The Men’s FIBA U20 World Cup Tournament opened play Saturday in Heraklion, Crete, Greece. Following Sunday’s games, the tournament announced the day’s top five players. Serbian Lazar Gacic led the list with 22 points, four rebounds and an assist for an efficiency rating of 26 in Serbia’s 98-54 win over Slovenia.
But it was one Lithuanian who stood out.
At 6-foot-9, Aleksas Bieliauskas is imposing on the court. His 15 points, eight rebounds and one block helped power Lithuania to a 106-66 victory over Romania in their first match of the tournament. The 20-year-old’s performance equated to an efficiency rating of 24.
Putting in work down low! 👊
— FIBA EuroBasket (@EuroBasket) July 13, 2025
Aleksas Bieliauskas shoots 86% from the floor, grab 8 boards & helps Lithuania 🇱🇹 to their first #U20EuroBasket win.@BadgerMBB pic.twitter.com/MMqrA6wmyZ
Belgium’s Alexander Raedschelders (19 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists), Israel’s Maxim Filonenko (15 points, 7 rebounds, 4 steals) and Gacic’s teammate Viktor Mikic (17 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks) also made the top five. Raedschelders’ efficiency rating was 24, while Filonenko’s and Mikic’s were both 23.
It was an exciting performance, one Badger fans can expect more of, as Bieliauskas is bringing his talents to the Big Ten this season.
The power forward committed to play for Greg Gard at Wisconsin in May, after a strong performance this past season in Lithuania’s NKL (similar to the NBA G League). He made three appearances in the LKL — the top Lithuanian league — for Zalgiris.
Belgium’s Alexander Raedschelders (19 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists), Israel’s Maxim Filonenko (15 points, 7 rebounds, 4 steals) and Gacic’s teammate Viktor Mikic (17 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks) also made the top five. Raedschelders’ efficiency rating was 24, while Filonenko’s and Mikic’s were both 23.
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It was an exciting performance, one Badger fans can expect more of, as Bieliauskas is bringing his talents to the Big Ten this season.
The power forward committed to play for Greg Gard at Wisconsin in May, after a strong performance this past season in Lithuania’s NKL (similar to the NBA G League). He made three appearances in the LKL — the top Lithuanian league — for Zalgiris.
Over 45 games in the NKL, Bieliauskas averaged 12.1 points and 6.8 rebounds per contest, and shot 39.3% from beyond the arc.
“We are excited to have Aleksas join us,” Gard said when Bieliauskas signed. “His size and experience will be an immediate asset to our program.”
Gard’s four-athlete 2025 recruiting class is currently ranked No. 68 nationally and No. 11 in the Big Ten, per 247Sports. In addition to Bieliauskas, the Badgers secured notable recruits in four-star shooting guard Zach Kinziger and three-star center Will Garlock, while shooting guard New Zealander Hayden Jones rounds out the class.