Paris Olympics men’s basketball: Germany beats Greece 76-63 despite Giannis Antetokounmpo’s 22 points

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Germany overcame a rough first quarter to take down Greece 76-63 in the Olympic quarterfinals of the men’s basketball tournament.

Greece star Giannis Antetokounmpo had 22 points, but that wasn’t enough for the Greeks to put up a second-half challenge against the defending FIBA World Cup champions.

Greece jumped out to a 16-4 lead early in the first quarter as Germany got off to a poor shooting start. But in the second quarter the Deutschland hoopers tightened up their perimeter defense and remembered how to shoot. They ate into Greece’s lead, outscoring them 25-15 in the second quarter and managing to tie the score 36-36 at halftime. From there, Germany was able to steadily build a lead that rivaled the one Greece had on them early in the game while Greece struggled to get the ball through the basket.

The standout stars for Germany were Franz Wagner (18 points, three rebounds, two assists) and Dennis Schroder (13 points, eight rebounds). Both made a number of critical plays, but the most memorable was the late-game dagger Schroder hit from downtown to give Germany a 15-point lead, their biggest of the day.

That basket sealed the deal for Germany, which now moves on to the medal round for the first time in the country’s history.