Germany overcomes record-breaking Valanciunas and Lithuania in 2OT / News - Basketnews.com

Maodo Lo hit two clutch three-pointers in double overtime, and Dennis Schroder converted two tough shots to push Germany past Lithuania in double-overtime despite Jonas Valanciunas' record-breaking performance.

Credit: FIBA Credit FIBA

Maodo Lo hit two clutch three-pointers in double-overtime to overcome a monstrous performance from Jonas Valanciunas as Germany (3-0) beat Lithuania (0-3) 109-107 (19-19, 27-22, 20-24, 23-24, 7-7, 13-11) after a phenomenal game of ups and downs.

Player of the Game EFF 32 Franz Wagner Points 32 Accuracy 12-20 Rebounds 8 Assists 2

With the teams separated by just a single point (75-76) with 5 minutes to go, Germany started to take the game over. Daniel Theis converted an offensive rebound into an easy layup, Dennis Schroder made two contested jump shots from the mid-range, and the home team was already leading by seven (82-75).

When Jonas Valanciunas narrowed the deficit to four (80-84), Franz Wagner said his word. The young German forward made a long three-pointer to push the lead to five, while Schroder drove past Rokas Jokubaitis to score a difficult and-one, and the difference between the teams were separated by seven once again (89-82).

However, it was JV time now. Even though he missed the second free throw after a tough Shroder foul, the New Orleans Pelicans center powered through the German defense to score a contested layup (87-89). Then, Johannes Thiemann missed a wide-open floater, which gave Lithuania the last chance to tie the game.

Ignas Brazdeikis missed a tough driving layup but Valanciunas was there again. He tapped in the missed shot to tie the game at 89. Dennis Schroder had an opportunity to give his country a third victory with the last shot but it did not go in and the teams had to go to overtime.

Valanciunas continued where he left off. With Theis fouled out and Thiemann with 4 fouls, the Lithuanian big man dominated in the paint. Nevertheless, with teams separated by three (93-96), Schroder drove past Domantas Sabonis and converted the and-one to tie the game with just 30 seconds to go in overtime.

Lithuania / Schedule

Slovenia Lithuania92-85 Lithuania France73-77 Lithuania Germany107-109 Hungary LithuaniaTue15:15 Lithuania Bosnia and HerzegovinaWed12:30

After two unsuccessful attempts from both teams, it was time for the second overtime. Dennis Schroder hit a clutch three-pointer, Maodo Lo added two more triples, and Lithuania was unable to answer back.

It's the first time in the Lithuanian national team's history when the squad starts EuroBasket with a win-loss record of 0-3.

It was Jonas Valanciunas' best game wearing the Lithuanian national team shirt. His dominance was felt throughout the entire game. Not only did he almost singlehandedly fouled out Daniel Theis and Johannes Thiemann, but the center also recorded 34 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, made 5 assists, and drew 13 fouls during the game.

On the other side of the court, Franz Wagner was phenomenal. Although the Orlando Magic forward was not that noticeable during the two overtimes, he scored 32 points on 8-for-13 shooting and grabbed 8 rebounds in just his fourth official game with the German national team's shirt.

The overtime heroes Dennis Schroder and Maodo Lo were second and third in scoring respectively. Currently an NBA free agent, Schroder finished the game with 25 points, 5 rebounds, and 8 assists in his account, while Lo converted 4 three-pointers out of 8 on his way to 21 points.

Lithuania: Jonas Valanciunas 34 (10/14 2PT, 14/17 FT, 14 REB, 5 AST, 13 FD), Marius Grigonis 17 (4/7 2PT, 2/7 3PT, 7 REB, 4 AST), Domantas Sabonis 13 (4/9 2PT, 7 REB), Ignas Brazdeikis 12 (2/10 2PT, 2/4 3PT, 6 REB).

Germany: Franz Wagner 32 (8/13 2PT, 4/7 3PT, 8 REB), Dennis Schroder 25 (8/17 2PT, 2/10 3PT, 5 REB, 8 AST), Maodo Lo 21 (3/5 2PT, 4/8 3PT), Daniel Theis 11 (4/6 2PT, 5 REB).

Franz Wagner's highlights:

Jonas Valanciunas highlights:

Full game highlights:

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