Belarus survived a furious comeback by Latvia to win 72-63 and capture the bronze medal in their very first appearance at the EuroBasket Women.

Anatoli Buyalski’s team led by as many as 25 points late in the third quarter but had to hold on for dear life as the Baltic side closed the gap to 61-57 with 3:29 to go on Ieva Kublina’s four-point play.

Belarusian sports' bosses like to hear big promises and the words of Anatoly Buyalski are still ringing in their ears after he said he thought the team might be able to qualify for the Olympics after winning Division B. Now facing the highest level of competition, the team from Belarus plan to fight for the second place in their group and a spot in the qualifying round. Belarus has enough talent to make it to EuroBasket Women, but will probably struggle against European powerhouses.