In the absence of captain Dennis Schröder, the German basketball players won their test in Ljubljana with 103: 89 (29:26, 24:22, 27:14, 23:27). Even 54 free throws for Slovenia could not prevent the defeat when NBA superstar Luka Doncic was performed.
In addition to playmaker Schröder (left for personal reasons), Daniel Theis and Maodo Lo also lacked the test (each in the construction training). Due to the failures, Christian Anderson Jr. and Tristan da Silva celebrated their debut in the national team. The big star, on the other hand, was there for the team from Slovenia: Luka Doncic came back to Germany in top shape and highly motivated. With 19 points, the NBA player was the most successful thrower of his team.
The star of the Los Angeles Lakers has no longer been on the field in the NBA playoffs. Before that it was unclear whether and how long the 26-year-old would actually be able to play. “Playing a whole game will probably be difficult”said the basketball player on Thursday. “But I think I’ll have a lot of minutes.”
Germany with too many fouls in the first quarter
Luka Scuka scored the first points for the hosts before Doncic personally got the next three points. As a result, the professional of the La Lakers struggled primarily from the free -wire line and laid three of his first four attempts. A little more worked on the German offensive: 40 percent hit rate from the triple line and five out of six two gave the DBB selection a 29:26 lead.
Superstar Luka Doncic smiles during the game against Germany.
After a total of 18 free throws for the Slovenes, Germany found the more suitable solutions on the defensive in the second quarter. In the front, Andi Obst mainly turned up, the Munich hit two difficult threesome. Then it became surprisingly heated for a test game. Doncic did not seem to agree with some decisions by the referees and received a technical foul, his fourth foul as a whole after a violent discussion.
Doncic complaints and dbb selection pulls away
After the 53: 48 lead at the break, the German team started the 3rd quarter. Franz Wagner tore the game itself and took care of the seven-point lead with a light-footed basket. It seemed as if the DBB team had drawn the right conclusions during the break, because the team of coach Alex Mumbru kept the Slovenes constant. Only the number of fouls remained too high.
This was fatal in the 25th minute. After his fourth foul, the Orlando Magic player annoyed himself too loudly, received a technical foul and was no longer able to intervene. Germany caught the lack of the NBA player in the collective, both Anderson Jr. and David Krämer met in this phase. Doncic was still spared in the last quarter. The lack of the key player led the Germans to further pull away.
Second duel with Slovenia on Sunday in Mannheim
In the end, Germany convinced with a reputable appearance against a Slovenian team that lacks the necessary width in the squad without their superstar. With 18 points each, Kräümer and Wagner were the best throwers in the German team. In the second duel with Slovenia on Sunday (5:30 p.m.) in Mannheim, at least Schröder should be on the floor again on the German side. His return to the team is expected on Saturday.