Germany’s basketball players are also not to be put off by Finland and 13,000 upright fans in Tampere and secure the group victory with a win in the final European Championship preliminary round.
The DBB team also won the fifth and final preliminary round game in Tampere with 91:61 on Wednesday (03.10.2025) and reached the best possible starting position for the upcoming co-round, which is held in the Latvian Riga with five wins from five games.
Right -time final on Saturday against Portugal
In the round of 16 next Saturday (2:15 p.m. in the live ticker at Sportschau.de), the DBB team will surprisingly meet Portugal. The Portuguese secured fourth place in Group A after a 68: 65 victory against Estonia and for the first time reached the KO round at an EM. As a group winner, the German team also avoided a duel with host Latvia.
It is still open whether national coach Alex Mumbru will be back on the sidelines. The Spaniard, who was represented by assistant coach Alan Ibrahimagic during the entire preliminary round during the entire preliminary round, followed the game against Finland in the team hotel.
wagner most successful Launcher
The best thrower at the German team was Franz Wagner with 23 points. On the defensive, Isaac Bonga, Finland’s NBA-Star Lauri Markkanen, successfully took out the game.
“We played five very good games. It wasn’t easy today, against the home team”said top scorer Wagner at the Sportschau microphone, but also focused on the ko round: “We have to forget everything that has been here. From now on it says Do-or-die. “
End game for first place against host Finland
The game planners had lifted the highlight until the end of the preliminary round – and for the last European Championship game in Tampere, the duel of host Finland against world champion Germany. By chance it was also the game in which the decision for first place in preliminary round group B was to be made.
To say goodbye from Tampere, there was still a clear message against racism: Red cards with the inscription were on all places “Stop Racism“Ready that before that Tip-off were held up collectively. DBB captain Dennis Schröder had been racistically insulted in the game against Lithuania.
The fans in the sold-out arena also set the right tone: After Foreign Minister Elina Valtons had started the siren to present the teams, the Finnish hymn was sung collective, without music support from the assembly line.
Spectacle in Tampere – world champion for the first time in Prime Time
The DBB team may have been just a bit of spectacle, after extremely confident victories in the first four European Championship games, some of which took place before a ghost backdrop. Against Finland, the German team was finally allowed to Prime time on the floor. The game against the host and his 13,000 fans once again offered a real challenge, and the crash test that may be urgently needed before the KO-Games contest the very big tasks.
DBB team only in the first quarter with problems
The team also started determined: Dennis Schröder scored the first four points for the DBB team, which earned a fast 14:6 lead. Nevertheless, it became a duel at eye level in the first quarter. The German team initially struggled with the aggressive game of the Finns, let too many on their own board Rebound And with it second chances.
The so far fluid offensive game hooked forward. The Finns were able to stop Schröder and Co. successfully and early in the game structure: there were six ball losses in the first quarter alone, against Lithuania it was only seven throughout the game.
Bonga brakes Finland’s Star Markkanen
The fact that the German team never seriously got into trouble in the fifth preliminary round game at this European Championship was also successful in Isaac Bonga: Bonga successfully took Finland’s Star Markkanen to the chain from the start. The throwing 2.13 meter man got hardly any good degrees and only had 8 points at half-time.
Wagner turns on – 13 points in the second quarter
In the second quarter, the German team showed more bite. The offensive, so far the strongest of all teams at this European Championship, has also started. Franz Wagner turned up and scored 13 points in the second quarter alone. Bonga continued to have his hands everywhere, already booked three until the break Steal. The German team screwed the lead to 14 points until half -time – and had everything under control.
Markkanen, still in the game against Great Britain with a 43-point gala, was not a factor. The German team also took the Finnish audience out of the game, which his team celebrated with speech choirs in the end – and said goodbye towards the Ko round in Riga, where the Finns meet Favorit Serbia.
However, the DBB team remained highly concentrated – and once again showed its impressive versatility on the offensive: Maodo Lo took over for Schröder and sank a threesome to the 69:49 lead at the end of the third quarter – the game was decided.
Tristan da Silva with Statement block against Markkanen
Tristan da Silva still placed again in the final quarter Statement Against Finland leader Markkanen, stopped him on the way to the basket with a spectacular block. In the end, the next high victory for the German team was, even if this time it wasn’t quite enough for the 100-point mark.
For this, the DBB team was able to win all preliminary round games for the first time in its European Championship history. “Of course that gives us confidence”said Johannes Thiemann at the Sportschau microphone. “Now a new tournament begins. From now on you can no longer lose, it is best to go through the tournament unbeaten.”Thiemann continues. The veteran pulled a positive intermediate conclusion, the momentum from the preliminary round now wanted to take the team with them: “We had some setbacks, but the team has developed again. We are at a high level, it can go far.”