Germany easily passes Cape Verde

Chris Kaman had a double-double against Cape Verde (Photo credit: FIBA)Photo Gallery>>(BEIJING, July 16) -- The Germany men's basketball team sent the Cape Verde team home with a comfortable 104-68 win on July 15 in the 2008 FIBA Qualifying Tournament for Men in Athens.

Seven-time NBA All-Star Dirk Nowitzki contributed 16 points and five rebounds in just 21 minutes. His new teammate, Los Angeles' Clippers' center Chris Kaman, scored 10 points and grabbed 10 boards.

Germany crushed their opponents in the first quarter 34-11. They began the second quarter with a 12-0 run and went to halftime with a 59-24 lead. Germany came back in the second half showing no signs of slowing down, finishing the third quarter with 41 points lead and eventually winning the match by 104-68.

All 12 German players played and scored in the game. As a team they shot 66.7% from the field and 93.8% from the free-throw line.

Jeff Xavier was the only standout player from the Cape Verdean team, scoring 21 points with 20 attempts.

In a post-game interview, Chris Kaman said he had some difficulty adjusting in the day's game. "I was missing some easy looks," he said. "I was fumbling the ball. The ball was different. When the ball gets wet in the NBA, it sticks to your hands better. Here, it gets more slippery."

When asked about his new teammates, he said that although they all can speak English, he needed to improve his German. His teammates have been playing together for 10 years.

Germany now qualifies for the quarterfinals from group B. They will have a showdown with New Zealand on Wednesday to decide who tops the group. New Zealand ranks 13th in the world, four places lower than Germany. They beat Cape Verde 77-50 on Monday to enter the quarterfinals.