Player of the Day | Germany's Danilo Barthel

TOKYO (Japan) - After falling behind Nigeria by 11 points early in the third quarter on Wednesday, Germany could have faded and lost for a second straight time at the Tokyo Games

This was, after all, a team that no one expected to be in Japan. They had had to pull off some upsets at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Split, Croatia, just to make it to the Olympics and once in the Far East, Henrik Rodl's team blew a 12-point advantage in their opening game against Italy and lost, 92-82.

But this Germany clearly doesn't want to be remembered as a team that was just making up the numbers.

Danilo Barthel rose to the occasion in the second half for Germany

Instead of caving in against Nigeria, the players dug in. They played harder, faster and stronger to come back and prevail, 99-92.

"We stayed calm in crunch time," said Germany power forward Danilo Barthel. "That's how we got our first Olympic victory and we're very happy." 

No one embodied the resilient, refuse-to-lose German attitude more than Barthel, whose clutch second-half performance has earned him the honor of Player of the Day at the Olympics.

The 29-year-old went to work late in the third quarter and continued to pound away in the fourth, scoring with tough shots around the basket. He was a perfect four of four from the floor and also sank a bunch of free throws. Barthel's biggest shot came with 5:21 remaining.

After an Obi Emegano layup tied the contest at 81-81 for Nigeria, Germany went to the other end and got the ball to Barthel on the low block where he used excellent footwork before scoring overJordan Nwora. Germany never trailed again. In addition to being perfect from the floor, Barthel was six of seven at the free-throw line and also drew a charge.

Nwora had a terrific game overall, pouring in 33 points for Nigeria after drilling seven of 12 shots from deep and also corralling seven rebounds. But is there anything more stirring than seeing players with their backs against the wall showing tremendous fight and determination to win a vital game?

Germany got gritty performances and braves efforts from Andreas Obst, Johannes Voigtmann, Johannes Thiemann, Moritz Wagner and, most important of all and down the stretch, from Barthel.

Barthel was a true warrior for Germany against Nigeria

While Germany still have a lot of work to do to reach the Quarter-Finals, with a game next against Australia, Barthel's Player of the Day performance has helped give them a shot of advancing.

"Now everything is still open," Barthel said. "Next up is Australia. We know it's going to be a very, very difficult game."

FIBA