ratiopharm ulm completed their improbable run through the playoffs and cap-tured their first easyCredit BBL title, knocking off top-seeded Telekom Baskets Bonn 3-1 in the Finals. Ulm playmaker Yago dos Santos was named the Finals MVP and he also led the team’s celebrations. Bonn remain the record holder with the most Finals appearances without a championship with now six.
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:
City welcomes Ulm team, celebrates first championship
The city of Ulm welcomed home their champions and celebrated the championship at their beloved Münsterplatz downtown.
Fourth quarter run carries Ulm to first German title
The clock read 10:34 p.m. as ratiopharm ulm made history by winning their first easyCredit BBL title thanks to a big fourth quarter run for a 74-70 home victory over Telekom Baskets Bonn to win the Finals 3-1. After three times losing in the Finals (1998, 2012, 2016), Ulm finally break through to become the first club other than ALBA BERLIN, Brose Bamberg and FC Bayern Munich to win the league trophy since 2009. Ulm put together a 14-2 run to grab a 12-point lead in the second quarter. Bonn erased that and led for much of the third quarter and into the final stanza. But Ulm mounted an 18-0 run to start the fourth quarter and go ahead 69-59 with 4 minutes to play. And the hosts finished off the game strong to set off the celebrations. Bonn shot just 37.3 percent for the game, including hitting only 18.8 percent from long range. Bonn won the rebound battle 43-34 but Ulm used their offensive rebounds for a 13-7 advantage in second chance points. Yago dos Santos, who was named Finals MVP, led the way with 25 points and 8 assists while Brandon Paul scored 14 points and Bruno Caboclo added 11 points, 6 rebounds and 2 blocks. League MVP TJ Shorts paced Bonn with 19 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists, and Jeremy Morgan had 13 points and 5 rebounds.
Ulm defend home court with offensive spectacle for 2-1 lead
ratiopharm ulm moved to just one victory short of their first ever easyCredit BBL title as they put on an offensive spectacle for a 112-84 home win over Telekom Baskets Bonn to take a 2-1 series lead. The 112 points was the first time that Bonn allowed 100 points this season. Ulm took control of the game with a 27-12 second quarter including a 13-2 run and cruised to the win. Ulm committed only 8 turnovers - not losing their first ball until 4:09 minutes left in the third quarter. The hosts also shot 50 percent from the field including 18 three-pointers on 40 attempts for 45.0 percent while Bonn managed just 39.7 percent shooting. Karim Jallow finished with 24 points, Brandon Paul hit 7 three-pointers for 23 points, Bruno Caboclo had 20 points and 4 blocks, Yago dos Santos collected 14 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists and Josh Hawley chipped in 13 points and 10 rebounds. Tyson Ward paced Bonn with 24 points and TJ Shorts tallied 11 points and 5 assists.
Ulm historic run from seventh seed to crown
ratiopharm ulm’s run to the easyCredit BBL championship made history as they became the first club in the league’s 56-year history to win the title as a seventh seed starting the playoffs. Ulm also knocked off the third, second and first seeded teams along the way.
Yago dos Santos named Finals MVP
It was no surprise that Yago dos Santos was named Finals Most Valuable Player. The ratiopharm ulm playmaker averaged 16.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 7.0 assists in the four games, including 25 points, 3 rebounds and 8 assists in the deciding fourth game. Dos Santos is the first player from Brazil to win Finals MVP, which has been handed out since 2005. He is the second South American as Uruguayan Jayson Granger took the award in 2022 for ALBA BERLIN. Ulm head coach Anton Gavel was the first Finals MVP with a German passport, playing for Brose Bamberg in 2013.
Gavel joins Sasa Obradovic as only player-coach German champ
ratiopharm ulm head coach Anton Gavel joined rare company in guiding the team to the title in his first season as the club’s head coach. The 38-year-old Gavel became just the second individual in the last 25 years to win the German league as a head coach and player - he won five crowns with Brose Bamberg and FC Bayern Munich. The other was Sasa Obradovic, who won the league with ALBA BERLIN in 1997 as a player and with RheinEnergie Cologne as head coach in 2006.
Ulm 15th club to win German title
ratiopharm ulm became the 15th club to win the German championship since its founding in 1966-67. The others: TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen (14 titles), ALBA BERLIN (11), Brose Bamberg (9), MTV Giessen (4), BSC Saturn Cologne (4), ASC 46 Göttingen (3), FC Bayern Munich (3), USC Heidelberg (2), VfL Osnabrück (1), SSV Hagen (1), Steiner Bayreuth (1), OPEL SKYLINERS Frankfurt (1), RheinEnergie Cologne (1) and EWE Baskets Oldenburg (1).
Bonn still all-time Finals bridesmaids
Telekom Baskets Bonn remain the ultimate example of always a bridesmaid and never a bride. The club from the Rhine has reached the German league Finals six times and never won - 1997, 1999, 2001, 2008, 2009 and now 2023. Bonn also lost all three appearances in the German Cup Final - 2005, 2009 and 2012. There are only three clubs who reached the German league Finals but have not won it in their history - and all of them have only suffered the fate once. The others: USC Munich in 1971, Artland Dragons in 2007 and MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg in 2020.
Telekom does reversal, stays on board with more money for Bonn
The news for Telekom Baskets Bonn fans was not all bad as Telekom reversed their decision to leave as the club’s main and name sponsor and will stay on board with even more money than in the past. The Bonn-based telecommunications company had originally said it would end its long-time relationship with the club after this season, leaving many wondering about the club’s financial future. But Telekom committed to the 2023-24 season and added additional millions of euros to the budget from the past.
Bayern sign coaching legend Laso until 2025
FC Bayern Munich did not wait long to name a new head coach as they signed legendary playcaller Pablo Laso until 2025. The 55-year-old Spanish coach takes over for the departed Andrea Trinchieri. Laso coached Real Madrid to 22 titles over 11 seasons from 2011 to June 2022, including two Turkish Airlines EuroLeague championships, six Spanish league crowns and six Copa del Rey cup titles.
Rostock make major addition, sign Amaize for two years
ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES made a major addition for their second season in the easyCredit BBL as they signed German guard Robin Amaize for two seasons. The 29-year-old German international joins Rostock after spending two seasons with Basketball Löwen Braunschweig, where he served as captain and averaged 9.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists last season.
Mushidi re-signs for one season with Wolfpack
SYNTAINICS MBC retained an important part of their team from last season as the club re-signed Kostja Mushidi for the 2023-24 season. The 24-year-old averaged 12.5 points last season - the third-most points for a German player in the league.
Berlin extend deal with co-captain Mattisseck for three seasons
ALBA BERLIN have locked up Jonas Mattisseck for the long term as the co-captain penned a deal for the next three seasons. The 23-year-old guard came up through the Berlin ranks and has been part of the professional team since 2019. Mattisseck helped the club to three German league crowns and two cups.
Braunschweig bring Zylka back from Belgium
Basketball Löwen Braunschweig secured some scoring punch at the shooting guard position as they signed Ferdinand Zylka for next season. The German came up with ALBA BERLIN’s youth ranks and played for Weißenfels and Gießen before leaving the country last season to play in Belgium. He raised his stock with his performance for Circus Brussels Basketball and ended his season with Telenet Antwerp Giants. [Textflussumbruch]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rabedrHGRxg
Record “Würzburg Warrior” Hoffmann stays for eighth season
Würburg Baskets and Felix Hoffmann agreed to a one-year contract for next season which will be the team captain’s eighth season with his home town club. The so-called “Würzburg Warrior” appeared in his 165th game for Würzburg on December 26, 2022, giving him the record for the most games with the club. The 34-year-old played 25 games for Würzburg last season, averaging a career-best 5.2 points. Hoffmann has played a total of 185 games in the Bundesliga.
Oldenburg give Russell help, add combo guard Manning for two years
EWE Baskets Oldenburg have given DeWayne Russell some help in the playmaking department by adding Charles Manning Jr with a contract for two years. The 24-year-old combo guard is athletic and can create for himself and others from the pick-and-roll. Manning played last season for Serbian club FMP Belgrade and averaged 15.3 points, 3.9 assists and 2.2 rebounds in the Adriatic ABA League.
Göttingen add Latvian center Silins
BG Göttingen finally started adding players after making more headlines with departures as they signed Latvian center Karlis Silins to a one-year contract. The 25-year-old comes to Göttingen after playing last season with Latvian club BK Liepaja and averaged 18.0 points and 8.7 rebounds in the Latvian-Estonia league.
Bamberg, Patrick Miller part ways
Brose Bamberg and Patrick Miller have parted ways after one season together as the American guard will be heading to Cairns Taipans of the Australian NBL. The 31-year-old averaged 17.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 1.2 steals in 26 Bundesliga games last season.
Crailsheim see Mikalauskas and Midtgaard depart
HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim have decided to make changes to their team from last season and did not resign wing Arunas Mikalauskas and center Asbjorn Midtgaard for next season. The Lithuanian Mikalauskas played 48 games for Crailsheim over two seasons and averaged 9.2 points and 3.7 rebounds. The 2.13 meter Danish big man Midtgaard, who just like Mikalauskas came to Crailsheim before the season from Netherlands club Leiden, contributed 8.1 points and 4.2 rebounds in 45 games in the Bundesliga and FIBA Europe Cup.
Germans Abroad
German national team point guard Justus Hollatz made a jump up for his second season abroad as he signed with 7DAYS EuroCup side Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana for three seasons. The 22-year-old left Germany for the first time prior to last season and played in the Spanish top flight ACB for Breogan. Hollatz averaged 7.9 points, 3.3 assists and 2.1 rebounds per game in 34 ACB games.
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Nachberichte
Als Siebter: Ulmer holen einzigartige erste Meisterschaft / Bonner zum sechsten Mal „Vize“ / Yago zum Finals-MVP gekürt
Nachberichte
Premiere: Entfesselte #Uuulmer mit Matchball zur Meisterschaft / Bonn kassiert ersten Hunderter der Saison
Kochs Nachschlag
