The 18 -year -old German shines as the top scorer of his team, but the match winner becomes a teammate.
Basketball talent Christian Anderson led his Texas Tech Red Raiders to the quarter-finals at the March Madness.
The German U18 European champion and his team won a dramatic round of 16 against the Arkansa Razorche thanks to an impressive catch-up with 85:83 after extra time and is now fighting to enter the final Four in San Antonio (5th to 7th April) at the US college championship on Sunday.
The Red Raiders were already 16 points behind in the second half before they set up for the final sprint. In the end, it was Darrion Williams who saved Texas into the overtime with a three 9.7 seconds before the end. In the extension, the 21-year-old American also decided the game with the last basket.
Anderson: “We had to find this path”
The only 18-year-old Anderson also had a large part in the second highest comeback victory in the round of 16 history. The German, who had previously only played five points in the round, came up with 22 points, four rebounds and three assists on Friday as the top scorer of his team. Anderson converted three three-point throws into a row in the final phase. Williams scored 20 points. The next opponent of Texas are the Florida Gators.
“Our coach told us that we would find a way to win the game, no matter how far we were. We had to find this way, in the end we did it,” said Anderson.
Anderson, who plays his first college season, is one of the greatest talents in German basketball. DHB captain Dennis Schröder recently predicted a successful NBA career in the sports picture interview.
The March Madness, the co-tournament around the college title, is one of the sports highlights in the US calendar, millions of fans watch in the halls and on TV. 64 teams started at the beginning, now eight teams are still playing for one of the four coveted tickets for the Final Four.