Croatia beat Latvia 115-80 in the FIBA World Cup on Wednesday evening, doing what they do best when they find a rhythm. The hosts opened the scoring early and never let Latvia back into it, by then making it clear this would not be a contest.
And here's the thing about this result — Croatia shot 35 from 53 in the field while Latvia managed only 30 from 69 attempts. The disparity in efficiency told you everything you needed to know about which team controlled the pace.
Croatia's 24 assists against 14 turnovers showed a side that moved the ball with purpose. Latvia, meanwhile, could manage just 15 assists and gave up the ball far too often, which is why they were never able to sustain any momentum.
To be fair, both teams hit nine three-pointers each, but Croatia made them from 21 attempts while Latvia tried 31. The volume of shots from distance suggests a game where Croatia was picking its moments and Latvia was searching for any answer.
The rebounding battle went Croatia's way with 34 to 22, though the more telling figure was the personal fouls — Latvia picked up 30 compared to Croatia's 21. That kind of discipline gap tends to decide games in the closing stages.
Looking at the recent form, Croatia had lost to Germany 87-96 on Monday but bounced back with this comprehensive victory. Latvia arrived after a narrow 82-84 defeat to Ukraine and found no answer to a Croatian side playing with confidence.
The result leaves Croatia top of their group with a comfortable cushion. Latvia will need to regroup quickly — they have nothing to lose in their remaining games but plenty to prove to themselves.
