Dirk Nowitzki collected 35 points and 11 rebounds and Mithat Demirel added 18 points off the bench as Germany held off the Czech Republic 83-78 in overtime in their Group C opener in Palma de Mallorca.

"This was a lot tougher than we thought it would be. But it was good that we held together," said Nowitzki, who tallied 21 of his points after the break while also adding one steal and two blocked shots.

While Nowitzki was his usual NBA MVP self throughout the game, Demirel really stepped up in the fourth period and in the extra session as he hit 11 of 14 foul shots. None were bigger than his pair to give Germany an 81-78 lead with 28 seconds to play.

Demirel then drew an offensive foul charge on Jakub Houska with 18 seconds remaining,

		Nowitzki and Demirel came to Germany's rescue late in the game

allowing Demond Greene to ice the game with a break-away dunk just seconds later.

"We tried to stop Nowitzki and couldn't, and the only other player to do anything for them was Demirel. We let two people beat us tonight, so that's very disappointing," said Czech guard Pavel Benes.

Ademola Okulaja did contribute a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds and afterwards said: "Everybody is happy to get the first victory in the tournament and we can look forward to the next game. But we need to improve, especially on our defence."

Jiri Welsch paced the more-balanced Czechs with 22 points while Lubos Barton had 14 points and 10 rebounds and Houska had 12 points.

Neither team could find much of a rhythm offensively early on even though Barton opened the game with a three-pointer as the Czechs pulled ahead 5-0.

The pair of Barton and Welsch helped keep the Czechs ahead 14-12 after one period. Germany struggled to get the ball to Nowitzki, who scored six points but took just five shots.

The NBA star began taking more initiative on offense against the Czech box-and-one defense. Nowitzki's driving lay-up trimmed the deficit to 19-16. But Germany proved unable to score without their main man, and Zdenek Hummel's side opened a six-point lead on a three-point play by Petr Benda (22-16) and Barton's three-pointer (25-19).

A jumper by Demirel got Germany back to within 27-25 with 1:13 remaining. But Maurice Whitfield and Barton drained jumpers for the 31-25 half-time scoreline.

The lead was 43-26 after Welsch's free throw with 2:13 to play in the third period. But Nowitzki's three-pointer started a 10-1 run to close the third period, which Germany led 46-44 following Nowitzki's two foul shots with 13 seconds left.

That gave the Germans a strong push into the final period and they went ahead 56-51 on back-to-back three-pointers by Nowitzki and Okulaja. The Czechs eventually evened things at 74-74 with 10 seconds remaining with two foul shots by captain Ladislav Sokolovsky.

Nowitzki's jumper from the left wing gave Germany a 79-76 lead with 50 seconds left before Demirel's heroics.

Germany

Mithat Demirel: "It was a tough game. Everybody thought that we should win and the Czechs could just play relaxed. And maybe we had a little more pressure. We're very used to one another and we all just have to be always ready - no matter what. Anybody on our team can pick up their game when it's needed. It's a long tournament and we need each other. But the most important thing is that we won."

Demond Greene: "We thought it would be a little easier. But it's the first game of a EuroBasket and nobody is just going to make it easy for us. The Czechs started well and tasted blood and it was tight the rest of the way. They did some things well but we made things tough for ourselves as well."

Coach Dirk Bauermann: "The pressure is always high and you never really know exactly how strong you are after four weeks of preparations. We're really relieved to have won this game because we know the chances are very high we're in the next round. We were really tight at the beginning. And if the opponents is really loose, then you'll have some problems. But it was important that we come out in the second half with more energy and we started with a smaller team with Ademola (Okulaja) at the power forward position. And we really played a great third quarter and that was the difference."

Dirk Nowitzki: "We didn't think it would be that tough, but we'll gladly take an opening win. Not everything was okay. Up front we were a little scared it seemed. But we played more of our game in the second half."
Asked About Demirel's play: "Somebody has to come in and make some noise for us. A lot of the guys were tight and he hit some big shots for us to get some other energy in the game. Everybody has to come in some time and do some things. But we were okay today. And we know we can play better."

Czech Republic

Pavel Benes: "We tried to stop Nowitzki and couldn't, and the only other player to do anything for them was Demirel. We let two people beat us tonight, so that's very disappointing."

Stephan Vrubl: "It was a very close game, with just a few points between the teams. Small things decided the game - free throws and rebounds. The team should take better second shot chances. We're glad with how we played butg the reality is that we lost."

Dirk Nowitzki and the 2005 silver medallists Germany hope to avoid an upset as they open their 2007 EuroBasket Group C campaign against underdogs Czech Republic.

Germany surprised many two summers ago by reaching the final against Greece in Belgrade, but they can't afford to look past the Czechs, who know a win against the mighty Germans could greatly improve their chances of advancing past the preliminary round in their first EuroBasket since 1999.

Last Time Out: Germany qualified for the 2007 EuroBasket by playing at the 2006 FIBA World Championship in Japan while Czech
Republic booked their spot for Spain by finishing second behind Russia in Group C of the qualifications.

Key Match-up: Of course, the Czechs' ability to stop NBA MVP Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks

		Welsch must slow down Okulaja as well as score

offensively will be the key to the game. But perhaps just as important will be how well Malaga's Jiri Welsch can shut down small forward Ademola Okulaja,
who is Germany's second main scoring option and their go-to man - should Nowitzki struggle. 

Statistics: Nowitzki has continued to improve his overall game and look for more of his versatile play. He averaged 26.1 points, 10.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.9 blocks and 1.1 steals at the 2005 EuroBasket and 23.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 0.56 blocks and 1.0 steals at last summer's World Championship in Japan.

X-Factor: It will be interesting to see how Czech Republic respond to being back on the big stage for the first time in eight years. Zdenek Hummel was not only in charge of the national team back in 1999 in his first stint as Czech coach, but he also was playing when Czechoslovakia took silver in the Eurobasket in 1967 and bronze in 1969. Hummel and the rest of the Czech federation hope 2007 is just the start of a re-emergence of basketball in the country.

What It Means: The losers of this game face an up-hill battle to advance for the qualifying round as both teams still have to
go up against 2003 champions Lithuania and Turkey. So expect a very emotional battle as the stakes will be very high.