Let’s start off with Happy New Year and all the best for 2023! The final week of action in 2022 gave us a major surprise as SYNTAINICS MBC upset MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg. Veolia Towers Hamburg for their part ended the year with a much-needed win, defeating Würzburg Baskets to snap a six-game losing skid. Two playoffs contenders - Ludwigsburg and Brose Bamberg - meanwhile added scorers to help their cause, Will Cherry and Gerel Simmons, respectively.
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:
SYNTAINICS MBC surprise Ludwigsburg in defensive battle
Don’t look now but SYNTAINICS MBC are closer to the playoffs than the relegation zone after surviving a defensive battle with MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg 69-66 at home. Ludwigsburg tried to take control of the game right away and led by 10 points in the first quarter but it was close the rest of the way. The hosts managed a 6-0 run in the final 2 minutes for a six-point lead and held on for the win - SYNTAINICS MBC’s third in the last four games and fourth in the last six to move to 5-7 while Ludwigsburg have lost two of three for an 8-4 record. Neither team executed their offense well with Ludwigsburg shooting just 32.8 percent for the game and just 10.3 percent from long range. Kris Clyburn paced five players in double figures with 12 points with Martin Breunig picking up 11 points and 10 rebounds. Yorman Polas Bartolo was Ludwigsburg’s top scorer with 12 points.
Ludwigsburg bring in Will Cherry as Hubb injury replacement
MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg reacted to the injury to top scorer Prentiss Hubb and added experienced playmaker Will Cherry. The 31-year-old Cherry has played for ALBA BERLIN and FRAPORT SKYLINERS in the easyCredit BBL and also has gained experience in Lithuania, Croatia, Greece, Italy, Israel and Turkey. Hubb suffered a foot injury and is due to miss a number of weeks of action.
Hamburg snap losing streak with blowout of Würzburg
Veolia Towers Hamburg go into 2023 with a sigh of relief as they snapped a six-game losing streak with a clear 96-73 home victory over Würzburg Baskets. Hamburg blew the game open with a 29-9 first quarter and finally returned to the W column for a 5-7 mark while Würzburg saw their three-game winning streak end for a 6-6 record. Würzburg committed 24 turnovers and made just 25.0 percent from long range. Kendale McCullum did some of everything with 21 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists and 5 steals for the winners, who also had Len Schoormann score 15 points and Lukas Meisner add 13 points and 6 rebounds. CJ Bryce scored 21 points in the loss.
Göttingen race past Bayreuth for 4th straight win
BG Göttingen are solidifying their status as a playoffs contenders as they rolled past medi bayreuth on the road 95-73 for their fourth straight victory. Göttingen built a 14-point lead after 10 minutes and never let up in moving to 8-4 while Bayreuth sunk to 3-10. Göttingen committed only 8 turnovers and held Bayreuth to 35.7 percent shooting including 25.0 percent on two-pointers and the guests made 64.9 percent from close range. Mark Smith paced Göttingen with 19 points and 9 rebounds while Till Pape picked up 17 points and Geno Crandall added 14 points and 7 assists. Ahmed Hill drained 6 three-pointers in scoring 20 points in the loss.
Ward steps up in Bonn home rout of Frankfurt
Telekom Baskets Bonn finished 2022 on a high note as they eased past FRAPORT SKYLINERS 89-66 at home for their fifth straight win thanks to a big showing from Tyson Ward. Bonn began pulling away in the second quarter to lead by 13 at the break and Frankfurt could not challenge as the league leaders moved to 11-1 and Frankfurt fell to 3-9. Bonn dominated the boards 41-27 and limited Frankfurt to just 29.6 percent on three-pointers. With Jeremy Morgan out injured, Ward took over the scoring duties with 29 points including 7 three-pointers to go with 9 rebounds for Bonn. Finn Delaney added 16 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists and Leon Kratzer picked up 11 points and 10 rebounds. Bonn leader TJ Shorts was held to a pedestrian 8 points, 5 rebounds and 9 assists. Frankfurt’s top scorer was Lukas Wank with 21 points and Joshua Obiesie added 15 points in a losing effort.
Bamberg snap three-game skid with new addition Simmons leading way
Brose Bamberg ended a three-game losing streak with a comfortable 101-74 home win over MLP Academics Heidelberg with new addition Gerel Simmons leading the way. Bamberg took control late in the first quarter and did not let Heidelberg close again for a 4-8 record, which is the same mark as Heidelberg, who have lost three in a row. Bamberg shot 56.7 percent for the game including 66.7 percent on two-pointers and Heidelberg made just 24.2 percent from long range. Simmons ended with 20 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists with Patrick Miller adding 17 points and 5 assists and Kevin Wohlrath chipping in 14 points. Tim Coleman and Bryan Griffin both scored 14 points in the loss and Eric Washington was held to just 6 points on 1-of-14 shooting.
Bamberg add guard depth with Gerel Simmons
Brose Bamberg added depth at the guard position as they signed Gerel Simmons until the end of the season. The 29-year-old arrives from Czech Republic powerhouse ERA Nymburk, with whom he played this season in the Basketball Champions League. Simmons has experience in Germany as he played for Artland Dragons in the ProA second division in 2020-21.
Dos Santos threes secure Ulm win over Braunschweig
ratiopharm ulm nearly gave up a big lead but fought off a comeback from Basketball Löwen Braunschweig for a 95-87 home win. The game was close for the first 25 minutes until Ulm opened a 15-point cushion late in the third quarter. Braunschweig cut the gap to two with 79 seconds left, but Yago dos Santos answered with back-to-back three-pointers as Ulm moved to 5-7 and Braunschweig lost a sixth straight game for a 2-10 mark. Ulm forced 20 Braunschweig turnovers and made 19-of-22 free throws to 9-of-14 for the guests. Dos Santos finished with 19 points and 7 assists and Josh Hawley scored 19 points with Thomas Klepeisz chipping in 17 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists. Braunschweig wasted a 25-point showing from Robin Amaize with Brandon Tischler tallying 16 points and 9 rebounds and Braydon Hobbs picking up 15 points and 6 assists.
One Round 12 game still unscheduled
The six games before the end of the year did not however complete Round 12 action. Two games from the round were already played as FC Bayern Munich downed EWE Baskets Oldenburg 81-77 on December 6 and ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES beat HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim 103-91 on December 23. The NINERS Chemnitz vs ALBA BERLIN game scheduled for December 29 was postponed and has not been rescheduled yet.
Player of the Week
The Player of the Week for the games played last week was Tyson Ward for his efficiency of 33 in Telekom Baskets Bonn’s win over FRAPORT SKYLINERS, pouring in 29 points on 10-of-16 shots and 2-of-3 free throws as well as 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. But Jaren Lewis had the best game so far from Round 12 in ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES’ win over HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim on December 23 with an efficiency of 37 as he scored 30 points on 9-of-11 shots and 9-of-10 free throws to go with 2 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 steals.
German Top Five of the Week
G: Robin Amaize, Basketball Löwen Braunschweig
Amaize stood out against ratiopharm ulm but his 25 points with 4 three-pointers, 4 rebounds and 4 assists were not enough.
G: Lukas Wank, FRAPORT SKYLINERS
Wank earned his spot on the Top Five this week with 21 points on 3 threes and 4 rebounds in a loss to Telekom Baskets Bonn.
F: Till Pape, BG Göttingen
Pape had a strong game versus medi bayreuth with 17 points, 1 rebound, 1 steal and 1 block.
C: Martin Breunig, SYNTAINICS MBC
Breunig played a major role in his team’s win over MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg with 11 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal off the bench.
C: Leon Kratzer, Telekom Baskets Bonn
Kratzer collected 11 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks against FRAPORT SKYLINERS.
Young Guns
Len Schoormann, 20, PG, Veolia Towers Hamburg
Schoorman had another strong game in helping Hamburg end their losing streak with 15 points on 6-of-13 shooting (3/9 threes) along with 1 rebound and 1 assist in 26:58 minutes versus Würzburg Baskets.
Alexander Richardson, C, 19, FRAPORT SKYLINERS
Richardson played 23:04 minutes against Telekom Baskets Bonn and scored 5 points, hitting 2-of-3 shots and 1-of-1 free throw to go with 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.
Mertcan Gerhardt, 20, PF, Basketball Löwen Braunschweig
Another easyCredit BBL debutant for Braunschweig, Gerhardt played 3:56 minutes and grabbed 1 offensive rebound against ratiopharm ulm. The 20-year-old big man, who is averaging 10.7 points and 4.0 rebounds in the fourth division Regionalliga including two 20-point outbursts, is playing his second season with Braunschweig after growing up in Turkey - playing for Fenerbahce until moving to Osmanspor Genclink Ankara.
Germans Abroad
Bent Leuchten is spending his second season with University of California at Irvine and the 7-footer had a strong close to 2022. The 2002-born big man, who played for IBAM and the other teams affiliated with Munich side from 2018 to 2021, scored 15 points with 8 rebounds and 4 blocks on December 20 versus Harvard and then picked up 16 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks in just 22 minutes against California State University Bakersfield on December 31. For the season, Leuchten is averaging 8.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 0.9 blocks in 17 minutes.
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