Nearly two months after their last game, the Spanish men's national team returns to action this Friday at 21:00 at the Príncipe Felipe in Zaragoza against Portugal in the opening match of the second round of qualifying for the 2027 Qatar World Cup. The match will be broadcast live on Teledeporte and Vamos.
Two debuts, one at home
The match marks the debut as full internationals for Aday Mara and Baba Miller. For Mara, there's the added significance of doing it in his hometown: born in Zaragoza and developed through the city's academy, the center arrives after an outstanding season at Michigan, crowned with the NCAA title and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year award, and will play next season for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Just two months ago, on the eve of the Draft, he spoke with us about what he was looking for in his new destination. Baba Miller, 2023 FIBA U19 World Champion, is the other debutant.
Head coach Chus Mateo's roster consists of fourteen players with representation from EuroLeague, NBA, and NCAA, following the withdrawal of Santi Aldama due to physical issues. To complete the initial training sessions, the head coach called up young Penya player Diego Niebla. The selected players with their numbers: Álvaro Cárdenas (1), Baba Miller (2), Sergio de Larrea (3), Jaime Pradilla (4), Mario Saint-Supéry (5), Darío Brizuela (8), Alberto Díaz (9), Hugo González (10), Izan Almansa (13), Willy Hernangómez (14), Aday Mara (15), Santi Yusta (22), Juancho Hernangómez (41), and Joel Parra (44).
The captain's warning
Willy Hernangómez, captain with 117 international caps, doesn't sugarcoat the opposition: "difficult, very physical," and reminds that the Portuguese "in addition to being a team with very talented players, have been preparing longer than us." Santi Yusta, who plays at home, spoke in the same vein: "it's a very experienced team, they've been together for a long time, they're aggressive, they're tough, and we'll have to match their level of toughness," he said in statements collected by the Spanish Basketball Federation.
The warning has merit. Portugal, coached by Mário Gomes, advanced to this second round as group B runners-up thanks to a prestigious victory in Greece (56-71) in the final matchday, and arrives in Zaragoza with high morale and the argument of having competed on equal terms in the last EuroBasket.
What's at stake for Spain
Chus Mateo focuses beyond the immediate result: "In the short term the objective is qualification for the World Cup, but it's obvious that for me it's very important that the chemistry between the players and the way we understand collective play grows little by little." The head coach insists on patience with a young group: "maturity is acquired over time, and in many of them, who are young but are good, we'll surely manage to solidify certain qualities... but we have to give time for that to take shape."
Spain enters the second round as group I leaders with a 5-1 record, ahead of Ukraine (4-2), Montenegro (4-2), Portugal (3-3), Greece (3-3), and Georgia (3-3), as first-round results carry over. Six games remain in a double round-robin against Portugal, Greece, and Ukraine, and at the end of the three windows the top three from each of the four groups qualify. It's worth emphasizing because these days the opposite has been read in more than one place: Spain has nothing assured yet.
There's a calendar detail that adds extra value to these two games: this is the only window of the season in which NBA and EuroLeague players can participate. In November and February, Mateo will have to manage without them. The window closes Monday the 31st in Athens against Greece at 18:00 on Teledeporte and Vamos.