Paris, the world champions are coming! Led by the strong captain Dennis Schröder, the German basketball players have booked their ticket to the Olympic quarter-finals ahead of schedule despite some adversities. The medal hunters of national coach Gordon Herbert fought against courageous Brazilians in Lille to a well-deserved 86:73 (40:40) victory – and can look forward to the final round and the Olympic Village in the French capital.
Schröder was the best scorer for Germany in the second victory in the second group game with 20 points, after they had clearly won their opening match against Japan. Before the Group B final against France and NBA super talent Victor Wembanyama next Friday (9:00 p.m.), Germany can no longer be denied a place in the knockout phase, as the hosts had previously defeated the Asians 94:90 in overtime despite some difficulties.
The French, who also have two wins, are now up for grabs and could still be important. The two teams with the best preliminary round record have an advantage in the quarter-final draw and are supposedly assigned weaker opponents. They cannot meet each other until the final. This could potentially postpone a duel with the USA and superstar LeBron James.
Weak phase in the second quarter: 30 points for Brazil
In front of parts of the women’s national team, Schröder and Co. initially had a bit of a hard time at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy, the opponent closed the zone and the threes were not falling. Andreas Obst, however, quickly turned things around, scored twice from outside and increased the lead with an “and one”. Moritz Wagner completed the 8-0 run when he powered through spectacularly (17:6). Herbert’s team also picked up the intensity defensively and held the South Americans to just ten points in the first quarter.
After Maodo Lo had increased the lead to 14 points (24:10) at the beginning of the second quarter, the 18-time South American champions increased their lead and Germany lost their rhythm completely. The DBB selection made too many turnovers and allowed 30 (!) Brazilian points in the second ten minutes alone. Before halftime, Schröder converted two important three-pointers, but the Brazilians also scored from all positions and repeatedly took the lead. Franz Wagner saved the tie at halftime.
Even after that, the game remained very close at first. Schröder took responsibility and scored, but the German offense didn’t really get going. The Germans had to find their way into the game through defense. When Daniel Theis tackled twice and sent Isaac Bonga for the fast break, they finally got some easy points (56:49) and the DBB team pulled away. In the final quarter, the Germans stayed awake, Obst and Bonga scored decisive shots from outside: the quarterfinals were perfect.
Source: www.sport.de
