By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
PARIS, France – Germany got an 85-71 win over France in Lille during the group phase of the Paris Olympics that created a small crisis in the French camp.
In the semifinal of the tournament, however, the game between the two of them was totally different, with Germany scoring 69 points.
“They made some good adjustments and had a better day today,” Franz Wagner admitted giving credit to his opponents.
As the young star said after the game: “I thought we didn’t play our best game. Obviously they changed a lot since the previous game. You have to give them credit”.
Wagner started strong with seven points in the opening quarter, but finished with 10, not being able to make a difference in the comeback of his team.
“After the first quarter, they took us out of our rhythm. They played great defense today. They outrebounded us all game,” Wagner said.
“They’ve got long guards, long wings, physical guys. Wemby, Rudy, and Lessort are really physical, all tall players. I thought we didn’t play our brand of basketball, too. It was a little bit of both”.
Still, the FIBA World Champions will have the chance to fight for the first Olympic bronze in their history in the 3rd place game on Saturday morning.
Photo credit: FIBA