Bremen (AP) – match winner Dennis Schröder wrote autographs for screaming fans for minutes. The German basketball players around the furiously playing NBA professional can say goodbye to the short summer break with a good feeling and the best prospects of participating in the 2023 World Cup.
The German national team of national coach Gordon Herbert defeated Poland 93:83 (40:36) and thus achieved the fifth qualifying success in a row. Schröder contributed 38 points in front of 6539 spectators in Bremen and was the outstanding man on the floor. Before the game, Schröder had been awarded for 50 international matches – he had never scored so many points in the national jersey before. “At the end of the day, I just want to win the game. It doesn’t matter if I score 30 or 40 points now. Luckily we won the game in the end,” said Schröder at Magentasport.
Germany in qualifying group D in front
With five wins and one defeat, Germany is the clear winner of qualifying group D. Before the Supercup and the second phase of the preliminary rounds for the tournament in Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines continue in August, Schröder and Co. can do a little take a deep breath The highlight of the year is the European Championships at home, which will be played in Cologne and Berlin from September 1st to 18th.
In the hot basketball summer there will be at least two duels with European champion Slovenia and NBA star Luka Doncic for the then heavily changed national team. According to the schedule of the world association Fiba, the direct duel in the World Cup qualification is on August 28th in Munich – at the European Championship the two co-favorites will meet again in Cologne with plenty of NBA power.
Schröder “has a unique talent”
As in the first leg, Herbert’s team struggled against the Poles. The 28-year-old Schröder missed several three-pointers at the beginning and only found his usual rhythm in the second quarter. “He has unique talent, we know that. He has good attitude and leads off the field too. He’s undoubtedly good for our group,” Herbert said before the game at Magentasport. At the break there were already 18 points. And in the end, the professional proved his extraordinary class.
The travel chaos before, in which the basketball players had to change from flight to train to bus, was noticeable to the team. “We only had one training session,” said Herbert. Germany created more throwing opportunities, but always seemed unfocused. Neither team was able to pull away properly until half-time, it went back and forth.
It stayed that way even after the change. The favored hosts didn’t get any real control over the game, unlike three days ago in the clear victory in Estonia. In the final quarter, Schröder repeatedly attacked the basket and saved the German team’s victory with a spectacular comeback. A three by Johannes Voigtmann in the last minute made the decision.
