Spain vs Hungary Prediction: Will the Spaniards win?

Spain is one step away from another European Championship final - their fourth in six championships. Will Hungary be an obstacle, or will the Spaniards win? Here are a few bets on the first semi-final game of EuroBasket 2023 for women's teams.

By reaching the semi-finals, Spain has already rehabilitated themselves for the last European Championship, where they stopped before the semi-final stage. The 2023 tournament has shown that Spain remains the most successful team of the 21st century, with a chance of winning a fourth continental championship in 10 years.

The Spanish team had a hard time getting into the tournament, losing the first game to Latvia (63:67), but quickly made conclusions, convincingly beating Montenegro (78:57) and Greece (76:60), and even taking first place in the group, securing a direct ticket to the quarterfinals. In the match with Germany, the Spaniards showed they could defend perfectly at the right moment. As a result, the team of Miguel Mendez allowed the opponents to save only 25.5% of shots from the game (67:42). Six Spanish blocked shots, three of which were made by Paula Hinzo, coming off the bench. Laura Heal had a double-double (13 points and 11 rebounds).

Hungary was the most unexpected participant in the semis. But they have a decent tournament, and their success is thoroughly justified. Hungary's best European championship appearance came back in the 1950s, with two top-five finals. So, having beaten Spain, the Hungarians can now repeat their record.

Hungary got out of the group in the first place, falling to Turkey (67:68) but beating Slovakia (89:67) and Serbia (81:75). In the quarterfinals, the Hungarian team faced the Czech Republic. It was a hard-fought game with a very low scoreline. 62:61 - Hungary won with the minimum difference of one point and was leading +17 at the end of the third quarter. As a result of Hungary's win, it's worth mentioning the big men. Centre Csesa Gori had 17 points and seven rebounds, and forward Deborah Dube finished with a double-double - 10 points and 11 rebounds. Agnes Studer, the Hungarian team's point guard, had seven assists.

After their defeat by Latvia at the beginning of the tournament, the Spanish team started improving from game to game and left neither of their next opponents with even a hint of success. The Spanish team in these matches demonstrated excellent defense and high-quality positional attacking. For example, in the game with Greece Spaniards made 25 assists, allowing only four losses. And in the game with Montenegro, Spain hit 13 of 24 three-pointers, a phenomenal 54.2%. All in all, the team can play with variety and find unique keys to each opponent.

Hungary has already achieved a huge success, making it to the semi-finals. The Hungarian players must have been terrified of that, too, as they nearly lost the quarterfinal to the Czech Republic with a +17. The more modest opponents tried to humiliate Hungary, but in the case of Spain, it won't happen again. The Hungarian national team does not have enough top performers in the attack to be effective against the Spanish defense. At the same time, Spain's attack was too varied for Hungary to be able to neutralize it for the whole game.