Defeat in the game for third place: The World Championships in Dubai ended without a medal for Germany’s wheelchair basketball players.
In the game for third place, the team of national coach Dirk Passiwan lost to the USA 42:57 (20:35) on Tuesday (June 20th, 2023). The best player on the German side was captain Mareike Miller with a “double-double” of 15 points and ten rebounds, while Rose Marie Hollermann stood out from the US team with 14 points and twelve rebounds.
As in the narrow semi-final defeat against China (45:49) on Sunday, the German selection also let their opponents go against the Americans after a balanced start in the second quarter and was unable to catch up by the final whistle.
“We didn’t play badly today either, but we just didn’t act as consistently on the offensive as we did against China. And with just over 40 points you can’t win a game, let alone a World Cup medal,” said Passiwan after the game.
After defeat against Australia – eighth place for German men
The German men lost the game for seventh place on Monday after a “buzzer beater” from Australia 57:59 (27:31). “We put up a tough fight for the Australians today, believed in our chances to the end and repeatedly fought our way back. In the end we didn’t manage to bring the win home.”said national coach Nicolai Zeltinger.
The next chance for a medal is already in August at the European Championships in Rotterdam.