Germany lost to Lithuania today, 84-75, ending the EuroBasket 2011 sojourn for Dirk Nowitzki and Chris Kaman. The Germans dropped to fifth place in their group, with only the top four advancing to the quarterfinals. The loss also ended the Germans' dreams of playing in the 2012 Olympics in London, and may have ended the international career of Nowitzki in the process.

The biggest blow to the German's hopes occurred an hour before tip off, when Ersan Ilyasova's last second jump shot hit the back of the rim and bounced away. Had that shot fallen, Turkey would have beaten Serbia, and Germany would have needed just a simple victory to advance to the quarterfinals. Instead, Serbia's win meant that Germany had to win by at least 11 points to move forward. Playing before a manic sell out crowd in Vilnius, against a Lithuania team that itself had to win to advance, the Germans were facing long odds.

Read the article at:
http://www.clipsnation.com/2011/9/11/2419744/eurobasket-germany-loses-fails-to-advance