Japan and Germany went all the way to a deciding fifth set in their opening match of the men's Olympic volleyball tournament, with the Europeans taking a 3-2 victory on Saturday.
Gyorgy Grozer was the key man for Germany, scoring a game-high 24 points, with 15 coming on the attack. He was ably supported by 15 points from Anton Brehme in the Pool C win at South Paris Arena.
Japan's key player, Yuki Ishikawa, scored 22 points, with his powerful spike a constant threat, while Yuji Nishida added 20.
"We lost because we couldn't score when we had to," Japan setter Masahiro Sekita said.
"I regret that we didn't try more variations with our attack," he added. "To be honest, I haven't been able to process my feelings yet. I want us to improve and prove that we can do it."
Japan entered the game as the favorite, being both the world No. 2 team and silver medalist at this year's Nations League, but the Germans landed the first blow, stunning Japan with eight early unanswered points en route to a 25-17 first-set win.
Japan bounced back to take two straight sets, 25-23 and 25-20, over its 11th-ranked opponent, which has qualified for the Olympics for the first time since 2012.
The teams then battled in two close final sets. Germany survived one match point before taking the fourth set 30-28 and then the decider 15-12.
Japan plays Argentina next on Wednesday before wrapping up pool play against the United States. The top two from each of the three pools and two best third-ranked teams reach the quarterfinals.
"This is what you get by making wasteful mistakes. From here, it'll be about how much we can iron things out," captain Ishikawa said. "I felt we were too relaxed. I told my teammates about that but it was difficult to change."
"We aren't a team that will be finished by this. We'll regroup."
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