– David Hein
Tyrese Rice was magical in Brose Bamberg’s thrilling overtime win at RASTA Vechta in the week’s biggest game. The weekend saw Team National win the ALLSTAR Game while Thorsten Leibenath will step down at season’s end as ratiopharm ulm head coach.
In this section, we break out our English language skills and inform you about the latest news from the German easyCredit Basketball Bundesliga. If you’re short on time but still want your fill of Germany’s top basketball league then you are in the right place. Every week David Hein (www.heinnews.com) brings you up-to-date in German basketball – the easyCredit BBL short and sweet:
Bamberg get magical Rice three to force OT, win at Vechta to extend run
Brose Bamberg got an unbelievable three-pointer from Tyrese Rice to force overtime and ended up beating RASTA Vechta 101-95 in extra time to extend their winning streak. Bamberg gave up a 12-point fourth quarter lead and only went to the extra session when Rice nailed a step-back corner trey at the buzzer. In overtime, Nikos Zisis and Rice went 8-of-8 from the free throw line in the final 61 seconds to secure the win. Rice collected 30 points, 4 rebounds and 9 assists while Augustine Rubit had 23 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals, Elias Harris scored 16 points and Zisis chipped in 14 points and 7 assists as Bamberg held Vechta to 7-of-25 (28 percent) on three-pointers while hitting 31-of-35 free throws. The victory was Bamberg’s eighth straight and improved their record to 18-5 in grabbing third place from Vechta, whose three-game winning streak was snapped in falling to 18-7. TJ Bray picked up 24 points, 9 assists and 2 steals in the loss while Josh Young had 18 points and Seth Hinrichs flirted with a triple-double with 17 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists.
Vechta extend deals with Young and DiLeo
RASTA Vechta’s magical season is far from over but the promoted club is already thinking about next season as they extended their deals with two of the leaders of this year’s team. Captain Josh Young and defensive specialist Max DiLeo agreed to contracts for the 2019-20 season, meaning Pedro Calles’ team has four players set for next season along with 19-year-old Philipp Herkenhoff and 16-year-old talent Luc van Slooten.
Bayern too much late for Würzburg
FC Bayern Munich showed their depth in grabbing an 81-70 victory at s.Oliver Würzburg for their 10th road win of the season. Bayern nearly gave away a 15-point second quarter lead as the hosts pulled to within four points midway through the third quarter. But Bayern pushed the advantage back to 13 points after 30 minutes and were never challenged again. Nihad Djedovic scored 13 points to pace four Bayern players in double figures while Danilo Barthel had 8 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 block. Bayern have won two straight and improved to 22-2 atop the league. Würzburg had Jordan Hulls lead the way with 17 points, 4 assists and 3 steals and Xavier Cooks added 15 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in the loss, which snapped a two-game winning streak to drop the team to 12-12 in ninth place.
Crailsheim win at home in huge relegation battle over Bremerhaven
HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim secured a huge victory in their battle to stay in the easyCredit BBL by winning at home 86-80 over last-placed Eisbären Bremerhaven. Bremerhaven led by 10 points in the second quarter and were leading 78-75 with a minute left. But Craisheim finished the game on an 11-2 run including seven free throws in the final 19 seconds - helped by an unsportsmanlike foul against Bremerhaven’s Chris Warren with 10 seconds left in the game. Crailsheim won the rebounding battle 44-32 including 19 offensive rebounds, which helped offset a 5-of-26 (19 percent) performance from the three-point line. Ben Madgen collected 19 points, 4 rebounds and 4 steals for the winners while Frank Turner had 16 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists and Dewayne Russell picked up 13 points and 6 assists off the bench. Crailsheim moved to 15th place with a 6-18 record thanks to three wins in their last five games. Fabian Bleck scored a career high 14 points and Warren’s 10 points and 7 assists were not enough as Bremerhaven have lost two straight in falling to 4-21.
Bremerhaven sign Armani Moore for help in relegation fight
Last placed Eisbären Bremerhaven have added reinforcements for the final fight against relegation as they signed Armani Moore until the end of the season. The 25-year-old forward knows the easyCredit BBL as he played 22 games last season for EWE Baskets Oldenburg, averaging 7.4 points and 3.9 rebounds. He most recently played for the New Zealand Breakers in the Australian NBL league, collected 7.1 points and 4.2 rebounds this season.
MBC grab major home win over struggling Giessen
Mitteldeutscher BC picked up an important win in their fight against relegation by winning at home over GIESSEN 46ers. MBC never trailed and led by as many as 11 points in the first half. Tremmell Darden secured the win with two free throws with 3.8 seconds left on the clock. Aleksandar Marelja paced MBC with 16 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals while Darden had 14 points and 9 rebounds and Jovan Novak added 10 points, 3 rebounds, 12 assists and 2 steals. MBC snapped a three-game losing streak in moving to 5-19. David Bell scored 21 points for Giessen with John Bryant picking up 16 points and 11 rebounds, Larry Gordon tallying 15 points and 11 rebounds and Jared Jordan contributing 2 points and 11 assists. But it was Giessen’s fourth loss in a row to fall to 11-14 as they lost ground on the playoff race in 12th place.
Frankfurt beat Bayreuth to get closer to the playoff ranks
FRAPORT SKYLINERS improved their chances of the playoffs as they grabbed a tough 76-72 victory at medi bayreuth. The contest was back and forth all game with Bayreuth up by as many as 10 points. But the hosts scored just one basket in final 1:45 minutes and Quantez Robertson and Tyler Larson both hit two free throws in final 8 seconds to secure the win - Frankfurt’s third straight to move to 10-13 in 13th place. Frankfurt, who grabbed 18 offensive rebounds, were paced by Tra Holder with 22 points while Jason Clark had 14 points and Leon Kratzer picked up 10 points and 11 rebounds for his third double-double in the last five games. Hassan Martin collected 13 points and 7 rebounds in his first game for Bayreuth since January 3 while Kassius Robertson was held to 11 points on 3-of-10 three-pointers. Bayreuth saw a two-game winning streak end in falling to 12-12 in 11th place.
Ludwigsburg remain in playoff picture, keep Jena reeling
MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg remained in the running for the playoffs with an 86-74 home victory over Science City Jena, who find themselves in the relegation spots. Ludwigsburg took over in the third quarter with a 31-19 period as they grabbed 22 offensive rebounds and turned the ball over just 8 times. Marcos Knight led the way with 25 points and 8 rebounds and Owen Klassen added 19 points and 8 rebounds as Ludwigsburg snapped a two-game losing streak to move to 12-12. Reggie Williams scored 21 points and Julius Jenkins had 17 points as Jena dropped their sixth straight in falling to 5-20 in 17th place.
Round 25 will be completed in April
The remaining three games in Round 25 will be played in April as ALBA BERLIN host ratiopharm ulm on April 2 while Telekom Baskets Bonn play at EWE Baskets Oldenburg on April 3 and Basketball Löwen Braunschweig welcome BG Göttingen on April 17.
Leibenath to step down as head coach, move up to new sports director post
ratiopharm ulm will have a new head coach next season as Thorsten Leibenath will step down from the post at the end of the season and move up into the newly-created position as sports director. Leibenath has served as Ulm’s head coach since 2011. No successor to Leibenath has been announced.
Braunschweig keep general manager Schmidt until 2022
Basketball Löwen Braunschweig took a look to the future of the club and decided to lock up their general manager Sebastian Schmidt for three more seasons until 2022. The 33-year-old Schmidt came to Braunschweig in 2017 after working with German volleyball powers VfB Friedrichshafen.
MagentaSport named Best Sports Show on German television
Major recognition for basketball coverage: easyCredit BBL auf MagentaSport received the German Sports Journalists Prize for the Best Sports Show on German television. The German basketball show, which started in 2014, beat out some massively popular shows including the third-placed Sportschau on ARD as well second-placed “zwanzig18, die Olympia-Show” - Eurosport’s coverage of the 2018 Winter Olympics. Congratulations to the whole broadcasting team!
Head Coach Thorsten Leibenath wird nach Abschluss seiner achten Saison als #uuulmer Cheftrainer das neu geschaffene Amt des Sportdirektors übernehmen. #weareone
— ratiopharm ulm (@ratiopharmulm) March 21, 2019
➡️ https://t.co/Hnhl2sRFQE pic.twitter.com/kJkM52N2xN
Team National wins ALLSTAR Game - in football-style shootout
Team National won the ALLSTAR Game for the second time in 11 editions by beating Team International 151-148 in overtime … er, in a shoot-out. The two teams were deadlocked at 142-142 after 40 minutes and the game was decided in a new format: a football style shootout with four players and the two coaches taking three-pointers.
After collecting 22 points and 15 assists in regulation Ismet Akpinar nailed the decisive three-pointer in the shootout to give Team National its second win following the victory in 2016 - and win the MVP award. Yorman Polas Bartolo led Team National in scoring with 30 points while Philipp Schwethelm had 17 points, Benjamin Lischka scored 15 points and John Bryant picked up 10 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Javonte Green paced Team International with 30 points, De’Mon Brooks had 25 points and 9 rebounds and Michael Stockton added 21 points, 4 rebounds and 9 assists in the loss.
Was ist schon ein Elfmeterschießen gegen das!???? Gebt euch hier nochmal den kompletten Shootout des #ALLSTARDay 2019.
— easyCredit BBL (@easyCreditBBL) March 24, 2019
Nicht nur den ALLSTAR Day, sondern ALLE Spiele der #easyCreditBBL gibt es live bei https://t.co/3zPSJ2r90L pic.twitter.com/QjKoET7tNn
Austin Hollins bests Aaron Best to win slam dunk crown
Austin Hollins of RASTA Vechta pulled out all the tricks in winning the MagentaSport Dunking Contest at the ALLSTAR Day. Hollins was helped on a couple of dunks by ALLSTAR teammate TJ Bray in taking the crown over Aaron Best of MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg. Best came up with one of the most impressive dunks of the competition with a reverse slam after jumping over fellow slam dunk competitor Javonte Green. The ratiopharm ulm high-flyer Green and Elijah Clarance of FRAPORT SKYLINERS were eliminated in the semi-finals.
Günther in sweats wins three-point shoot-out
Who needs shorts? Per Günther showed they are overrated as the wily veteran won his second Sportwetten.de Three-Point Contest - while wearing his sweats. The ratiopharm ulm marksman flashed some swagger by not even shooting the balls from the last rack in the first round. Günther, who also won the competition in 2016, then scored 22 points in the final round, defeating first round winner Philipp Schwethelm and De’Mon Brooks.
South wins NBBL AllStar Game - Hukporti wins MVP
The South won the NBBL AllStar Game with a 92-67 victory over the North - getting revenge for their loss to the North last season. The South stars started taking over in the third quarter and pulled away for good in the fourth quarter. Niclas Tischler of TSV Tröster Breitengüßbach led the way with 19 points and Isaiah Ihnen of IBA Munich and Porsche BBA Ludwigsburg’s Quirin Emanga both had 14 points while Ludwigsburg teammate Ariel Hukporti picked up 11 points, 3 rebounds and 5 blocks to win the MVP award. TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen’s Lars Thiemann scored 22 points and Radii Caisin of YOUNG RASTA DRAGONS added 13 points in the loss.
LIVE-VIDEO: Ladies and Gentlemen, der Gewinner des Dunk-Contests: @aHolli_20 ???? A finish in style!
— easyCredit BBL (@easyCreditBBL) March 23, 2019
Den #ALLSTARDay live und kostenfrei für alle bei MagentaSport https://t.co/5a2M36hUtM pic.twitter.com/kZSzL44ueT
Player of the Week
The Player of the Week honor this week goes to Tyrese Rice of Brose Bamberg, who came up with an efficiency of 32 against RASTA Vechta with 30 points on 8-of-16 shooting - including 4-of-10 three-pointers - and 10-of-10 free throws, 4 rebounds, 9 assists and 1 steal. Oh, and he nailed the amazing three-pointer to force overtime.
German Top Five of the Week
G: Ismet Akpinar, ratiopharm ulm
Let’s go with the ALLSTAR Game MVP here as Akpinar collected 25 points with 7 three-pointers to go with 3 rebounds, 15 assists and 2 steals for the winning Team National side.
F: Fabian Bleck, Eisbären Bremerhaven
We’re going with a big team here and Bleck scored a career high 14 points and also had 2 rebounds and 2 assists against HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim.
F: Danilo Barthel, FC Bayern Munich
Barthel gets back in the Top Five as he collected 8 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 block in 16 minutes against s.Oliver Würzburg.
F: Konrad Wysocki, HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim
Wysocki had an outstanding performance in a big relegation battle with 9 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and 0 turnovers in 32 minutes against Eisbären Bremerhaven.
C: Leon Kratzer, FRAPORT SKYLINERS
Kratzer is one of the hottest big men in the league and he scored 10 points to go with 11 rebounds and 1 block against medi bayreuth. The 22-year-old is averaging 9.8 points (while shooting 58 percent from the field), 10.4 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.8 steals, 1.0 blocks and 1.2 turnovers in less than 21 mins in five games this March including three double-doubles.
Young Guns
Richard Freudenberg, 20, SF, FRAPORT SKYLINERS
Freudenburg picked up 9 points on 4-of-8 shooting along with 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal in 21:44 minutes against medi bayreuth.
Joshua Obiesie, 18, PG, s.Oliver Würzburg
Obiesie scored 3 points on 1-of-4 shots, including 1-of-3 three-pointers and chipped in 1 rebound and 1 assist in 10:40 minutes against FC Bayern Munich. Obiesie was also chosen to play for the World Select Team at the 2019 Nike Hoop Summit.
Karim Jallow, 21, SG, MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg
Jallow went scoreless on two shots in 6:03 minutes against Science City Jena but he did have 2 rebounds and 2 assists.
Olinde Watch
Louis Olinde had 2 points on 1-of-2 shots and missed both of his free throws for Brose Bamberg while also picking up 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 0 turnovers in 13:25 minutes against RASTA Vechta.
LIVE ???? U-N-F-A-S-S-B-A-R! @ReseRice4 #neueROTation pic.twitter.com/Z5yos6mRxs
— Brose Bamberg (@BroseBamberg) March 21, 2019
Berlin reach EuroCup finals
ALBA BERLIN have reached the finals of the 7DAYS EuroCup after beating MoraBanc Andorra 2-0 in their best-of-three semi-finals series. Berlin return to the EuroCup finals for the first time since 2010, when they lost to Valencia Basket. The Spanish club, which has won the EuroCup a record three times, will be Berlin’s opponent again with the best-of-three final series taking place from April 9-15. Valencia also lost in the EuroCup finals twice, including in 2017 with Berlin star Luke Sikma on the roster.
Bayern’s new home will be called the SAP Garden
Madison Square Garden and Boston Garden are/were two of the legendary arenas in NBA basketball. German basketball will get a “garden” of its own as the future home of FC Bayern Munich will be called the SAP Garden. The 11,500-seat multi-purpose arena, which is expected to open for the 2021-22 season, will also be home for the EHC Red Bull Munich ice hockey team. The name SAP Garden was chosen by 45.3 percent of those voting on three names while SAP Park received 44.8 percent of the vote and the other 9.9 percent picking SAP Live. The arena is being built and financed by Red Bull and is expected to cost about 100 million euros.
Germans Abroad
Anadolu Efes Istanbul secured a top-four finish in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and home-court advantage in the playoffs by beating Buducnost Voli Podgorica 91-84 - thanks in large part to Tibor Pleiss. The German big man collected 16 points on 8-of-11 shots to go with 4 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 block in 18 minutes.
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ALLSTAR Day
Mit langer Hose: Per Günther gewinnt den Dreier-Contest und sticht Schwethelm und Brooks aus
ALLSTAR Day
