It might be fair to say that Matosinhos has become a second home for Spanish basketball. For the third time, the Portuguese city hosted the U20 Women’s European Championship, and for the third time, Spain topped the podium. A commanding victory over Lithuania (50-102), even more comfortable than their first-round meeting (+41, 89-48), capped off a tournament where the team bounced back from a group-stage loss to Belgium to dominate the remainder of the competition.
The U20 European Championship has proven to be a lucky charm for Spain’s national team. Following in the footsteps of Elena Buenavida, Txell Alarcón, and Noa Morro—champions in 2022 and all part of the senior squad—the new gold medalists include Inés Míguez, Judit Rodríguez, Marta Alberich, Somtochukwu Blessed Okafor, Marina Mata, Shaila Nde, Marta Fernández, Blau Tor, Cristina Cerqueira, Alba Caballero, Carla Viegas, and Gina García, the latter earning tournament MVP honors at just 18 years old.
This gold in Matosinhos marks Spain’s tenth title in the category. Since the U20 team debuted in 2007 with a gold medal under Silvia Domínguez, Spain has only missed the continental podium twice (2008 and 2019). In the other editions, they have collected ten golds, four silvers, and one bronze.
Lithuania managed to keep pace early on, thanks to efficient three-point shooting (4/8), tying the game at 21-21 at the start of the second quarter. But it was only a matter of time before Spain pulled away. The Spanish team exploited Lithuania’s weakness from beyond the arc, hitting 14 of 28 three-pointers.
Marina Mata (9 points in that quarter) and Somtochukwu-Blessed Okafor (12) sparked a devastating run, which Judit Rodríguez capped off: a 4-26 surge turned a tie into a 29-51 lead that smelled like gold. Spain dominated the boards (15 offensive rebounds to 14 defensive at halftime) and found its shooting touch from deep (7/16), which had not been their primary weapon up to that point. Gina García, from the free-throw line, closed the first half with a 31-56 lead, thanks to 37 points in that explosive second quarter.
Two central three-pointers from Judit Rodríguez stretched Spain’s advantage to 30 points (33-64), and Marina Mata’s basket doubled Lithuania’s score (33-66, 26th minute). The rout continued. Blau Tor pushed the lead to 40 (35-75), and Marta Fernández closed the third quarter with a 37-80 score after another crushing 6-24 run.
The Spanish team showed no signs of letting up in the final period. Carla Viegas stayed hot from three-point range, and her fifth triple (5/9) put Spain at the century mark with a 52-point lead (48-100).
This U20 gold is the third of the summer for Spain, who also reached the top of the podium at both junior European championships. If the cadet team, which begins its championship this Friday in Romania, follows suit, Spain’s women’s youth teams will have swept all European golds—a feat previously achieved in 2013.
