EUROBASKET 2011

Turning Point: Germany only led 25-23 when a Chris Kaman basket sparked a 15-3 run to close the first half.

Game Hero: Dirk Nowitzki, in his first EuroBasket game since 2007, had 13 of his game-high 25 points in the first half as Germany built a 40-26 advantage.

Stats Don't Lie: Germany were 13 of 22 (59%) inside the arc in the first half when they took command, with Nowitzki and Kaman a combined 10 of 18.

Germany took a very important step towards the next round of the EuroBasket by blowing out Israel 91-64 on Wednesday in their Group B opener.

The fans in Siauliai had watched two much better games in the day with Serbia overcoming Italy and France surviving against Latvia and they expected this one to be close, too.

But Dirk Nowitzki and Chris Kaman made sure the Germans would make quick work of the Israelis, combining for 25 of the team's 40 points in the first half.

They went to the changing rooms with a 14-point lead and the result was never in doubt after.

"Definitely it was a terrible start for us," Israel's Yotam Halperin said.

"They played better basketball than us. We didn't control the tempo of the game and this was the key to the game for us.

"We let them run their plays for Dirk and Kaman was great. We tried to deny them the open shots and we couldn't do it. They shot great tonight and definitely our offense was terrible tonight."

Germany finished 27 of 41 (66%) inside the arc.

Nowitzki and Co did not take over until midway through the second quarter.

They only led 25-23 when Kaman scored to start a 15-3 run to end the first half.

While Germany had their two NBA stars in Nowitzki and Kaman, Israel did not.

Omri Casspi of the Cleveland Cavaliers hurt his knee during the preparations and didn't make the trip to Lithuania.

"Omri is a great player and was a big part of our team last summer," Israeli marksman David Blu said.

"Any time you lose a player like Omri, you suffer.

"But that's something that we've made up for throughout the preparation and we've put it behind us."