The main center of the Armenian U20 basketball team, Yura Melikyan, demonstrated outstanding skills and became the most dominant player under the basket at the European Championship (U20) in Division B, which concluded on July 21 in Romania.
The Armenian team finished the tournament in 19th place, securing two victories in seven matches. These victories were achieved in games against the national teams of Azerbaijan and Moldova. In both winning matches, Yura Melikyan was named the best player, demonstrating high performance and leadership qualities on the court.
Yura Melikyan ranked sixth in average points per game and first in rebounds, blocks, and efficiency among all participants in the tournament. His statistics throughout the tournament are impressive:
- 6th place in points per game — 16 points.
- 1st place in rebounds per game — 17 rebounds.
- 1st place in blocks per game — 2.3 blocks.
- 1st place in efficiency rating per game — 23.1.
- 1st place in double-doubles — 6 double-doubles in 7 games.
These results confirm that Yura Melikyan became one of the brightest stars of Armenian basketball in this tournament. It is especially gratifying that he is a product of the Armenian basketball school and plays for Yerevan’s BCMA. Despite his relatively modest height (200 cm), Yura successfully competed against taller centers due to his strong physical preparation and excellent playing skills.
In addition to Yura Melikyan, Araik Gevorgyan also had a successful tournament, averaging 14.3 points per game, which was the 10th highest in the tournament.
The winner of the European Championship U20 in Division B was the host of the tournament, Romania. The Romanian U20 team defeated the Ukrainian U20 team in the final with a score of 80-58. In the match for third place, the Finnish U20 team won against the Dutch U20 team with a score of 73-56.