EuroBasket 2022: Semi-finals preview, schedule and how to watch NBA stars in action 

EuroBasket continued to live up to its billing as one of the toughest basketball tournaments in the world as more shock departures set a tantalising tone ahead of Friday's semi-final showdown.

Poland produced the biggest upset so far after they staved off an epic comeback attempt to defeat defending champions, Slovenia 90-87.

Mateusz Pontika recorded 26 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists in an historic triple-double to knock out Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic, and send Poland into the last four of the tournament for the first time since 1971.

Thomas Heurtel and Rudy Gobert played critical roles in France's victory 93-85 over Italy in overtime.

The Italians, on a high from having eliminated Nikola Jokic's Serbia in the round of 16, pushed the Tokyo 2020 silver medallists all the way but 20 points from Heurtel and a 19-point, 14-rebound double-double from Gobert was enough to see France advance.

Germany's Dennis Schroder maintained his stunning run of form to book Germany's spot in the semis with a 107-96 win over Greece in what unfolded to be the highest scoring battle of the quarter-finals.

Schroder, who has held previous stints in the NBA but is currently unsigned, sent the American league in a buzz after he put up 26 points to halt Milwaukee Bucks' big man Giannis Antetokounmpo.

After a heroic performance by New Orleans Pelicans' Willy Hernangomez Spain are also through to the semi-finals. The reigning world champions came from 15 points behind to defeat Finland 100-90, with Hernangomez offering up 27 points in their comeback effort.

EuroBasket 2022: Schedule semi-finals and final

EuroBasket 2022 began with a group phase from 1-9 September, with four pools of six teams each. The top four teams in each pool qualified for the round of 16, which took place on 10-11 September.

The eight winning teams then competed in quarter-finals which took place from 13-14 September in Berlin.

Up next is the semi-finals on 16 September with the final penned for 18 September.

Full schedule (all tip-off times are Central European Summer Time / CEST, which is GMT+2).

Friday 16 September

• Semi-final - Poland v France - 17:15
• Semi-final - Germany v Spain - 20:30

Sunday 18 September

• 3rd place playoff - TBC v TBC - 17:15 CEST
• Final - TBC v TBC - 20:30 CEST.

The NBA stars to watch in the semi-finals at EuroBasket 2022

Several big names have already been eliminated, including reigning NBA MVP and Olympic silver medallist Jokic, Mavericks' main man Doncic, and 2021 NBA champions Antetokounmpo.

Here are the top men to watch in the final four.

Rudy Gobert – France

Having taken silver at Tokyo 2020, and defeated the United States in the group stages, France are among the favourites for EuroBasket 2022.

They boast a handful of NBA players in their roster headed by Rudy Gobert who sent shockwaves through the sport with his blockbuster summer trade to the Minnesota Timberwolves back in July.

Named to the NBA All-Defensive Team in his last six seasons at the Utah Jazz, as well as claiming the NBA Defensive Player of the Year title in 2018, 2019 and 2021, Gobert is one of Les Bleus’ most valuable assets.

Pair his prolific defending abilities with his on-court relationship with New York Knicks man Evan Fournier, another player known for coming alive for the French team, Gobert and France will take some stopping as they build towards their home Olympics in 2024.

READ: NBA star Rudy Gobert ready for new adventure with Minnesota Timberwolves: “Change is exciting

Dennis Schroder – Germany

One of the most personable stars of the German national team Dennis 'the Menace' Schroder has become a staple feature over the years.

While he may not boast as impressive number as some of his NBA rivals across Europe, when it comes to national duty the 29-year-old point guard has a habit of standing out.

At the 2017 edition of EuroBasket, Schroder finished with the second-highest average points per game (23.7).

At the 2019 World Cup, he averaged 19.6 points and 9.4 assists becoming one of only two players to record points and assists double-doubles on more than one occasion.

Having not progressed past the quarterfinals at EuroBasket since 2005, Schroder has already pushed Germany in smashing that gold.

The question now is, can this dark-horse German team go all the way?

Willy Hernangomez – Spain

New Orleans Pelicans' Willy Hernangomez is a player to keep an eye out for as world champions Spain make their bid for European glory.

The 2015 winners are without star guard Ricky Rubio as well as the Gasol brothers with Pau retiring from basketball and Marc quitting the national side.

Hernangomez, part of the World Cup-winning side of 2019, will carry more of the burden this time although his average of 9.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists over 50 games NBA last season suggest he will need to step up in this tournament.

Speaking ahead of the tournament, he said, "It is not pressure. It is a responsibility to take a step forward. The good thing we have is that we are a unit; I trust all of them and they trust me."

Among that unit is his brother Juancho Hernangomez who plays for the Toronto Raptors.

With three titles in the last five editions, Spain are not a team to be taken lightly.

FIBA EuroBasket: The last five winners of previous editions

• 2017 – Slovenia

• 2015 – Spain

• 2013 – France

• 2011 – Spain

• 2009 – Spain

EuroBasket 2022: How to watch

Action from FIBA EuroBasket 2022 will be available to watch on FIBA's own streaming service Courtside 1891.

Some geographical restrictions may apply.