Greece, the Czech Republic and Germany all progressed to the FIBA Basketball World Cup with wins in the European section of qualifying on Sunday.

The Greeks became the first nation from the continent to advance to the tournament in China as they rallied to beat Georgia, while Germany overcame a 23-point deficit to punch their ticket.

Washington Wizards point guard Tomas Satoransky (22 points) then helped the Czech Republic seal their berth as they edged past Bosnia-Herzegovina.

AFRICA

Nigeria and Tunisia became the first teams from Africa to reach the tournament.

Ike Diogu (17 points and nine rebounds) guided Nigeria to an 89-61 thrashing of Senegal as they improved to 9-0 in Group F.

Tunisia also remained unbeaten and qualified after easily beating Angola 84-64.

Egypt, the Central African Republic and Ivory Coast all boosted their chances with victories.

AMERICAS

Venezuela took a step towards qualification with a thrilling 79-78 overtime win against the Dominican Republic.

Also in Group F, Brazil were handed a 20-0 forfeit victory over the Virgin Islands, who were unable to arrive in Goiania in a timely manner.

EUROPE

Greece kept their perfect record in Group L intact as they defeated Georgia 86-85, with Nick Calathes providing 31 points and seven three-pointers in a qualification-clinching victory.

Germany also improved to 8-0 and moved to 16 points in that group with a 112-98 overtime-win against Israel that ensured they too qualified for next year's tournament.

France's 83-67 victory over Finland and Russia's 77-73 success against Bulgaria gave the Czech Republic the opportunity to clinch their first ever trip to a World Cup later in the day.

And an 85-80 success over Bosnia-Herzegovina sealed a historic success that guaranteed them a top-three finish in Group K.