• → Portugal vs Serbia is set for Xiaomi Arēna (Riga) on Friday, Aug 29 at 18:15 EEST (16:15 BST).
• → Form check: Portugal returned to EuroBasket with a statement 62–50 over Czechia, headlined by Neemias Queta’s 23–18–4. Serbia throttled Estonia 98–64, jumping 32–12 in Q1 as their depth overwhelmed.
• → Context: Little recent top-stage head-to-head; this is the classic “giant vs riser” profile with both teams fresh off emphatic openers.

Portugal–Serbia - upset energy vs layered inevitability

Portugal’s first act was refreshingly direct: defend the rim, feed the big, and keep the reads clean. Queta’s gravity bent the floor—short rolls, duck-ins, and kickouts that simplified choices for everyone else. Serbia, meanwhile, looked like a metronome: sprint lanes, flow into secondary, find a mismatch, repeat. It’s a contrast of gears—Portugal prefer the half-court and the scoreboard in the 60s; Serbia are most frightening when they turn stops into 9–0 runs before you can call a set.

Portugal — build from the anchor out

Everything starts with getting Queta the ball on time and on the move. Early seals, rim runs, and P&R into short-rolls force help to collapse; the second touch is where the value lives. Defensively, verticality and gang rebounding have to travel—every extra stop is one fewer Serbia avalanche to weather.

Serbia — options on options

The opening tape said it all: multiple handlers to start actions, shooters who arrive on the hop, and bigs who screen like they mean it. Serbia don’t need heroics; they need flow. Win the “middle eight” straddling halftime and most games tilt into their preferred, orderly chaos. They will be fresh, with Joker only used for 23 minutes, and ready to take on their second opponent to cruise through Group A in Riga.

Fault lines to watch

• Tag discipline on rollers: Portugal must stunt without gifting the slot three.

• Turnover economy: live-ball giveaways = instant Serbia runouts.

• Whistle chess at the 5: Queta in foul trouble shrinks Portugal’s margin; fouls on Serbia’s bigs open the lane for drives and put-backs.

Stakes

Serbia can bank 2–0 and keep top-seed gravity in Group A. Portugal already have a marquee win; drag this into a fourth-quarter rock fight and let their anchor tilt it at the rim, and the bracket looks very different by night’s end.

How to watch Portugal vs Serbia

Stream Portugal vs Serbia live on Courtside 1891 and pick the Max Event Pass for this event window or go Max Annual for year-round access to EuroBasket and other FIBA competitions. Regional availability and blackouts may apply.