Germany beats Serbia 83-77 to win their first FIBA world cup gold medal

Germany beat Serbia 83-77 before 12,000 fans at Mall of Asia Arena in Manila to claim their first ever FIBA world championship.

Germany, which beat USA in the semi-finals, won all of their 8 games in the tournament in Japan and the Philippines.

The victory Sunday caps a remarkable turnaround for Germany, who have won no medals since bronze in 2002 behind Dirk Nowitzki, and who finished 18th at the FIBA 2019 World Cup in China.

Before the event, Germany’s point guard Dennis Schroder (signed to play for the Toronto Raptors this coming season) reportedly criticized Dallas Mavericks forward Maxi Kleber for skipping national team training last summer. Schroder also quarreled with coach Gordon Herbert, and he missed 22 shots in Germany’s narrow quarter-final win over Latvia.

But in Sunday’s final, Schroder scored 28 points (including key shots down the stretch), and he was named the TISSOT Most Valuable Player in the tournament. He also held Serbian star Bogdan Bogdanovic (who had 17 points in the first half) to zero points in the second half.

“We would not be here without him and he would not be here without the team,” Herbert said of Schroder after the game. “I can’t say enough about Dennis Schröder and what he’s meant for German basketball. I think Dennis would tell you first that this is a team thing.”

Schroder said he wants to see more FIBA games on TV in Germany in the future. “Basketball is a great sport and I hope we can get the respect for what we’ve done the last two years,” he said. Berlin network DW reported that roughly 4.6 million people watched Sunday’s final on public broadcaster ZDF in Germany. Many in Germany complained that fans could only watch Germany’s win over USA on Friday on a streaming platform.

Franz Wagner, who missed several world cup games with a sprained ankle, had 19 points and 7 rebounds in the final. Center Johannes Voigtmann added 12 points and 8 rebounds for Germany.

“They deserved this win,” said Serbia head coach Svetislav Pesic, who formerly coached Germany. “They played 40 minutes at a high level, with continuity, very physical.”

Serbia, who played an inspired game to defeat Canada in the semi-final, lost their key defender Ognjen Dobric after he rolled an ankle in the first half, which ended in a 47-all tie.

Germany broke open Sunday’s final with a 13-2 run in the third quarter.

Aleksa Avramovic, who scored 21 points for Serbia, hit a three to bring Serbia within 4 points 73-69 in the fourth quarter, and then six straight points to cut the gap at 78-75 with 1:21 remaining on the clock.

After a Bogdanovic steal, Marko Guduric had a chance to tie the game from the right corner but missed. Guduric later scored to make it 79-77, but Schroder surprised Serba’s defense by penetrating instead of stalling for time, and his layup with 21 seconds left extend Germany’s lead to 4. After a Serbia turn-over, Schroder iced the game with free throws.

“It’s a tremendous group of players, but we were a team first. Guys cared about each other, and they challenged each other,” said Herbert, a native of Penticton, British Columbia who played for Canada at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.

Schroder was selected to the all-tournament team along with Bogdan Bogdanovic of Serbia, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of third-placed Canada, Anthony Edwards from USA and Luka Doncic of Slovenia.