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We are coming close to the start of yet another FIBA World Cup and one of the first games to be played is the Finland vs Australia duel, an interesting matchup between two solid teams. With that in mind, we have prepared a preview of this match for you and some free betting tips as well.
- Date & Time: Friday, August 25, 2023, 9:00 a.m. GMT
- Venue: Okinawa Arena – Okinawa, Japan
Finland vs Australia basketball predictions
Contents
Both Finland and Australia have reasons to be optimistic ahead of this World Cup and this duel, but who will prevail? Let’s find out by looking at our Finland vs Australia basketball predictions:
Prediction 1: Finland to win with handicap (+11.5) @ 17/20 (1.85)
It is understandable that Australia is the favourite in this game – their roster is made of many NBA players, compared to Finland’s lone NBA star Lauri Markkanen.
However, looking deeper at this Australian roster we can see that with the exception of Josh Giddey, other players don’t have big roles in their teams and that other well-known Boomers are Patty Mills and Joe Ingles, role players in their prime years, let alone now at 35. So, despite the overall lack of quality on this Finland team, they should be good enough to avoid a blow out.
Prediction 2: Lauri Markkanen over 26.5 total points @ 83/100 (1.83)
Our second Australia vs Finland prediction is for Markkanen to score 27 or more points. After all, it all revolves around the young NBA star in this Finish team and at the European Championship last year, Markkanen averaged 27.9 points per game. There is little reason to doubt he can repeat the same performances now, after having his best year in the NBA yet, where he averaged 25.6 points per game for the Jazz.
Finland vs Australia preview – Will Markkanen be enough for Finland to surprise the Boomers?
Now let’s take a closer look at the latest Finland vs Australia team news ahead of the first match in Group E at FIBA World Cup:
Finland news, injuries, and starting lineups
This will be only the second time in the history of Finland’s national basketball team to appear at a World Cup. The first and only appearance so far came in 2014, when Finland lost four of their five matches at the tournament. However, this time their hopes are bigger since this tournament comes just one year after Finland achieved their best-ever placement at Euro Championship, finishing 7th.
The team is led by Lauri Markkanen, a young NBA star currently playing for Utah Jazz. Next to him, the team’s captain Sasu Salin will provide experience, while Miro Little of Baylor is one of the young hopes in this team. Finland comes to the World Cup after two wins and two losses in warmup matches.
Finland injury report:
- N/A
Finland starting lineup:
Sasu Salin, Henri Kantonen, Lauri Markkanen, Alex Murphy, Olivier Nkamhoua
Australia news, injuries, and starting lineups
While this Australian team doesn’t look that impressive on paper, we are talking about the best generation of Boomers in the country’s basketball history. After all, Australia reached semi-finals in the last three major international tournaments – Olympic Games in 2016 and 2020, and World Cup in 2019.
Josh Giddey is probably the best player on the team right now, with Patty Mills and Joe Ingles there to provide experience and additional quality. Josh Green and Dante Exum, who will be teammates in Dallas next season, could provide additional spark. Australia played five matches ahead of the tournament and won four of them, only losing to Brazil.
Australia injury report:
- N/A
Australia starting lineup:
Josh Giddey, Patty Mills, Josh Green, Nick Kay, Duop Reath
By Icon Sport
Canada vs France head-to-head matchups
These two teams only met twice so far, both times in 2014 and each team won a game, although Finland won the first match after extra time, while Australia was convincing in their win.
Where to watch Finland vs Australia on TV/live stream
The only way to watch any match at FIBA World Cup in the UK is via the streaming service FIBA Courtside 1891. Meanwhile, USA and Australia will both broadcast the tournament on their respective ESPN channels.
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