Germany is now the world and European champion in men's basketball. Alan Ibrahimovic's team triumphed in a breathtaking EuroBasket final against Turkey after 88:83 (24:22, 16:24, 26:21, 22:16) at "Arena Riga" in the capital of Latvia. The technical delegate of the clash was the Bulgarian Eleonora Rangelova, BNT reported.
The Bundesteam won its second European title in its history after 1993 thanks to its stronger nerves in the most important moments. The world champions could rely on their experience in such big matches, unlike their opponent, who lost their second final of the championship on the Old Continent.
The match started strongly for the Turks, who early on took a double-digit lead of 13:2. Similar to the semi-final with Greece, Ergin Ataman's students were flawless behind the arc, with Cedi Osman quickly collecting 6 points. After Alan Ibrahimagic's timeout, however, the Bundesteam stabilized and even tied the score at 14:14. Franz Wagner and Isaac Bonga kept up with Osman's pace with 8 and 7 points, and after 10 minutes of play, Germany was already leading 24:22.
The fight for power continued in the second quarter, with the leadership changing frequently. Some of the key players on both teams also got involved in a problem with personal fouls, which forced the selectors to constantly look for the right balance between starters and reserves. Shortly before halftime, Turkey entered a new good series and retired at the break with a comfortable lead. Despite the strong performance of their Orlando teammates Magic Wagner and Tristan da Silva, the combination of the two centers Alperen Shengun and Adem Bona terrorized the German underbelly in the last 3-4 minutes for 46:40.
The Germans started the third quarter with a bang and quickly caught up and led by 2 points at 53:51 thanks to strong shooting from behind the arc. Shengun and Osman's show continued and both single-handedly returned the lead of the symbolic hosts from the beginning of the period - 61:55. However, the Bundesteam again emphasized three-point shooting and their great team play to realize another turnaround for 65:63. Ultimately, both teams withdrew before the last 10 minutes with the score 67:66 in favor of Turkey.
The shooting continued in the last part, with neither team able to break away by more than two possessions. With 3:35 minutes remaining, the Bundesteam realized two consecutive three-pointers, made by Andreas Obst and Bonga, to regain the advantage at 77:76. However, the turnarounds did not end there and Kenan Shipahi scored with a key shot from behind the arc for 79:77, which was, however, neutralized by Daniel Theis for 82:81. Shane Larkin and Dennis Schroeder exchanged baskets for 84:83 in favor of the world champions with about a minute left, and the captain of the symbolic guests showed once again how important he is to his team, increasing the advantage to 86:83 and 19 seconds remaining. Then he scored two penalty baskets to seal the success of the Bundesteam at the European Championship.
Isaac Bonga became an unexpected hero for Germany, who also walked away with the Player of the Match award with his 20 points, 5 rebounds and 100% success rate from the three-point range out of four attempts. Franz Wagner scored 18 points and 8 steals, and Dennis Schroeder distinguished himself with a "double-double" - 16 points and 12 assists. The guard also received the EuroBasket 2025 Most Valuable Player award.
Alperen Şengün led the way with 28 points, but his performance will be remembered for a missed three-pointer in the final seconds. Cedi Osman also gave it his all - 23 points and 5 rebounds, and Shane Larkin finished with 13 points, 6 steals and 9 assists.