The 2022-23 regular season is over and the final week saw plenty of action with NINERS Chemnitz grabbing the last spot in the playoffs and FRAPORT SKYLINERS joining medi bayreuth as the second relegated team. One player to stand out was Karim Jallow of ratiopharm ulm who scored 36 and 33 points in back-to-back games. The week also featured the season awards being announced with regular season champions Telekom Baskets Bonn the big winners. Guard TJ Shorts was named as league Most Valuable Player and Thomas Iisalo defended his status as Coach of the Year.
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:
Chemnitz late season surge successful, reach playoffs again
NINERS Chemnitz grabbed the final spot in the playoffs as they completed a great turnaround to reach the post-season for the second straight season. Chemnitz had lost eight straight games and were 11-17 on April 15. But Rodrigo Pastore’s team reeled off four straight wins heading into the final week. Chemnitz could not make it five in a row as they lost a tough battle 86-79 at MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg. Kevin Yebo had 30 points and 9 rebounds in the loss. But Chemnitz bounced back in a winner-take-all showdown at MLP Academics Heidelberg in the regular season finale, rallying from 10 points down in the third quarter for an 81-74 win. Mindaugaus Susinskas and Marko Filipovity both had 14 points off the bench to lead the team to the win and a 16-18 record and eighth place. After being swept by FC Bayern Munich in last season’s first round of the playoffs, Chemnitz will face off against regular season champions Telekom Baskets Bonn.
Frankfurt relegated again despite win to finish season
FRAPORT SKYLINERS became the second team to be relegated as their victory in the final game of the season was not enough. Frankfurt will drop to the ProA one season after using a wild card to stay in the easyCredit BBL after they were relegated following the 2021-22 season. Frankfurt started the final week with an 84-83 loss at BG Göttingen. Frankfurt led by as many as 10 points on the road and were up 83-82 with less than a minute to play. After giving up two free throws, Jordan Theodore missed two shots in the final 10 seconds for the loss. Theodore finished with 29 points and 6 assists. Frankfurt had one final chance at BG Göttingen but they needed help from HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim, who needed to beat SYNTAINICS MBC plus a Frankfurt win to keep the Skyliners in the league. Frankfurt did their part of the job, using a 17-2 fourth quarter run to beat Göttingen 88-82. Lukas Wank and Theodore both scored 20 points in the win, which gave Frankfurt a 10-24 record. But SYNTAINICS MBC beat Crailsheim 79-69 to secure Frankfurt’s relegation.
Jallow goes off twice, but Ulm miss chance for fifth seed
ratiopharm ulm fans were treated to two massive shows by Karim Jallow but then the team just missed out on surprising Telekom Baskets Bonn as they lost at the regular season champions on a last-second shot. Ulm’s week started with a wild 128-122 double-overtime thriller win over SYNTAINICS MBC in a Round 29 make-up game. Jallow poured in a career high 36 points to go with 7 rebounds and 6 assists, and Yago dos Santos added 19 points and 12 assists. Ulm then locked up their spot in the playoffs with a 116-86 home win over ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES, taking over the game with 65 points in the second half. Jallow shined with 33 points and a career high 38 efficiency while Bruno Caboclo added 15 points and 13 rebounds. That meant Ulm could actually jump to the fifth seed if they could beat Bonn in the regular season finale. Ulm came back from an 11-point deficit and led by 8 points in the fourth quarter but TJ Shorts took over and hit the game-winner with 0.7 seconds left. Brandon Paul had 23 points off the bench to lead Ulm, who finished the season with an 18-16 record and the seventh seed in the playoffs and a date with reigning champions ALBA BERLIN.
Bamberg miss playoffs for first time in 22 years
Brose Bamberg and the easyCredit BBL playoffs went hand-in-hand for more than two decades. But the 2022-23 post-season will take place without the nine-time German champs as Bamberg will miss the playoffs for the first time since 2000-01 - a streak of 22 seasons. Bamberg’s fate was sealed when they lost their Round 33 home game against Telekom Baskets Bonn 102-75. Bamberg lost the middle two quarters 70-35 and it made little difference that Patrick Miller flirted with a triple-double with 16 points, 9 rebounds and 10 assists. Bamberg did at least give the home fans a reason to be happy in the final home game of the season as they pulled away from medi bayreuth in the third quarter of a 120-106 victory. Miller tallied 26 points and 9 assists and Christian Sengfelder chipped in 17 points and 10 rebounds. Bamberg finished with a 15-19 record in 11th place.
Washington shines vs. Bayern, Heidelberg just miss playoffs
MLP Academics Heidelberg’s late-season push to reach the playoffs came up just short as they dropped their final game of the regular season. Their dreams of the playoffs were still alive after the first game as they surprised FC Bayern Munich 89-78 on the road. Heidelberg mounted a 15-0 fourth quarter run to grab the win with Eric Washington collecting 29 points and 10 assists and Elias Lasisi scoring 20 points. Heidelberg returned home for a winner-takes-all game with NINERS Chemnitz for the final playoffs spot. Heidelberg built a 10-point third quarter lead but the game was even after 30 minutes and Joonas Iisalo’s team eventually would lose 81-74 despite Vincent Kesteloot scoring 19 points with 8 rebounds. Heidelberg ended up with a 15-19 record in 12th place.
Freyer magic works: MBC beat Crailsheim to avoid relegation
SYNTAINICS MBC avoided relegation at the last second as they beat HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim after losing two other games in the final week. Ingo Freyer’s team started with a wild Round 29 makeup game, losing to ratiopharm ulm 128-122 in double overtime. Mitchell Ballock scored 24 points and Charles Callison added 20 points and 12 assists. SYNTAINICS MBC had no chance in Round 33 as EWE Baskets Oldenburg took the first quarter 31-14 en route to a 102-74 blowout. Kris Clyburn did have 26 points in the loss. That left the Wolfpack one final chance at home versus Crailsheim and they got the job done with a 79-69 victory. Kris Clyburn scored 14 points and the team took the third quarter 28-12 to clinch their seventh straight season in Germany’s top flight.
Shorts saves Bonn in comeback over Ulm, undefeated record at home
Telekom Baskets Bonn will enter the playoffs as the number one seed with a 19-game winning streak and a perfect record at home - both thanks to T.J Shorts’ heroics in an 85-83 home win over ratiopharm ulm to end the regular season. Bonn had three games in the final week and started it with a comfortable 95-60 win at BG Göttingen in a Round 24 makeup game. Shorts had 17 points and 8 assists and Tyson Ward also scored 17 points. Bonn pulled away in the second quarter of their next win, a 102-75 victory at Brose Bamberg. Ward led the way this time with 22 points and Shorts had 17 points and 7 assists. Bonn received an extra boost for the final game against Ulm as Jeremy Morgan returned to the court for the first time since December 26, 2022. Ulm erased an 11-point Bonn advantage and led by eight points in the fourth quarter, but Shorts took over with 8 points to put Bonn ahead 83-80. Ulm knotted the game with a three-pointer and Shorts hit the game-winning jumper with 0.7 seconds left to give Bonn a 32-2 record for the season - 17-0 at home. Shorts poured in 30 points to go with 6 rebounds and 6 assists in the win.
Rostock’s playoffs hopes ended, promoted side finishes with win
ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES came up just short of making the playoffs in their first season in the easyCredit BBL but still finished the campaign on a high note. Rostock were ripped out of their playoffs dreams in Round 33 as they gave up a 35-10 run spanning the final two quarters in a 116-86 loss at ratiopharm ulm. JeQuan Lewis scored 21 points and Derrick Alston ended with 19 points in the defeat. But Rostock bounced back and gave their home fans a final reason to celebrate their season to remember with a thrilling 92-87 overtime win over MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg. Lewis played all 45 minutes and scored 21 points and Selom Mawugbe had 16 points in the win, which gave Rostock a 16-18 record and ninth place.
Oldenburg enter playoffs on high note - two more wins
EWE Baskets Oldenburg were locked into fourth place in the playoffs and home court advantage for the first round going into the final week of action, but Pedro Calles’ team finished the regular season strong with two more wins. Oldenburg led SYNTAINICS MBC 31-14 after 10 minutes and rolled to a 102-74 away win. Trey Drechsel scored 17 points to lead seven Oldenburg players in double figures including DeWayne Russell with 11 points and 10 assists. Oldenburg made it six wins in the last seven games as they pulled away at the end of the first half and were never challenged the rest of the way in an 88-76 home victory over FC Bayern Munich. Russell put on a scoring show with 37 points including 7 three-pointers and he also had 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals.
Ludwigsburg split week, still grab fifth seed with 5-12 road record
MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg will enter the playoffs as the fifth seed - and take on EWE Baskets Oldenburg - after splitting their two games in the final week. Ludwigsburg fought past NINERS Chemnitz 86-79 at home as Yorman Polas Bartolo and Eddy Edigin both scored 15 points. It was Ludwigsburg’s fourth straight home victory. But the team has performed poorly on the road all season, losing their final seven games away from home. The most recent was falling 92-87 in overtime at ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES. Jhonathan Dunn scored 27 points and Shonn Miller had 16 points in the loss, which dropped Ludwigsburg’s record to 19-15 including just 5-12 on the road.
Lo shines in Berlin’s season-ending win
ALBA BERLIN will start the quest for a fourth straight title having won 13 of their last 14 games as they finished off their season with a comfortable Round 33 win over medi bayreuth. Berlin took control of the game in the middle two quarters and won 83-72 as Maodo Lo scored 27 points. Berlin are the No. 2 seed in the playoffs after a 31-3 regular season. They will face ratiopharm ulm in the first round of the post-season
Bayern welcome back Elias Harris, lose final two games
FC Bayern Munich were already locked into the third spot in the standings going into the week and the team will easily forget the end of the regular season, which finished with two losses. Elias Harris celebrated his comeback against MLP Academics Heidelberg but Bayern could not win against the team that was still fighting for the playoffs, losing 89-78 at home. Adriano Vertemati replaced head coach Andrea Trinchieri on the sidelines, and the team was missing Vladimir Lucic, Othello Hunter, Freddie Gillespie and Nick Weiler-Babb for both games. Bayern gave up a 15-0 run in the fourth quarter in losing despite Andi Obst scoring 15 points. In the final game of the regular season, Bayern fell behind by 10 points after 10 minutes and never challenged EWE Baskets Oldenburg in an 88-78 road loss. Corey Walden scored 13 points as did 16-year-old Ivan Kharchenkov.
Göttingen drop to sixth seed with two losses
BG Göttingen came into the final week kicking and scratching and trying to maintain the fifth seed, but they ended up losing their last two games and head to the post-season as the sixth seed. Göttingen had won five of their last seven games but ran into the buzzsaw that is Telekom Baskets Bonn and lost 95-60 in a Round 24 makeup. Till Pape led the team with 11 points but the game was over after a 30-13 Bonn second quarter. Despite having already played their Round 33 game, Göttingen could not regroup and ended up losing in the final game 88-82 at home to FRAPORT SKYLINERS. Pape tallied 17 points and Mark Smith had 16 points and 11 rebounds as Göttingen wasted a 13-point second quarter lead. Roel Moors’ team will now take on FC Bayern Munich in the post-season.
Braunschweig breath sigh of relief, avoid relegation
Basketball Löwen Braunschweig can breath a sigh of relief as a strong end of the season kept the team from being relegated. Braunschweig won five of the last eight games - including both match-ups in the final week of the season. Jesus Ramirez’s team wasted a 13-point lead and trailed Würzburg Baskets in the final minute but David Krämer scored the final five points in a 77-73 win. Dustin Sleva scored 31 points for Braunschweig, who had to wait until the second day of Round 33 action to know for sure they would stay in the league. Braunschweig then finished the season with a great comeback win, rallying from 12 points down at home before beating Veolia Towers Hamburg 88-78. A season record crowd of 4,661 spectators saw RJ Cole score 7 of his team-high 25 points in a 12-0 fourth quarter run to decide the game. Sleva added 17 points and 8 rebounds for Braunschweig, who ended the season with a 12-22 record in 14th place.
Würzburg’s fifth straight loss means no playoffs
Würzburg Baskets could not right the ship in the end and will miss the 2022-23 playoffs as they finished the season with five straight losses. The final week saw Sasa Filipovski’s team play just one game but Würzburg could not end the losing skid with a 77-73 home loss to Basketball Löwen Braunschweig. Würzburg rallied from 13 points down and led late in the game but gave up the final five points. Stanley Whittaker and Cameron Hunt both scored 21 points in the loss, which dropped the team to 10th place with a 15-19 record.
Crailsheim secure spot in league for next season
HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim will playing the easyCredit BBL next season as the team secured their spot in the top flight in the penultimate round. Crailsheim were facing 17th placed FRAPORT SKYLINERS in Round 33 and trailed by as many as 10 points at home but James Batemon scored 14 points off the bench and Edon Maxhuni collected 13 points and 13 assists in an 84-83 win. Crailsheim had a say in the relegation fight in the final round as well as they were leading the entire first half at SYNTAINICS MBC but Nikola Markovic’s team ended up losing 79-69. Myles Stephens netted 18 points and 10 rebounds in the loss, which gave Crailsheim a 12-22 record in 13th place.
Hamburg finish season with loss to Braunschweig
Veolia Towers Hamburg went into the final week with just one game but also already safe from relegation, and the team lost 88-78 in their final game in Round 34 at Basketball Löwen Braunschweig. Ryan Taylor came off the bench for 17 points and 7 rebounds while Len Schoormann picked up 10 points in possibly his final game for the club as he was on loan from FRAPORT SKYLINERS. Hamburg fans may also have seen the final game of young Slovenian point guard Ziga Samar, who is on loan from ALBA BERLIN and collected 10 points, 12 assists and 5 steals.
Bayreuth bid adieu with two losses
medi bayreuth finished off their final week in the easyCredit BBL with two losses to head to the ProA with a 6-28 record. Bayreuth were overmatched in Round 33 as they lost 83-72 to reigning champions ALBA BERLIN. Otis Livingston scored 24 points with 7 rebounds and Brandon Childress added 20 points in the loss. Bayreuth couldn’t end the season with a win either as they lost 120-106 at Brose Bamberg. Livingston (23) and Childress (21) combined for 44 points but Bayreuth could not overcome their Franconia neighbors.
TJ Shorts overwhelmingly named 2022-23 MVP
Telekom Baskets Bonn guard TJ Shorts was overwhelmingly voted as the Most Valuable Player of the 2022-23 season. Shorts, who finished second in the voting last season to Bonn’s Parker Jackson-Cartwright, received 88.0 percent of the votes from league coaches, general managers and team captains as well as selected media representatives. DeWayne Russell of EWE Baskets Oldenburg ranked second with 5.0 percent of the vote and Würzburg Baskets’ Stanley Whittaker had 4.0 percent.
Bonn playcaller Tuomas Iisalo repeats as Coach of the Year
Telekom Baskets Bonn playcaller Tuomas Iisalo repeated his title as easyCredit BBL Coach of the Year for leading the team to first place at the end of the regular season. Iisalo, who also guided Bonn to the Basketball Champions League Final Four, received 63.0 percent of the vote of league coaches, general managers and team captains and selected media members. Roel Moors of BG Göttingen finished second in the voting with 19.0 percent followed by Sasa Filipovski of Würzburg Baskets with 12.0 percent.
Oldenburg star Russell, Rostock center Mawugbe and Berlin talent Below win season awards
The other awards for the season were handed out and the winners were DeWayne Russell of EWE Baskets Oldenburg as Offensive Player of the Year; Selom Mawugbe of ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES as Defensive Player of the Year; and Malte Delow of ALBA BERLIN as Best German U22 Player. Russell received 45.0 percent of the vote from league coaches, general manager and team as team captains as well as selected media. TJ Shorts of Telekom Baskets Bonn was second with 32.0 percent and Basketball Löwen Braunschweig’s David Krämer finished third (7.0 percent). Mawugbe (18.0 percent of the vote) finished ahead of Freddie Gillespie of FC Bayern Munich (11.0 percent), Nick Weiler-Babb of Bayern (8.0 percent) and Max DiLeo of Oldenburg. Delow for his part was awarded 24.0 percent of the vote followed by Julius Böhmer of Würzburg Baskets (21.0 percent) and Jacob Patrick of MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg (19.0 percent).
Player(s) of the Week(s)
The final week of the season had two rounds of game, which means two Player of the Week awards to hand out. For honor for Round 33 goes to ratiopharm ulm’s Karim Jallow for his 38 efficiency as he poured in 33 points on a 12-of-15 shooting - including 7-of-7 three-pointers - and 2-of-2 free throws to go with 6 rebounds, 1 assists and 2 steals against ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES. For the final round the honor goes to MVP TJ Shorts for his outstanding showing in Telekom Baskets Bonn’s win over ratiopharm ulm as he scored 30 points on 8-of-10 shots and 14-of-14 free throws and added 6 rebounds and 6 assists for an efficiency of 36.
German Top Five of the Week
G: Maodo Lo, ALBA BERLIN
Lo scored a season-high 27 points with 7 three-pointers to go with 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals against medi bayreuth.
F: Karim Jallow, ratiopharm ulm
Jallow did his best Superman impression for Ulm’s first two games of the week. He torched SYNTAINICS MBC for a career-high 36 points to go with 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 1 block. He followed that up with 33 points on 12-of-15 shooting - including 7-of-7 three-pointers; 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals against ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES. Jallow came back down to earth against Telekom Baskets Bonn with 6 points, 2 rebounds and 1 block.
F: Christian Sengfelder, Brose Bamberg
Sengfelder had two strong games as he tried to help Bamberg reach the playoffs. He hit 4 three-pointers in scoring 16 points to go with 4 rebounds and 1 steal against Telekom Baskets Bonn. Sengfelder matched the 4 three-pointers against medi bayreuth and scored 17 points along with 10 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.
F: Kevin Yebo, NINERS Chemnitz
Yebo has been one of the revelations all season and he finished the regular season with two strong games. He poured in 30 points with 9 rebounds and 1 steal against MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg and then collected 13 points, 9 rebounds and 1 assists in helping Chemnitz beat MLP Academics Heidelberg to reach the playoffs.
C: Eddy Edigin, MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg
Edigin produced one of the best weeks of his career as the big man scored a career-high 15 points to go with 3 rebounds and 1 block against NINERS Chemnitz. He followed that with 7 points, a career high 13 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal versus ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES.
Young Guns
Ivan Kharchenkov, 16, SG, FC Bayern Munich
Kharchenkov was the beneficiary of Bayern already being locked into their playoffs spot and wanting/needing to rest players for the post-season in their game against EWE Baskets Oldenburg. The 16-year-old started and played 18:25 minutes and scored 13 points on 5-of-11 shots - including 3-of-6 on threes - to go with 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 block. Kharchenkov had played just 7:25 combined in his first two games and set new career highs in points and minutes and registered his first assists and block.
Luis Wulff, 19, SG, FC Bayern Munich
A second Bayern player deserves to be on this list as Wulff got some good playing time against EWE Baskets Oldenburg. He played 21:39 minutes and scored 5 points on 2-of-5 shots (1/2 threes) to go with 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals and 2 blocks. It was his fourth game and he tied a career high in points and set new best marks for steals and blocks.
Elias Rapique, 19, PG, ALBA BERLIN
Rapique came up in the Berlin ranks and played his fourth game against medi bayreuth. The 19-year-old scored 2 points on 1-of-4 shots (0/2 threes) and added 3 rebounds and 1 assist in 17:34 minutes.
Germany drawn into difficult Group E of 2023 World Cup
The German national team learned their fate for the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 as they were drawn into a challenging Group E. Gordon Herbert’s team will play in Okinawa this summer and start the group against hosts Japan, followed by games against Australia and Finland. The top two teams advance to the Second Round, where Germany would face the likes of Slovenia, Georgia, Cape Verde or Venezuela.
Germany to host FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2026
After co-hosting the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 last summer, Germany will be home to elite level international basketball once again in 2026 as basketball’s world body selected Germany as host of the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2026.
Germans Abroad
Let’s stick with women’s basketball for this one … Marie Gülich helped Valencia Basket win the Spanish league title, knocking off Perfumerias Avenida 2-0 in the best of three Finals for the first crown in club history. Gülich contributed 16 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks in a combined 30 minutes in the two games. Gülich is not the only German player to make headlines in Spain as Leonie Fiebich was named Most Valuable Player for the season with Zaragoza.
RelatedNews
Nachberichte
Ingo Freyer schafft erneut den Klassenerhalt: Wölfe bezwingen Merlins 79:69
Nachberichte
Russell-Show gegen Bayern: 37 Punkte beim klaren Heimsieg / Ludwigsburg als Playoff-Gegner
Nachberichte
