Italbasket in Iceland; Ramondino Leaves Two Players at Home
After a flight from Rome to Reykjavik that landed in the early afternoon, the Italian national team arrived in Iceland, where tomorrow (Thursday, July 2) it will face the hosts in the first of two games in the third qualifying window for the 2027 World Cup. Tip-off is at 7:45 p.m. local time (9:45 p.m. in Italy), with live coverage on Sky Sport Basket and DAZN.
Given the qualifying format—which carries over points earned against other teams in the group to the second phase—and the loss suffered in the first leg in Tortona (76-81), it will be crucial for the Azzurri to secure a win in Reykjavik and then aim for a second victory on Sunday, July 5, at the Virtus Arena in BolognaFiere against Lithuania (8:00 p.m., live on Sky Sport Basket and DAZN).
For the match at Laugardalshöll, head coach Marco Ramondino has selected the 12 players who will take the court, leaving Luca Severini and Luca Vincini off the roster. “We’ve made the best possible use of the time available to us to prepare for these two crucial matches,” Ramondino said. “Iceland has a proven roster, and recent history shows just how much trouble they’ve been able to cause us—not just in the first leg in Tortona. They have several players who, if they find their rhythm, can be very dangerous. Under the basket, Hlinason is always a factor, and we’ll have to rely on our big men—starting with Tex and Emejuru—to limit his impact. In this regard, the games against Croatia and Slovenia were very helpful, as they allowed us to work on the finer details. From day one, I’ve seen the right attitude: the newcomers and those with less experience on the national team have settled in quickly thanks to the character of the veterans and the professionalism of the coaching staff, who have been working these past few days to find the best ways to help everyone perform at their best.”
The best way to illustrate Iceland’s strength is probably the first leg of the series. In the opening game of the qualifying campaign, the team led by Craig Pedersen (who has been at the helm of the Icelandic national team for over ten years) won in Tortona, ruining Luca Banchi’s debut as Italy’s head coach. At the Nova Arena, the Azzurri got off to a slow start but managed to make a comeback late in the game before paying the price for some decisive mistakes in the final minutes.
Among the standout players in that game was Tommaso Baldasso, who confirmed his excellent form in recent friendlies in Gorizia and Celje by scoring 29 and 16 points, respectively. These numbers attest both to the excellent season he had with Tortona and the positive run he’s currently on.
“I remember that evening well,” Baldasso said. “And the result still stings, because despite the initial difficulties, the team had responded well and, just a few days later, was even able to win in Lithuania. We’re in Reykjavik to secure the two points and return to Bologna with enthusiasm and confidence ahead of the match against the Baltic team. First, though, we need to focus on Iceland: we know they’re a tough, well-coached team ready to capitalize on any lapse in concentration. It won’t be an easy game, but we want to continue the growth we began on June 15.”
Tomorrow’s game will be the eighth meeting in history between Italy and Iceland. Their first meeting took place at EuroBasket 2015, when the Azzurri prevailed 71–64. Since then, the two teams have faced off frequently, as evidenced by the seven previous matches and the largely even record of four Italian wins and three Icelandic wins.
The game in Reykjavik will be the second in history, following Italy’s victory in November 2024 (71-95), which came during the qualifiers for the European Championship in Cyprus, Finland, Poland, and Latvia. In 2023, however, the game was played in Hafnarfjörður, just outside the capital, because Laugardalshöll was unavailable: on that occasion, Iceland prevailed 107-105 after two overtimes in the 2023 World Cup qualifiers.
