Georgia’s national basketball team face a defining moment this evening as they travel to Denmark for a FIBA World Cup qualifier, with live coverage on GPB First Channel kicking off at 21:30.

The February window has thrown up a compelling double-header: the Crusaders meet Denmark again, this time at home in Tbilisi, on March 2. Both fixtures carry enormous weight, and for good reason.
In Group A, comprising Spain, Ukraine, Georgia and Denmark, both Georgia and Denmark have played two matches apiece without registering a single win. With three teams advancing from the group, these back-to-back clashes represent, quite simply, a lifeline. Every point matters all the more given that points accumulated in the first group stage carry over into the second, where the top three from a six-team pool, formed by merging Group A’s qualifiers with Group B’s trio, will earn their tickets to the World Cup. Winning both home and away against Denmark, then, is not merely desirable; it is essential.

Denmark

Denmark’s head coach has named his squad for the February and March window. Euroleague players Shaquille Shields and Iffe Lundberg will not be available.

Squad: Adam Heede-Andersen (Svendborg), Dane Erikstrup (Groningen, Netherlands), David Kristensen (Zamora, Spain), Ogbemudia Uagboe (Blue Hawks), Gustav Knudsen (Manresa, Spain), Jonathan Klussmann (Paderborn, Germany), Kevin Larsen (Alicante, Spain), Tobias Jensen (Ulm, Germany), Zarko Jukic (Reykjavik, Iceland), Magnus Møllgaard (Bakken Bears), Gustav Drejer Erichsen (Blue Hawks), Sylvester Pedersen (Bakken Bears).

Head coach: Allan Foss.

Georgia

Georgia opened their World Cup qualifying campaign in November, suffering defeats to both Ukraine and Spain. Veteran centre Giorgi Shermadini, who came out of international retirement to assist the side in those fixtures, has since drawn a line under his national team career, and Georgia must now find a way without him.

In his place comes a new face and a considerable one at that. Marcquise Reed, a guard with Turkish side Trabzonspor, arrives with an impressive pedigree: he was the leading scorer in the Turkish league in both 2023/24 and 2024/25, currently tops the scoring charts again this season, claimed the FIBA Europe Cup’s top scorer award in 2024/25, and was named MVP of the Turkish league. His arrival gives the squad a genuine cutting edge.

Also earning their first call-ups to the twelve-man roster are Alexandre Merkviladze and Willy Isiani. One notable absentee, however, is Granada forward Beka Burjanadze, who was forced to withdraw late after picking up an injury in training.

Squad: Duda Sanadze (Mallorca LEB, Spain), Mate Khatiashvili (Baskonia, Spain), Giorgi Korsantia (Gipuzkoa, Spain), Rati Andronikashvili (Alftanes, Iceland), Alexandre Merkviladze (Ostend, Belgium), Tornike Shengelia (Barcelona, Spain), Giorgi Ochkhikidze (Batumi), Kakha Jincharadze (Kutaisi), Alexandre Pevadze, Giorgi Turdziladze (both TSU), Willy Isiani (Rustavi), Marcquise Reed (Trabzonspor).

Head coach: Aleksandar Džikić.

Head-to-Head

Georgia and Denmark have met six times, with Georgia winning four of those encounters.

The first meeting took place in 1995, and the Georgians claimed victory on that occasion too — 97:86. That match came with a rather memorable story attached. The EuroBasket qualifier was held in Birmingham, England, and both teams were travelling together by coach from their hotel to the arena. On match day, the Danes arrived early, settled themselves on the bus and told the driver to set off without waiting for the Georgians. When our squad came out of the hotel, the coach was gone, and they were left to make their way to the arena by taxi. The Danes’ little manoeuvre, it turned out, only gave our players extra motivation to win.

The Crusaders last faced this side in February 2024, at the Tbilisi Sports Palace, in a match that could scarcely have carried higher stakes: whichever team won would secure their place at EuroBasket 2025. Aleksandar Džikić’s side edged Denmark 62:60 and, for the sixth time in their history, booked their place at the European Championship.