The German national basketball team has secured a narrow victory over reigning European champions Spain. In Madrid, the team led by national coach Alex Mumbru won 106-105 (94-94, 43-38) after overtime. Dennis Schröder scored the game-winning basket.
Schröder was the top German scorer with 24 points. On Saturday (7:00 p.m./Magentasport), Germany will face Spain again in its final warm-up game in Cologne. The European Championship begins for the German team on August 27 in Tampere, Finland, against Montenegro.
National coach Alex Mumbru was able to field his strongest lineup on his return to his homeland. The Spaniard started with Schröder, Andreas Obst, Wagner, Johannes Voigtmann, and Daniel Theis – a world-class lineup that lit up the arena in Madrid.
No rhythm for a long time
But the German team’s play was not always world-class. Especially in the first quarter, the German team made many easy mistakes, and the coordination on defense was often off. Mumbru again allowed himself phases in which neither Schröder nor Wagner were on the court.
This tactical variation had already caused controversy at the Super Cup in Munich last weekend, when Germany lost to top favorites Serbia in the final and suffered their first defeat in the run-up to the tournament.
The German team improved in the second quarter against Spain. Schröder scored his first points, Wagner took control of the game, and Isaac Bonga was almost impossible to get past on defense – Germany led by seven points at halftime (45:38).
After the break, Germany pulled away to a ten-point lead. But when Mumbru then benched Schröder and Wagner at the same time for a few minutes, Germany’s lead melted away again. Before the final quarter, the lead was down to just four points (76:72).
Exciting final phase
In the final quarter, Germany pulled ahead by ten points again (85:75), but once more the world champions were unable to maintain their lead. With 40 seconds remaining, Spain equalized and the wild game went into overtime. Schröder scored the decisive points to secure victory.