• → Game to take place at Nokia Arena, Tampere on Friday, August 29 at 13:30 EEST (11:30 BST).
• → Lithuania arrive 1–0 after bullying the glass in a 94–70 win over Great Britain; Montenegro look to reset two days after a 106–76 loss to Germany.
• → Form line: Lithuania out-rebounded GB 57–31 with Jonas Valančiūnas 18 & 9 and Ąžuolas Tubelis 17 (8/10 FG); Montenegro conceded 33 in the third quarter to Germany, who hit ~70% on twos.

Montenegro vs Lithuania - Frontcourt Collision as Vucevic and Valančiūnas clash in Tampere

Day two in Group B brings a classic EuroBasket contrast: Lithuania’s layered interior offense and rebounding machine against Montenegro’s Vučević-centered half-court blueprint. With Germany and Finland still to come, this one carries real seeding leverage -win it and you buy margin for error.

Lithuania: control the glass, control the game

The template from opening day travels. Valančiūnas established deep seals, vacuumed the defensive boards, and turned second efforts into a steady scoring floor. Around him, Rokas Jokubaitis kept the tempo right and picked moments to attack - his early-third triple versus GB triggered the decisive run, while Tubelis gave burst and efficiency as a lane-runner and finisher.

The telling number wasn’t just the 57–31 rebounding edge; it was how those extra possessions turned into layups and free throws even before the outside shots appeared. If Lithuania duplicate that paint and glass control, they can ride a similar shot-quality edge against Montenegro.

Expect more two-man touches between Jokubaitis and Valančiūnas, with weak-side lifts for Deividas Sirvydis/Gytis Radzevičius to punish digs. Defensively, Lithuania will happily show bodies to drivers and trust JV to clean the back line—especially if they can keep the turnover count low and avoid gifting Montenegro transition.

Montenegro: bend the game to Vučević, then make the threes

Nikola Vučević was Montenegro’s brightest light in the Germany loss, producing efficiently and drawing fouls even as the game tilted. The blueprint here is clearer: early touches—deep seals and pick-and-pops to the elbows—paired with downhill creation from Kyle Allman Jr. to force Lithuania into decisions. When Germany ran away after halftime, it was less about shot-making and more about defensive breakdowns and leakage in space; Montenegro can’t let this one become a track meet.

To live in the half-court, they’ll need the guards to value the ball and the wings—Marko Simonović and the rotation fours—to hit open threes that come off Vučević doubles. The defensive job is harder: Lithuania just set a single-game rebounding record in their opener and piled up 13 offensive boards by halftime. If Montenegro don’t flatten JV’s impact early (fronts, to-the-hit help, gang rebounding from the weak side), they’ll be playing uphill again.

Stakes

Lithuania can plant a flag as Germany’s primary challenger in the group with another professional win - glass, discipline, and JV/Tubelis efficiency usually travel. Montenegro aren’t out-gunned if they keep this in the half-court; land the first punch with Vučević, trim Lithuania’s rebounding edge, and the final six minutes become a toss-up.

How to watch Montenegro vs Lithuania

Stream Montenegro vs Lithuania live and on-demand on Courtside 1891. Grab a Max Day Pass for Friday’s slate, choose a Max Event Pass to stream every EuroBasket 2025 game or go Max Annual Pass for year-round basketball content. Regional availability may vary.