Just two days after knocking off the defending champions Czech Republic, Germany crashed back to reality, suffering a 76-63 loss to Turkey in Group E of the 2007 EuroBasket Women qualifying round.

Yasemin Horasan scored 18 points while Birsel Vardarli added 14 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals to lead a balanced Turkish attack.

		Yasemin Horasan led Turkey with 18 points and seven rebounds.

Cem Akdag's team improved to 1-3 in the group and remained alive for the quarter-finals just like 1-3 Germany.

“We're not looking back. We're looking forward. This is a huge win for our team,” said Sebnem Kimyacioglu, who added 11 points while Esmeral Tuncluer had 13 and Nilay Yigit chipped in 12 points.

The Turks, who were playing without their star center Nevriye Yilmaz, collected the victory because of some hot outside shooting – 10-of-21 (48%) - and out-rebounding Germany 36-27 with superior hustle.

Germany made just 5-of-17 (29%) from three-point range and 8-of-13 (62%) from the foul stripe and the game got out of reach with a 14-0 Turkey run late in the first half.

Anne Breitreiner hit for 19 points, Martina Weber had 16 and Linda Fröhlich added 10 points as Germany played catch-up the rest of the game.

"I think everybody could see that we were tired and the Turkish team were much quicker,” said German coach Imre Szittya. “We couldn't control the Turkish guards and if we tried to play zone defense they would hit us with good three-point shots. We also had problems in rebounds.”

On Tuesday, Germany face Latvia and Turkey take on Lithuania as both Germany and Turkey still have chances for the quarter-finals.

The Turks proved they didn't need Yilmaz early as Horasan scored 10 points in the first quarter in helping Turkey build a 22-15 lead going into the second – though Breitreiner

		Coach Cem Akdag's team finally played like many had expected them to.

scored nine points for Germany.

Fröhlich hit back-to-back baskets and a Breitreiner three-pointer had Germany to within 25-22 with 6:26 to go in the half, but Tuncluer buried a long bomb and Vardarli dropped two of her own in a 14-0 Turkish spurt for a 39-22 scoreline.

Breitreiner's three-pointer snapped a 5:29 stretch without a basket for Germany, who trailed 44-28 when Tuncluer drained another trey in the closing seconds of the first half.

Turkey extended their advantage to 19 points - 51-32 - on Kimyacioglu's three-pointer early in the second half.

Germany's offense continued to sputter and the Turkish cushion was up to 23 points following Horasan's foul shots with four minutes left.

Germany finally put together three baskets and the deficit was trimmed to 16 points - 57-41 - following Martina Weber's late three-point play.

Vardarli however struck from downtown at the buzzer for a 60-41 Turkey lead.

In the final quarter, Germany found some rhythm offensively but still trailed 66-47 after another Kimyacioglu bomb with six minutes left.

Szittya's defense forced Turkish turnovers on four straight possessions and Germany fought back to 10 points – 66-56 with four minutes to play.

But Yigit converted a driving lay-up and drained a very long three-pointer on back-to-back possessions and the advantage was back at 15 points – 73-58 in the final minute.

Germany look to avoid a let-down after pulling off the upset of the 2007 EuroBasket Women so far against the Czech Republic, knowing they still have their backs to the wall with just a 1-2 record in the Group E qualifying round in Vasto.

Awaiting them will be a desperate Turkey side who are 0-3 and would be eliminated with another defeat.

		A bad back has kept Yilmaz on the bench for most of Turkey's EuroBasket Women campaign.

Last Time Out: Germany shocked the defending champions Czech Republic 54-47 while Turkey were thrashed by Belgium, 85-63.

Key Match-Up: Yasemin Horasan vs. Linda Fröhlich: Germany's top star is a complete all-arounder (17.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.3 steals) who does anything and everything her team needs to win and Horasan will have to find a way to stop her.

X-Factor: Nevriye Yilmaz: The status of Turkey's top player is not clear after she did not play against Belgium because of a lingering back problem which also kept her out of the preliminary round match against the Czech Republic.

Key Stats: The tough German defense may have held the Czechs to 47 points, but the offense was atrocious, committing 25 turnovers. That must improve against the Turks.

Sounding Off: German star Fröhlich, who played last season with Fenerbahce: “I know them from Turkey and they're very physical, they're fast and are great shooters. It's gonna be a handful to defend them. But if we don't win this game, the victory against the Czechs was meaningless.”