Montenegro Remain Unbeaten

Turning Point: Germany trailed 59-55 with less than eight minutes to go before Montenegro went on a 14-5 run to take command, 73-60.

Game Hero: Montenegro center Milka Bjelica had a game-high 23 points on seven-for-12 (58%) shooting. She pulled down 10 rebounds, dished out two assists and came up with two steals.

Stats Don´t Lie: Germany were out-rebounded 50-34. Both teams struggled shooting the ball from behind the arc, with Germany finishing 3-for-16 (19%) while Montenegro were mere two-for-14 (14%).

Montenegro put the finishing touches on a brilliant Group C campaign at the EuroBasket Women with a 76-64 triumph over Germany in Monday's first game at the Spodek Arena in Katowice.

Miodrag Baletic's side had already clinched first place with victories over Poland and Spain so the veteran coach elected to rest his starters and give his promising youngsters most of the minutes on the court.

The one Montenegro veteran that did play a lot, Milka Bjelica, had 23 points and 10 rebounds - both game highs.

Germany trailed by 15 points but whittled the deficit to just three at the beginning of the fourth quarter when Anne Breitreiner buried a jumper in the lane.

Milica Jovanovic went to the other end and responded with a three-point play for Montenegro.

Germany managed to pull within four but got Montenegro, who inserted starting playmaker Jelena Skerovic into the contest early in the fourth quarter after 22-year-old Snezana Aleksic fouled out, were never in danger of losing.

The Germans, winners of the Additional Qualifying Tournament, got 20 points and eight rebounds from Svenja Greunke but their EuroBasket Women ended with the 12-point defeat.

Quotes Germany vs. Montenegro

Montenegro Head Coach Miodrag Baletic:
"I am very happy because my players approached this game just as all of our games so far with a lot of focus. They are showing a lot of character and following our game plan and that can only make me happy. We have three wins and we will go to the next round looking to build on our performances so far."

Montenegro Forward Milka Bjelica:
"We are here to prove how good we are and we have shown a lot of confidence in all of our games. We have shown against Germany just as we did against Spain that we can play against anyone. We are hungry and we hopefully can continue to play as we have done so far in the next round regardless of who we face."

Germany Head Coach Bastian Wernthaler:
"Montenegro are an extremely difficult rival to face. They have versatile players that can play in every position. The Montenegro coach even rested his starters for many parts of the game and that just goes to show how strong they are. I think they can go very far in this tournament. As for us, we are disappointed not to have made it to the next round. We thought we could have taken one win but I think the players were tired coming into the tournaments. It has nevertheless been
positive experience for my players."

Germany Forward Svenja Greunke:
"It is great to score 20 points but the most important thing is to play well as a team. "