In a historic achievement for German basketball, the national team has secured its first-ever Olympic semifinal berth by defeating Greece 76-63 in the quarterfinals of the Paris 2024 Olympics. Led by Orlando Magic’s Franz Wagner, who scored 18 points, and Brooklyn Nets’ star Dennis Schröder, who contributed 13 points and 8 assists, the German team overcame a slow start to dominate the latter part of the game.The match began with Greece taking an early lead, at one point leading by 12 points. However, Germany’s resilience shone through as they adjusted their strategy and mounted a comeback. ‘We even talked about it at halftime — not everything’s going to go perfect all the time. So you kind of recover from that and adjust and react,’ said German player Daniel Wagner, highlighting the team’s maturity.Head coach Gordon Herbert attributed the turnaround to switching to a bigger lineup and increasing defensive pressure after halftime. This tactical change proved effective, as Germany outscored Greece in the third and fourth quarters, pulling away to secure the victory.Despite a strong 22-point performance from Greek superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, it wasn’t enough to overcome the well-rounded German team. The win maintains Germany’s perfect record in the tournament, having won all three of their group stage games before this quarterfinal victory.Germany will now face either France or Canada in the semifinals on Thursday. As German player Johannes Voigtmann stated, ‘It’s an Olympic semifinal, it doesn’t matter who it is’, emphasizing the team’s focus on their historic opportunity.In other Olympic basketball news, Serbia secured a dramatic 95-90 overtime victory against Australia in their quarterfinal match. NBA MVP Nikola Jokic led Serbia with 21 points and 14 rebounds, while Bogdan Bogdanovic added 17 points. Serbia will face either the United States or Brazil in their semifinal matchup.
Key points
- Germany reached their first-ever Olympic basketball semifinal by defeating Greece 76-63.
- Franz Wagner led Germany with 18 points, while Dennis Schröder contributed 13 points and 8 assists.
- Germany overcame a slow start and a 12-point deficit to secure the victory.
- The German team will face either France or Canada in the semifinals on Thursday.
- Serbia also advanced to the semifinals with a 95-90 overtime win against Australia.
