring by quarter: 26–15, 25–13, 18–17, 18–12 | |||
| Pts: W. Hernangómez 19 Rebs: Saiz 9 Asts: Brown 9 | Boxscore | Pts: Friðriksson 14 Rebs: Hlinason 7 Asts: Friðriksson, Vilhjálmsson 3 | Arena: Navarra Arena Attendance: 7,548 Referees: Paulo Marques (POR), Gvidas Gedvilas (LTU), Péter Praksch (HUN) | |
| 27 August 2022 | Iceland | 91–88(OT) | Ukraine | Hafnarfjörður, Iceland |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20:00 (UTC±0) | Scoring by quarter: 14–19, 22–22, 27–14, 17–25, Overtime: 11–8 | |||
| Pts: Friðriksson 27 Rebs: Hlinason 7 Asts: Vilhjálmsson 5 | Boxscore | Pts: Mykhailiuk 19 Rebs: Tkachenko 9 Asts: Mykhailiuk 6 | Arena: Ásvellir Attendance: 1,100 Referees: Boris Krejić (SVN), Oskars Lūcis (LAT), Péter Praksch (HUN) | |
| 11 November 2022 | Iceland | 85–88 | Georgia | Reykjavík, Iceland |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:35 (UTC±0) | Scoring by quarter: 17–26, 21–19, 25–15, 22–28 | |||
| Pts: Friðriksson 19 Rebs: Hlinason 10 Asts: Acox, Friðriksson 6 | Boxscore | Pts: Shengelia 27 Rebs: Shengelia, Shermadini 11 Asts: McFadden 5 | Arena: Laugardalshöll Attendance: 2,511 Referees: Aleksandar Glišić (SRB), Martin Vulić (CRO), Geert Jacobs (BEL) | |
| 14 November 2022 | Ukraine | 79–72 | Iceland | Riga, Latvia |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16:00 EET (UTC+2) | Scoring by quarter: 14–18, 21–15, 16–20, 28–19 | |||
| Pts: Lypovyy 16 Rebs: Gerun, Tkachenko 10 Asts: Lukashov 6 | Boxscore | Pts: Hlinason 24 Rebs: Hlinason 13 Asts: Þrastarson 4 | Arena: Arena Riga Attendance: 500 Referees: Igor Mitrovski (MKD), Mārtiņš Kozlovskis (LAT), Viola Györgyi (NOR) | |
2023
Team
Current roster
Roster for the 2023 FIBA World Cup Qualifiers matches on 11 and 14 November 2022 against Georgia and Ukraine.[11]
| Iceland men's national basketball team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Depth chart
Head coach position
- Hilmar Hafsteinsson – (1984)
- Einar Bollason – (1985–1987)
- László Németh – (1988–1990)
- Torfi Magnússon – (1990–1995)
- Jón Kr. Gíslason – (1995–1999)
- Friðrik Ingi Rúnarsson – (1999–2003)
- Sigurður Ingimundarson – (2004–2009)
- Peter Öqvist – (2011–2013)
- Craig Pedersen – (2014–present)
Individual records
Players with the most caps (games played)
- Players in bold are still active.
| Rank | Player | Years | Caps |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Guðmundur Bragason | 1987-2003 | 169 |
| 2. | Valur Ingimundarson | 1980-1995 | 164 |
| 3. | Jón Kr. Gíslason | 1982-1995 | 158 |
| 4. | Logi Gunnarsson | 2000-2018 | 147 |
| 5. | Torfi Magnússon | 1974-1987 | 131 |
| 6. | Hlynur Bæringsson | 2000-2019 | 125 |
| 7. | Guðjón Skúlason | 1988-1999 | 122 |
| 8. | Jón Sigurðsson | 1968-1984 | 120 |
| 9. | Teitur Örlygsson | 1986-2000 | 118 |
| 10. | Friðrik Stefánsson | 1997-2008 | 112 |
| 11. | Herbert Arnarson | 1991-2002 | 111 |
| 12. | Falur Harðarson | 1989-2000 | 106 |
| 13. | Jón Arnar Ingvarsson | 1990-2000 | 102 |
| 14. | Jón Arnór Stefánsson | 2000-2019 | 100 |
Past rosters
2015 EuroBasket: finished 24th among 24 teams
3 Martin Hermannsson, 4 Axel Kárason, 5 Ragnar Nathanaelsson, 6 Jakob Sigurðarson, 8 Hlynur Bæringsson (C),
9 Jón Arnór Stefánsson, 10 Helgi Már Magnússon, 13 Hörður Vilhjálmsson, 14 Logi Gunnarsson, 15 Pavel Ermolinskij,
24 Haukur Pálsson, 29 Ægir Steinarsson (Coach: Craig Pedersen)
2017 EuroBasket: finished 24th among 24 teams
1 Martin Hermannsson, 3 Ægir Steinarsson, 6 Kristófer Acox, 8 Hlynur Bæringsson (C), 9 Jón Arnór Stefánsson,
10 Elvar Már Friðriksson, 13 Hörður Vilhjálmsson, 14 Logi Gunnarsson, 15 Pavel Ermolinskij, 24 Haukur Pálsson, 34 Tryggvi Hlinason, 88 Brynjar Þór Björnsson (Coach: Craig Pedersen)
See also
Notes
References
- ^ "FIBA Ranking Presented by Nike". FIBA. 18 November 2022. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
- ^ "Iceland Fall But Still Make History". FIBA Europe. 28 August 2014. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
- ^ Ísland spilar í Helsinki á EM 2017 í körfubolta
- ^ Ísland á EM í annað sinn í röð
- ^ Eurobasket 2017 Qualifiers
- ^ "Iceland at the EuroBasket 2017". Retrieved 17 September 2017.
- ^ "Iceland during the 2019 FIBA World Cup European Qualifiers". Retrieved 2 July 2018.
- ^ "Martin Hermannsson, and Iceland stun Switzerland". Retrieved 10 August 2019.
- ^ "Iceland eliminates Portugal to set up winner take all match against Switzerland". Retrieved 17 August 2019.
- ^ "Iceland during the EuroBasket 2022 Pre-Qualifiers". Retrieved 21 August 2019.
- ^ "Iceland during the 2023 FIBA World Cup European Qualifiers in November 2022". Retrieved 11 November 2022.
External links
- Official website (in Icelandic)
- Iceland FIBA profile
- Iceland National Team – Men at Eurobasket.com