Players of Germany celebrate after winning the semifinal between the United States and Germany at the 2023 FIBA World Cup in Manila, the Philippines, Sept. 8, 2023. (Xinhua/Wu Zhuang)
The 113-111 delivered the highest score in a semifinal in basketball World Cup history as Germany also made history by reaching its first ever basketball World Cup final.
by Oliver Trust
BERLIN, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- Dennis Schroeder for a good reason left the dance floor in the Mall of Asia in the Philippine capital Manila.
While his teammates kept on dancing wildly, the point guard of the NBA side Toronto Raptors spotted his wife Ellen and the couple's three kids next to the basketball court on which the German team just had written history.
"The best team I ever played in, no matter if you take the NBA or the national team," the 29-year-old captain of team Germany said after the sensational win in the semifinals of the 2023 FIBA World Cup against the big favorite USA.
The 113-111 delivered the highest score in a semifinal in basketball World Cup history as Germany also made history by reaching its first ever basketball World Cup final.
The breathtaking duel took Germany to the final where the squad of Gordon Herbert will be facing Serbia on Sunday. Then the German coach and his squad are going to meet a man whose name is strongly connected to German basketball.
It was nobody less than the current Serbia national coach Svetislav Pesic, who took Germany to win the European title in 1993 before coaching the club sides of Alba Berlin and Bayern Munich.
Pesic's son Marko is Bayern's current CEO after a career in the German shirt.
While Serbia beat Canada in the second semifinal, Schroeder could hardly find words to describe his enjoyment.
"You must tighten your screws in a game like that; so, we did. I had from the start of the World's steadfast faith in our side," the German-born son of a Gambian mother and a German father.
Dennis Schroder (front) of Germany reacts during the semifinal between the United States and Germany at the 2023 FIBA World Cup in Manila, the Philippines, Sept. 8, 2023. (Xinhua/Meng Yongmin)
Having to talk about the top performers against the U.S., Schroeder nearly ended up mentioning the names of the entire squad-members names.
Hugging kids and wife, the German captain (17 points/9 assists) talked about Franz Wagner (Orlando Magic/22/5 rebounds), Daniel Theis (Indiana Pacers/21/7), and Andreas Obst (Bayern Munich/24/6 assists), the game's MVP.
"We managed to deliver a robust performance right until the end," Obst said while Schroeder turned into the team's leader conducting and reading the games' different stages.
Schroeder valued the chances to win gold this Sunday "as possible when we do our thing as we did today," but said, the unbeaten Germans are expecting "a fierce fight."
The German captain, who led his team to a seven-game unbeaten run, praised the team's spirit "as we always acted as a true team. This took us through the entire tournament and might be our secret."
Coach Herbert spoke about a special group: "The way we played together and stuck together when things got tough."
Getting ready "as there is one more to go. Enjoy this little bit tonight, and get ready for Sunday," the Canadian-born coach said about his upcoming targets, adding: "This group of players want to win gold now."
In 2002, Germany won bronze at the World Cup in Indianapolis with Dirk Nowitzki taking MVP after for the first and last time having reached the semifinal. This time, they will end up with at least silver but intend to grab gold.
After proceeding to the final, Serbia's coach Pesic and his team have noted some astonishment - it's Germany they are crossing swords with this Sunday.
And the German victory against the U.S. might have told them it might after all be a good idea to take things seriously. ■
