Clint Capela posted 13 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and 5 blocks on Saturday for Switzerland’s national men’s basketball team, which lost to Iceland on a buzzer-beater from Martin Hermannsson.
The 83-82 road loss at Reykjavík, Iceland, drops the Swiss team to 1-1 in the first round of EuroBasket 2021 pre-qualifiers, with rematches against both opponents looming in the next two weeks.
In Saturday’s defeat, Capela opened the game by confidently swishing a baseline 15-footer and then breaking free for a transition dunk:
The Athletic‘s Alykhan Bijani posted a video thread on Twitter of other Capela highlights from Saturday.
Switzerland, Iceland, and Portugal are all competing in Group H, with the group winner ultimately advancing to the EuroBasket qualifiers.
Switzerland defeated Portugal last weekend, 77-72. Capela, who announced his return to the Swiss national team in June, posted 16 points (6-of-9 FG) and 11 rebounds in that win..
On Wednesday, Aug. 14 and Wednesday, Aug. 21, the Swiss team will play Portugal and Iceland again to finish out the pre-qualifying round.
All three teams are currently 1-1 through two games, but Switzerland holds the tiebreaker for first place at the moment based on having the best average point differential. Ultimately, Switzerland’s goal is to qualify for FIBA EuroBasket for the first time since 1955.
Capela averaged 16.6 points and 12.7 rebounds in 33.6 minutes per game with the Rockets last season, and he again projects to be Houston’s starting center in the upcoming 2019-20 NBA season.
