EUROBASKET 2011

Janis Blums and the rest of the youthful Latvia team were very good in the friendly game against Georgia, but Zaza Pachulia was simply unstoppable

Latvia played at home and got 25 points from Janis Blums but fell in their EuroBasket warm-up clash to Georgia on Monday.

The reason?

They had no answer for the dominance of Georgia center Zaza Pachulia.

The Georgians rode the back of their big man to an 83-79 win.

Big center Pachulia, who plays in the NBA with the Atlanta Hawks, poured in 42 points.

He not only made 14 of 17 shots from the floor, but also sank all 14 of his attempts at the free-throw line.

He led the Georgians with six rebounds, too.

The assistant coach of Georgia, David Ustiashvili, said of Pachulia: "He played outstanding.

"Pachulia played well with the others and overall, it was a team victory."

The win was an impressive one for Georgia because they were going up against a team that is looking to build some confidence before the EuroBasket.

Latvia will play in a very tough Group B against Israel, France, Serbia, Germany and Italy.

"The Latvians really wanted to win this match," Ustiashvili said.

"They were playing for their fans and had lost all of their previous warm-up games and wanted to win."

The two sides will square off again on Wednesday in Ventspils.

"In this game, we again need to improve on defense, and cut down on our mistakes as much as possible," Ustiashvili added.

Georgia will compete in Group D of the EuroBasket against Ukraine, Slovenia, Russia, Belgium and Bulgaria.