– David Hein
MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg remain the hottest team in the easyCredit BBL as they knocked off Brose Bamberg for their 10th straight win to stay atop the league. The week also saw some headlines off the court as Telekom Baskets Bonn fired head coach Igor Jovovic and JobStairs GIESSEN 46ers brought back two-time former MVP John Bryant. And back on the court, s.Oliver Würzburg once again showed their grit on the road.
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:
Ludwigsburg roll on, too much for Bamberg
MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg extended their winning streak to 10 games by getting past Brose Bamberg 83-75 at home. Ludwigsburg built a 19-point lead in the third quarter and that was just too big of a hole for Bamberg to come back from with the hosts improving to 12-1 in first place. Bamberg have dropped five of their last six games for a 5-8 record. Bamberg committed 22 turnovers and allowed Ludwigsburg to shoot 51.8 percent from the field. Jordan Hulls drained 6 three-pointers in scoring 26 points while Jaleen Smith collected 18 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists and Barry Brown added 15 points. Bennet Hundt paced Bamberg with 16 points and Michele Vitali had 13 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists.
Bamberg bring in more reinforcements with Ruoff reunion
Brose Bamberg reacted once again to their struggles in the league by signing Alex Ruoff until the end of the season. The 34-year-old American, who most recently played in Japan for Nishinomiya Storks under German coach Mathias Fischer, has three and a half years of experience in the easyCredit BBL, playing 69 games for BG Göttingen and MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg. Current Bamberg coach Johan Roijakkers coached Ruoff with Göttingen. Ruoff is the third addition for Bamberg after Devon Hall and Shevon Thompson.
Chemnitz continue strong play with home OT win over Bonn
NINERS Chemnitz continued their strong play as they fended off Telekom Baskets Bonn 93-92 in overtime at home after blowing a big lead. Chemnitz were up by 18 points in the second quarter but trailed in the fourth and then held the guests scoreless for the final 3 minutes for their fourth win in the last six games and a 4-8 record. Bonn, who were being led by interim coach Chris O’Shea, lost their third straight for a 3-9 mark. Chemnitz shot 55.4 percent including a white-hot 61.9 percent from long range to offset 20 turnovers while holding Bonn to just 40.5 percent from the field. Marcus Thornton paced Chemnitz with 25 points, George King tallied 18 points and 7 rebounds, Terrell Harris had 16 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists and Jan Niklas Wimberg collected 10 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 block. Xavier Pollard was Bonn’s leading scorer with 18 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals while Josh Hagins had 18 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals and Chris Babb scored 18 points.
Bonn fire head coach, assistant O’Shea takes over as interim
Telekom Baskets Bonn management has seen enough after 11 games and fired head coach Igor Jovovic. The 38-year-old Montenegrin came to the club in the off-season after serving last summer as assistant coach at FC Bayern Munich. His assistant Chris O’Shea will take over as head coach in the interim.
Lawson, Chemnitz agree on deal until season end
NINERS Chemnitz and Joe Lawson have agreed to extend their contract until the end of the season. The center had come to Chemnitz in November on a two-month deal to fill in for the injured Filip Stanic. Lawson has averaged 12.1 points and 3.8 rebounds in eight games.
Vechta grab second straight win, drop Giessen to last place
RASTA Vechta have now won two straight games as they defeated JobStairs GIESSEN 46ers 97-84 at home. Vechta, who started the season with 11 straight losses, took the third quarter 26-14 to move to 2-11 while Giessen have lost three in a row and are also 2-11. Vechta hit 11-of-22 three-pointers and committed only 10 turnovers while also making 20-of-22 free throws compared to 12-of-15 foul shots for Giessen. Jean Salumu was Vechta’s main weapon with 26 points with Jordan Barnett scoring 16 points and Dennis Clifford tallying 10 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Brandon Thomas scored 19 points for Giessen with Jonathan Stark chipping in 15 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists, Ferdinand Zylka adding 12 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal and John Bryant contributing 2 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists in 14:31 minutes in his first game back with Giessen.
Former MVP John Bryant returns to Giessen
Two-time former MVP John Bryant is back in the easyCredit BBL as the big man returned to his most recent team JobStairs GIESSEN 46ers. The 33-year-old signed a deal until the end of the season with Giessen, who did not offer him a contract after last season. “Big John” most recently played with Uni Baskets Paderborn in the BARMER 2. Basketball Bundesliga ProA.
Bayern too much for Hamburg without Trinchieri, six players
FC Bayern Munich were missing head coach Andrea Trinichieri as well as six players but were still too much for Hamburg Towers in registering an 85-71 win at home. Bayern took over the game late in the second quarter and moved to 9-2 with Hamburg falling to 8-4. The Bayern coach missed the game due to family reasons while the team was without Nihad Djedovic, Robin Amaize, Zan Sisko, Wade Baldwin, Vladimir Lucic and Matej Rudan. With Adriano Vertemati serving as head coach, Bayern shot 56.4 percent from the field and held Hamburg to just 40.6 percent. DJ Seeley and Jalen Reynolds had 15 points each, Nick Weiler-Babb tallied 13 points and 6 assists, Diego Flaccadori picked up 12 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals and Paul Zipser added 12 points and 6 rebounds. TJ Shorts led Hamburg with 16 points and 6 assists and Jordan Swings scored 15 points.
Berlin beat Braunschweig in dress rehearsal of Cup matchup
ALBA BERLIN continued their winning ways in the easyCredit BBL in knocking off Basketball Löwen Braunschweig 82-76 in a dress rehearsal for the teams’ up-coming game in the MagentaSport BBL German Cup. Berlin took the lead in the first quarter and never gave it up in extending their win streak to five games and a 9-1 record while Braunschweig dropped their fourth straight and are 4-6. Berlin shot 65.5 percent on two-pointers ahead of the cup game on Wednesday. Simone Fontecchio led Berlin in scoring with 16 points and 3 assists and Louis Olinde tallied 13 points, 5 rebounds and 2 blocks. Lukas Meisner paced Braunschweig with 17 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists and Bazou Kone added 14 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist.
Würzburg win another road game, take down Frankfurt
s.Oliver Würzburg remained the best road team in the league as they downed FRAPORT SKYLINERS 80-72. Würzburg erased an 11-point third quarter deficit and used a 9-0 run to lead by 13 points and improve to 5-7 and 5-2 away from home while Frankfurt are also at 5-7. Würzburg took the battle of the boards 37-27 and Cameron Hunt led the way with 23 points and 7 assists. Brekkott Chapman picked up 18 points and 10 rebounds and Felix Koch added 14 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists in the win. Rasheed Moore was Frankfurt’s top scorer with 23 points and Jon Axel Gudmundsson picked up 21 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists in a losing effort.
MBC powered by returnee Turudic in Round 12 win at Braunschweig
SYNTAINICS MBC moved into the playoff ranks as it knocked off Basketball Löwen Braunschweig 104-91 on the road thanks to a big first game for returnee Benedikt Turudic. In a Round 12 makeup game, MBC took over in the fourth thanks to an unsportsmanlike foul which turned into three Michal Michalak free throws and then a Quinton Hooker three-pointer on the ensuing possession for an 11-point lead with 2 minutes left. The win gave MBC a 5-6 record while Braunschweig dropped their third straight to fall to 4-5. MBC shot 60.0 percent on two-pointers and made 32-of-39 free throws compared to 15-of-25 from the charity stripe for Braunschweig. Michalak led the way with 23 points and 6 rebounds, Turudic collected 22 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals in his return to MBC, and Aleksandar Marelja had 14 points and 7 rebounds. Braunschweig were paced by Bazou Kone and his career high 21 points to go with 4 rebounds and 4 steals, Martin Peterka had 16 points and 5 rebounds and Gavin Schilling picked up 14 points and 8 rebounds.
Oldenburg beat MBC, keep pace with Ludwigsburg
EWE Baskets Oldenburg kept pace with MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg atop the easyCredit BBL by defeating SYNTAINICS MBC 87-79 at home. Oldenburg took over the game late in the first half and built a 21-point lead in the fourth quarter for their seventh straight win and an 11-2 record with MBC falling to 5-7. Oldenburg committed only 10 turnovers and hit 14 three-pointers to 8 triples for MBC. Phil Pressey paced Oldenburg with 16 points and 4 assists while Philpp Schwethelm scored 14 points and Keith Hornsby had 12 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists. MBC were missing the league’s leading scorer Michal Michalak and Aleksandar Marelja led the way with 14 points with Kyndahl Hill collecting 13 points and 5 rebounds.
Ulm snap two-game losing streak, continue dominance of Göttingen
ratiopharm ulm ended a two-game losing streak and continued their domination of BG Göttingen with a 98-74 road victory. Ulm led 29-14 after 10 minutes and never looked back in moving to 7-5. Göttingen, who have not beaten Ulm since December 2014, dropped to 3-9. Ulm hit 14 three-pointers to 8 for Göttingen and the guests made all 26 of their free throw attempts to just 4-of-10 for Göttingen. Thomas Klepeisz led the winners with 18 points and 7 assists with Andi Obst scoring 16 points, Per Günther and Dylan Osetkowski both putting up 14 points and Alec Holman chipping in 10 points and 9 rebounds. Tai Odiase led all scorers with 26 points, 7 assists and 3 blocks for Göttingen and Aubrey Dawkins tallied 17 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.
Göttingen part ways with Gutierrez
BG Göttingen continue to look for the right mix of players this season as they agreed to part ways with Jorge Gutierrez. The starting point guard follows Ron Jackson Jr., Glen Robinson Jr. and Benedikt Turudic as players who have left the club this season.
Crailsheim get back to winning ways at home over Bayreuth
HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim returned to their winning ways by defeating local rival medi bayreuth 82-77 at home. Crailsheim held Bayreuth scoreless for the final 2 minutes to move to 11-2, including undefeated at home while Bayreuth have lost three straight for a 4-9 mark. Crailsheim shot 63.6 percent on two-pointers while both teams struggled from the free throw line: 7-of-13 (53.8 percent) for Crailsheim and 7-of-15 (46.7 percent) for Bayreuth. Jeremy Jones was Crailsheim’s top scorer with 14 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals while Trae Bell-Haynes picked up 10 points and 8 assists. Osvaldas Olisevicius collected 17 points and 6 rebounds and Derek Pardon had 15 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.
Player(s) of the Week
There were two players who picked up an efficiency of 28. Brekkott Chapman scored 18 points on 6-of-9 shots and 6-of-6 free throws, to go with 10 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 block in s.Oliver Würzburg’s win over FRAPORT SKYLINERS. And Tai Odiase had 26 points on 12-of-15 shots and 2-of-5 free throws, 7 rebounds and 3 blocks though he couldn’t keep BG Göttingen from losing to ALBA BERLIN.
German Top Five of the Week
G: Bazou Kone, Basketball Löwen Braunschweig
Kone had two strong games for Braunschweig. In the Round 12 makeup against SYNTAINICS MBC, he scored a career high 21 points and added 4 rebounds and 4 steals. Kone followed that up with 14 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist versus ALBA BERLIN.
F: Jan-Niklas Wimberg, NINERS Chemnitz
Wimberg continued his superb season with Chemnitz as he tallied 10 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 block in the team’s win over Telekom Baskets Bonn.
F: Louis Olinde, ALBA BERLIN
Olinde played a major role in Berlin’s win over Basketball Löwen Braunschweig with 13 points, 5 rebounds and 2 blocks.
F: Florian Koch, s.Oliver Würzburg
Koch helped Würzburg to another road victory with 14 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists against FRAPORT SKYLINERS.
F: Benedikt Turudic, SYNTAINICS MBC
Turudic made a successful return to MBC as he collected 22 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals in the team’s win over Basketball Löwen Braunschweig in the Round 12 makeup game. He also picked up 7 points and 2 rebounds in MBC’s loss to EWE Baskets Oldenburg.
Young Guns
Bjarne Kraushaar, 21, PG, JobStairs GIESSEN 46ers
Kraushaar collected 7 points on 2-of-4 shooting and 3-of-3 free throws and 4 assists in 15:39 minutes against RASTA Vechta.
Moritz Krimmer, 20, SF, ratiopharm ulm
Krimmer scored his first points of the season as he tallied 2 points on 1-of-2 shooting and 2 rebounds in 3:45 minutes against BG Göttingen in his ninth game in the easyCredit BBL in his career.
Luc van Slooten, 18, SF, Basketball Löwen Braunschweig
Van Slooten did his best in Braunschweig’s loss to SYNTAINICS MBC with 2 points on 1-of-3 shooting and 0-of-2 from long range, 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal in 11:56 minutes. He did not play though against ALBA BERLIN.
Hollatz Check
Justus Hollatz held his own for Hamburg Towers in the loss to FC Bayern Munich. Coming off the bench, the 19-year-old point guard struggled with his shooting - hitting just 1-of-5 from the field and 0-of-2 from long range - but he did collect 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal. And he did not commit a turnover in 15:33 minutes of action.
Germans Abroad
Ariel Hukporti made big headlines late last season when it was announced that he would play the 2020-21 campaign for Lithuanian side Nevezis. The 18-year-old big man finally made his season debut with 5 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block in 16 minutes against Dzukija.
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