It only missed one shot in Latvia to create a new exploit in this World Cup, and take out Germany. It must be said that the Baltics were helped by Dennis Schröder’s terrible match…
The leader of the Mannschaft thus accumulated the failures, ending the meeting with 9 points at a terrible 4/26 in shooting, including 0/8 from afar, with 4 losses of the ball for 4 assists, 4 faults including a technique for ” flopping” which could have been very expensive at the end of the match, and a +/- of -20 when he was on the field.
Hold only the victory
“I probably played the worst game of my career” admitted the new Raptor. “But we still managed to find a way to win. I’m proud of the guys who upped their game off the bench. And also incumbents. Franz Wagner, in particular. Mo Wagner… Everyone upped their game.”
Back after his sprain, Franz Wagner did a lot of good for Germany as 6th man, with 16 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists. The aggressiveness of Mo Wagner (12 points) and the few outside baskets of Andreas Obst also allowed the Mannschaft to compensate for the terrible evening of its usual leader.
“I just tried to stay positive” continued Dennis Schröder. “At the end of the day, whether you make or miss the shots, it’s not something you control. What we control is to stay positive. Keep talking to my teammates, as a leader and captain. I can’t afford to have a bad attitude. I’m just happy that everyone raised their level, and that we won the game…”
Gordon Herbert, who let Dennis Schröder manage the hot moments, despite his poor performance, is also confident that his leader will find his true level in the semi-finals, against Team USA.
“I have absolutely no doubt that he will bounce back. Adversity makes you stronger. It is obvious that he had a very difficult day. He missed layups and wide open shots. But he is a very solid boy, very competitive. I have no doubt that he will bounce back.”assured the German coach.
Arturs Zagars played in the club… of Dennis Schröder
The performance of Dennis Schröder seems all the worse as opposite, Arturs Zagars shone, with 24 points (9/17) and 8 assists. At the end of the match, Dennis Schröder did not fail to congratulate him.
“I have a team in Germany (Braunschweig) and he was playing there a year and a half ago. He was a little injured so he couldn’t be on the pitch much. But since then he has made tremendous progress. Well done to him, he played extremely well tonight.”could only recognize, with a smile, the German playmaker.
Despite the elimination, Arturs Zagars could also smile. Without a contract at the moment, the revelation of the tournament should probably soon sign in a Euroleague club…
