Great Britain down hosts Germany to make last eight

George Bates led Great Britain to a thrilling victory over Germany to thrust them into the quarter-finals of the Wheelchair Basketball World Championships.

Bates put up 21 points in a fine 62-54 triumph as they held off their spirited hosts to claim a tremendous win.

The men’s team finished second in their pool after beating South Korea and Poland but lost to the United States 66-59, ensuring they’d need to beat the hosts in Hamburg.

Gregg Warburton, fresh from his 28 points in the victory over Poland, continued his fine form as he put up 10 points in the contest.

Great Britain raced into a 19-13 lead after the first quarter and continued that dominance in the second quarter as they took a 33-23 advantage into half-time.

Bates entered the fray nine minutes into the contest to replace Lee Manning and made an immediate impact, notching up 21 points in 26 minutes.

Germany pushed back in the second half, scoring 19 points in the final quarter to Great Britain’s 14 but it wasn’t enough to trim the gap as Haj Bhania’s team held on with an eight-point triumph.

Great Britain will now face the winner of Argentina against Italy in the last eight.

Meanwhile, Great Britain’s women will be looking for a fifth straight victory of the competition when they take on the Netherlands on Wednesday evening.