Detroit –
The German basketball talent Franz Wagner unexpectedly missed the semifinals at the US college championships with his Michigan Wolverines.
In a competitive game against the Bruins of the University of California, the last throw of the 19-year-old brother of NBA professional Moritz Wagner missed the basket and Michigan lost 49:51. The favored Wolverines did not hit any of the last eight attempts from the field and only had points from free throws for 5:44 minutes.
Wagner converted two of them 44 seconds before the end, but missed his last two throws eleven seconds before the end and then with the clock running out. On a disappointing evening for him, he hit only one of his ten attempts from the field and ended the game with four points. The eight rebounds and two assists were no consolation, but the former Alba Berlin player showed an overall strong tournament. “Franz is one of the big reasons we were in this position in the first place,” said Wolverines coach Juwan Howard. “It’s never a player’s fault. I will always trust all of my players. “
Michigan was one of the four top-seeded teams in the tournament tree in the Indianapolis tournament known as March Madness. In the Final Four are the teams of the Gonzaga Bulldogs, who now meet the Bruins, as well as the Baylor Bears and the Arkansas Razorbacks.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210331-99-36567 / 3 (dpa)
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