RASTA Vechta are again the team of the week as the promoted side followed up their shocking comeback win over FC Bayern Munich with another victory over ratiopharm ulm. Vechta also made news with their head coach Ty Harrelson announcing that he will leave the club after the season. The other big news on the court was Kevin Yebo tying his career high with 33 points in a NINERS Chemnitz blowout of Bamberg Baskets.
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:
Vechta take down Ulm again, remain in fight for home court advantage
RASTA Vechta followed up their shocking comeback victory last week over FC Bayern Munich with a second win this season over reigning champions ratiopharm ulm, prevailing 86-81 to remain in the running for a home court advantage spot in the playoffs. Ulm, who lost in overtime at home to Vechta 106-102 back in mid-January, took the first significant lead midway through the third quarter as they led by 11 points. The advantage was still 10 points with under 6 minutes to go but Joel Aminu and Wes Iwundu combined for 10 points in a 20-5 run to close the game. Vechta are now a game ahead Ulm at 16-8 - just two wins behind Würzburg Baskets - with the reigning champs slumping to 15-9 after just two wins in their last nine league games. Vechta committed only 6 turnovers and limited Ulm to just 40.0 percent shooting. Joschka Ferner hit 5 three-pointers in scoring 17 points against his former team while Tommy Kuhse collected 14 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists and Ryan Schwieger added 13 points. LJ Figueroa had 16 points and Trevion Williams picked up 16 points and 14 rebounds in the loss.
Coaching carousel: Harrelson to leave Vechta, linked to Ulm
The plot thickened this week in the coaching carousel as Ty Harrelson announced that he would be leaving RASTA Vechta after the season despite having a contract for next season. Where he will be patrolling the sidelines next season has not been announced but Harrelson has been linked to ratiopharm ulm. The reigning champions still have a head coach in Anton Gavel, who has been heavily rumored to be heading to Bamberg Baskets after the season - though this has neither been confirmed nor denied until now. And there is also speculation about what will happen with Bamberg’s current coach Arne Woltmann, who jumped from assistant coach to the main man after Oren Amiel was fired. Woltmann used to play in Quankenbrück from 1997 to 2008 and his family still lives there - a town that is just 30 kilometers from Vechta, who will definitely need to announce a new head coach.
Chemnitz blow out Bamberg behind 33 points from Yebo
NINERS Chemnitz defended first place in the easyCredit BBL as they showed their class with a comfortable 106-84 victory at Bamberg Baskets thanks to a special night from big man Kevin Yebo. Chemnitz started pulling away in the second quarter and finished off the game for good with a 32-20 third quarter. The league leaders have won three straight and six of their last seven for a 20-4 mark with Bamberg seeing their three-game win streak end for a 10-14 record as they battle for a play-in spot. Chemnitz out-shot Bamberg 51.5% to 46.3% including draining 14 three-pointers at a 45.2% clip. Chemnitz also won the rebound battle 42 to 28, including 15 offensive rebounds. Yebo evened his career high with 33 points to go with 7 rebounds and 1 block in just 21 minutes. Aher Uguak and Jeff Garrett both had 13 points and Wesley van Beck and Kaza Kajami-Keane combined for 22 points, 7 rebounds, 11 assists and 2 steals. Trey Woodbury tried his best for Bamberg with 27 points and Zach Copeland added 15 points.
Bayern score final 11 points, escape Göttingen with 8th straight road win
FC Bayern Munich saved it for late in scoring the final 11 points of the game to escape BG Göttingen with a 77-71 victory for their eighth straight road win and bounce back from their loss last week to RASTA Vechta. Göttingen led by 10 points after 10 minutes and the lead grew to 14 points at the break. Bayern pulled closer in the third quarter but still trailed by 5 points with under 4 minutes to play. But the guests went on an 11-0 run to close the game and improve to 19-4 and Göttingen dropped their third straight and fifth in the last six games for a 7-17 mark. Bayern conceded only 18 points in the paint and limited Göttingen to just 7 three-pointers. Sylvain Francisco led Bayern with 16 points and 8 assists off the bench, Devin Booker had 13 points and Carsen Edwards contributed 12 points. David DeJulius poured in 21 points and Fedor Zugic scored 18 for Göttingen but no one else had more than 7 points.
Livingston pours in 30, Würzburg down Hamburg for 6th straight victory
Würzburg Baskets extended their winning streak to six games as they raced away from Veolia Towers Hamburg 96-76 at home. The game was close throughout and the hosts only led by 5 points late in the third quarter. Würzburg took control with a 10-2 spurt spanning the final two quarters and improved to 18-6 in fourth place while Hamburg fell to 12-10 still in a play-ins spot. Würzburg out-shot Hamburg 50.9 percent to 42.9 percent and made 28-of-30 free throws to 14-of-21 for Hamburg. Otis Livingston was a force with 30 points - 13 of them coming in the fourth quarter, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals for the winners and Max Ugrai added 13 points and Owen Klassen and Darius Perry both chipped in 12 points. VJ King picked up 20 points in a losing effort. It shouldn’t be a surprise that Livingston went off in the game considering his father, Otis Livingston Sr. was in the building for the game. Livingston Sr. is a famous sports reporter in the United States for the national broadcaster CBS and shows on Instagram regularly that he is a proud father …
Würzburg offer no chance for Göttingen in Round 1 make-up game
Würzburg Baskets offered no chance to BG Göttingen in grabbing an 85-60 home victory to extend their winning streak to five games. Würzburg led by 15 points in the first quarter and then finished off the game with a 28-16 third quarter for a 17-6 record. Göttingen have lost their last two games and four of the last five for a 7-16 mark. Göttingen shot just 33.3 percent for the game, including 18.8 percent from long range and Würzburg used a 48-33 advantage in rebounds for 13 second chance points to zero for the guests. Max Ugrai scored 17 points to lead Würzburg while Owen Klassen had 13 points and 8 rebounds, Zac Seljaas picked up a double-double of 11 points and 13 rebounds and Otis Livingston chipped in 8 points and 10 assists. Karlis Silins was the only Göttingen player in double figures with 15 points.
Big first half carries Wolves past Crailsheim in massive relegation battle
SYNTAINICS MBC captured a massive victory in their fight against relegation as they fended off HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim 98-93 at home. SYNTAINICS MBC took over with a 34-20 second quarter for a 64-41 halftime lead - and still led by 17 points after 30 minutes. Crailsheim had a big fourth quarter to make it interesting but the home side moved to 8-16 and Crailsheim lost their fifth straight for a 4-20 record. The hosts made 14 three-pointers to 10 for Crailsheim and 20 free throws to Crailsheim’s 13. Johnathan Stove led the hosts with 25 points, Jhonathan Dunn had 20 points, John Bryant collected 14 points and 7 rebounds and Martin Breunig tallied a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds plus 5 assists. James Murray-Boyles scored 22 points with 9 rebounds and Galin Smith had 18 points in the loss.
Heidelberg rally late for critical win over still-reeling Rostock
MLP Academics Heidelberg rallied in the final 3 minutes for a crucial 88-86 victory at home over ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES for their second straight win while Rostock have lost 11 games in a row. Rostock led the entire second half - and by as many as 14 points and by 11 points with under 3 minutes to play. But Heidelberg went on a 15-2 fourth quarter run to pull away and Justin Jaworski’s free throws with 3 seconds left gave the home side the win. It pushed Heidelberg to 5-19 - just one win behind Tigers Tübingen - while Rostock have fallen to 6-17. Heidelberg committed only 10 turnovers compared to 15 for Rostock. Jaworski finished with a double-double of 22 points and 11 assists, Elijah Childs had 20 points and Isaiah Whaley added 16 points and 11 rebounds. Tyler Nelson led Rostock with 16 points and Till Gloger and Derrick Alson both had 14 points.
Buie carries Ludwigsburg past Braunschweig in battle of play-in teams
MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg earned an important victory in the fight for the playoffs as they beat Basketball Löwen Braunschweig 86-82 at home in a showdown of teams in the play-in ranks. Ludwigsburg raced away to a 15-point lead in the first quarter and it was a tie game midway through the third quarter. The hosts then decided the game with a 10-0 run early in the fourth quarter for a 15-9 record and Braunschweig have dropped two in a row for an 11-13 mark. Ludwigsburg made 13 three-pointers to 7 for Braunschweig. Desure Buie paced Ludwigsburg with 27 points, Jayvon Graves had 19 points and Eddy Edigin picked up 12 points and 5 rebounds. Jilson Bango registered a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds for Braunschweig, Brandon Tischler scored 12 points and Barra Njie added 12 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists.
Four Germans score in double figure in Berlin blowout of Tübingen
Four German players scored in double figures as ALBA Berlin blew out Tigers Tübingen 112-69 at home for a sixth straight victory. The game was close for the first 15 minutes or so before ALBA just ran away with a 24-1 run to improve to 16-5 and Tübingen remained in a tight fight for relegation with a 6-18 mark. Berlin shot 60.0 percent for the game including 54.6 percent from long range and held a 25-10 advantage in second chance points. Malte Delow and Martin Hermannsson both scored 17 points while Tim Schneider picked up a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds, Louis Olinde had 14 points and Johannes Thiemann contributed 12 points and 5 assists. Mateo Seric was the sole Tübingen player in double figures with 16 points.
Player of the Week
What a game for Kevin Yebo of NINERS Chemnitz, who earned Player of the Week honors for Round 24 with a career night showing against Bamberg Baskets. Yebo scored 33 points on 10-of-13 shots, including 5-of-5 on threes, and 8-of-8 free throws to go with 7 rebounds and 1 block for an efficiency of 33.
German Top Five of the Week
G: Malte Delow, ALBA BERLIN
It is hard not to give a Top Five spot to Tim Schneider with his 15 points and 10 rebounds but his ALBA teammate led the team in scoring against Tigers Tübingen and picked up 17 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists.
F: Joschka Ferner, RASTA Vechta
Ferner again played a major role in beating his former team with 5 three-pointers for 17 points, 2 rebounds and 1 steal in a win over ratiopharm ulm.
F: Max Ugrai, Würzburg Baskets
It was a great week for Ugrai, who helped Würzburg to two wins. He had 17 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist in a victory over BG Göttingen and followed that with 13 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block against Veolia Towers Hamburg.
C: Martin Breunig, SYNTAINICS MBC
Breunig collected 12 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists in the team’s important win over HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim.
C: Kevin Yebo, NINERS Chemnitz
Yebo took home Player of the Week honors so he must be included here with his 33 points, 7 rebounds and 1 block in 21 minutes versus Bamberg Baskets.
Young Guns
Sananda Fru, 20, PF, Basketball Löwen Braunschweig
Fru shot a perfect 3-of-3 from the field and 1-of-1 from the foul line for 7 points plus 3 rebounds and 2 blocks in 17:13 minutes against MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg.
Jacob Patrick, 20, SG, MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg
Patrick scored 6 points on 2-of-7 shooting (2/5 threes) and grabbed 3 rebounds in 14:08 minutes against Basketball Löwen Braunschweig.
Ivan Kharchenkov, 17, SG, FC Bayern Munich
Kharchenkov definitely took advantage of his time in the win over BG Göttingen with 3 points on 1-of-3 long range shooting, 2 rebounds and 2 assists in 8:40 minutes on the court.
Germans Abroad
This will be the Tristan Da Silva watch for a bit as the German forward was named to the Pac-12 All-Tournament Team in helping Colorado reach the conference playoffs final, where they lost to Oregon. Colorado were selected for the NCAA Tournament March Madness and the Buffaloes will take on Boise State in the First Four on Wednesday March 20. A victory would then meet a First Round matchup against Florida. German Aleks Szymczyk plays with Florida but he is currently out injured.
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