RIGA :Point guard Dennis Schroeder scored 26 points and dished out 12 assists as Germany blazed past Finland 98-86 to book their place in Sunday’s Eurobasket final, bringing the remarkable run of the Finns to a shuddering halt.
One of four co-hosts along with Cyprus, Poland and Latvia, Finland were appearing in the semi-finals for the first time, and though they started well, they were soon shut down by the reigning FIBA World Cup champions.
Franz Wagner came out strong with 20 first-half points as Schroeder carved open the Finnish defence, grabbing eight assists to give the Germans a 61-47 lead at the break.
The Finns came storming back, cutting the deficit to six late in the third quarter but again the Germans turned up their defence, shutting down Finnish star man Lauri Markkanen and limiting him to 16 points as he scored a paltry two of his nine three-pointers.
Germany will play the winner of Friday’s second semi-final between Greece and Turkey in Sunday’s decider, with Finland taking on the loser in the bronze-medal game.
