Reigning champions FC Bayern Munich got a masterful showing from world champion Johannes Voigtmann who flirted with a triple-double in Bayern’s comfortable win. ratiopharm ulm are the only undefeated team left in the league while NINERS Chemnitz and FIT/One Würzburg Baskets both picked up their first victories.
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:
Voigtmann flirts with triple-double as Bayern run away, Göttingen only winless team
FC Bayern Munich ran away from BG Göttingen in the third quarter with a 95-81 road victory to keep the hosts as the only winless team in the league. Göttingen were leading to start the second half but Bayern raced away with a 24-4 run for an 18-point lead and cruised to a 3-1 record and Göttingen are now 0-3. Bayern out-rebounded Göttingen 39-28 while also making 29 of 32 free throws to 11 of 16 for the hosts. Carsen Edwards came off the bench to lead Bayern with 21 points, Nick Weiler-Babb had 14 points and Johannes Voigtmann flirted with a triple-double with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists. Collin Welp scored a career-high 20 points to lead Göttingen and Demajeo Wiggins had 14 points and 9 rebounds.
Göttingen sign Kostja Mushidi to help absence of Mönninghoff
BG Göttingen reacted to the absence of captain Mathis Mönninghoff by signing German forward Kostja Mushidi. The club penned the 26-year-old to a two-month contract with an option for an extension. Mushidi played last season for SYNTAINICS MBC.
Ulm show they can win defensive battles, down Ludwigsburg for 3-0 mark
ratiopharm ulm showed they can also win defensive struggles as they fought past MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg 63-62 at home to remain the league’s only undefeated team. Ludwigsburg led for the entire first half but Ulm turned the game with a 15-7 third quarter for a 3-0 mark and Ludwigsburg fell to 2-2. Ulm committed 20 turnovers but held Ludwigsburg to 31 percent shooting. Isaiah Roby was the only Ulm player in double figures with 11 points while Philipp Herkenhoff had 9 points and 7 rebounds. Justin Simon was Ludwigsburg’s top scorer with 15 points and 9 rebounds.
Chemnitz never trail, beat Vechta for first victory
NINERS Chemnitz grabbed their first league win of the season as they defeated RASTA Vechta 88-77 at home. Chemnitz led from start to finish, scoring the first 12 points of the game. The gap was down to 1 point early in the second quarter and then up to as many as 18 points in the fourth quarter. Vechta made things interesting getting it down to 6 with 3 minutes to go but Chemnitz’s win made both teams 1-2. Vechta committed 20 turnovers with only 10 assists and Chemnitz shot 59 percent on two-pointers. Five Chemnitz players scored in double figures led by Jaron Johnson with 19 points while DeAndre Lansdowne had 15 points and 7 assists and Olivier Nkamhoua had 14 points and 9 rebounds. Brandon Randolph was Vechta’s leading scorer with 19 points and Justin Robinson had 16 points in the loss.
Jackson’s 21 points in 19 minutes leads Würzburg to rout of Rostock
FIT/One Würzburg Baskets grabbed their first victory of the season in the easyCredit BBL with a blowout 92-65 win at ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES. Würzburg held Rostock to just 18 points in the middle two quarters to move to 1-1 and Rostock have lost two in a row for a 2-2 mark. Würzburg committed only 9 turnovers and forced Rostock into 24 miscues. Jhivvan Jackson scored 21 points in 19 minutes, Mike Davis had 14 points and Zac Seljaas and Lukas Wank both had 10 points. Robin Amaize tallied 13 points in a losing effort.
McGhee double-double carries Bonn past Berlin
Telekom Baskets Bonn won the 94th matchup with ALBA BERLIN as they exacted some revenge for being swept in the first round of last season’s playoffs with a 91-87 home win over ALBA. Berlin led by 10 points midway through the third quarter but then trailed by 11 points just 90 seconds into the fourth quarter. Berlin fought right back into the game and took the lead 87-86 with 2:21 minutes left. Bonn held the guests scoreless the rest of the way for a 2-1 record and Berlin fell to 1-2. Bonn shot 48 percent from long range while Berlin made just 26 percent of their three-point attempts. Darius McGhee paced six Bonn players with 18 points and 10 assists, Sam Griesel scored 17 points and Phlandrous Fleming and Till Pape both had 12 points. Trevion Williams flashed his all-around game in the loss with 21 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals and both Yanni Wetzell and Martin Hermannsson scored 16 points.
Heidelberg win third straight with late run, hand Braunschweig first loss
MLP Academics Heidelberg finished a perfect two-game week as they grabbed their third straight victory by beating Basketball Löwen Braunschweig 72-65 to hand the hosts their first defeat of the season. Heidelberg built a 13-point lead midway through the third quarter but were trailing by 5 points with 7 minutes to go. The guests finished strong with a 10-2 run in the final 4 minutes for a 3-1 record and Braunschweig fell to 2-1. Heidelberg won the rebound battle 41-31 and kept Braunschweig to just 38 percent shooting. Bakary Dibba poured in 17 points, Ryan Mikesell had 15 points and 8 rebounds and Erol Ersek contributed 13 points. Tre Mitchell scored 15 points with 7 rebounds and TJ Crockett had 10 points in the loss.
Heidelberg shoot the lights out in road blowout of Wolves in Round 3 makeup
MLP Academics Heidelberg shot the lights out in a Round 3 makeup game as they buried 13 three-pointers in a 108-93 road blowout of SYNTAINICS MBC. Heidelberg raced away to a 30-15 lead after 10 minutes and never let up for a 2-1 record with Wolves dropping to 0-3. The hosts shot 62 percent for the game including a white-hot 65 percent from long range. Ryan Mikesell scored 20 points to pace five players in double figures with Bakary Dibba scoring 19 points, Michael Weathers picking up 16 points and 5 assists, Mateo Seric adding 16 points and Damariae Horne chipping in 15 points. Michael Devoe came off the bench for 29 points including 11 of 14 from the foul line, Spencer Reaves scored 25 points and Tyren Johnson added 16 in the loss.
Wolves beat Frankfurt for their first win of the season
SYNTAINICS MBC collected their first victory of the season as they defeated SKYLINERS 79-69 on the road. The guests used a big second quarter to take a 13-point lead just before halftime but were down midway through the third quarter. Wolves finished the game with the final seven points to move to 1-3 while Frankfurt fell to 1-2. Frankfurt committed 21 turnovers - including two in their final four possession. Spencer Reaves led the Wolves with 20 points and Tyren Johnson scored 18 points. Malik Parson and Booker Coplin both scored 13 points and combined for 8 rebounds and 9 assists in the loss.
Ludwigsburg win second at home, hand Rostock first loss
MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg grabbed their second home victory of the season as they defeated ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES 70-64 in a Round 3 makeup game to hand the guests their first loss of the season. Ludwigsburg broke open a close game with a 16-4 run spanning the final two quarters and held on for a 2-1 record, the same mark for Rostock. Ludwigsburg made up for 36 percent shooting by committing only 7 turnovers and forcing 18 at the other end. Ezra Manjon scored 15 points, Justin Simon had 12 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists and both Jacob Patrick and Joel Scott picked up 11 points. Rostock’s trio of D’Shawn Schwartz (19 points and 6 rebounds), Bryce Hamilton (16/7) and Godwin Omenaka (12/9) totaled 47 points and 22 rebounds but the rest of the team did not help out enough.
Hamburg use late run to get past Oldenburg at home
Veolia Towers Hamburg collected their second victory of the season as they beat EWE Baskets Oldenburg 87-78 at home thanks to a big late run. The game was close throughout though Oldenburg led by 10 points late in the third quarter. The guests were up 7 points with 7 minutes left when Hamburg went on a 15-1 run to move to 2-1 and Oldenburg fell to 1-2. Hamburg shot 68 percent on two-pointers. Jaizec Lottie had 17 points and 7 assists off the bench to lead Hamburg with Brae Ivey picking up 16 points, 4 rebounds and 6 assists and Kenneth Ogbe adding 12 points and 6 rebounds. Geno Crandall scored 27 points with 7 assists, Justin Jaworski had 24 points and Seth Hinrichs added 8 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals.
Oldenburg keep Brooks until season end
EWE Baskets Oldenburg have decided to keep Eli Brooks until the end of the season, extending the American’s two-month contract. The 25-year-old Brooks scored 14.5 points last season for Italian club Triest, helping the club win the second division title and earn promotion.
Player of the Week
This week’s Player of the Week for Round 4 came from a losing team - and he did so coming off the bench - as Trevion Williams was outstanding with an efficiency of 26 in an ALBA BERLIN loss to Telekom Baskets Bonn. Williams scored 21 points on 10 of 15 shots (1/4 threes) to go with 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals with just 2 turnovers.
German Top Five of the Week
G: Jacob Patrick, MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg
Patrick had two solid games - attempting 10 shots against ROSTOCK SEAWOLVES and ratiopharm ulm. The 20-year-old scored 11 points with 3 rebounds and 1 steal against Rostock and had 8 points, 1 assist and 1 steals and 2 blocks versus Ulm.
F: Kenneth Ogbe, Veolia Towers Hamburg
Ogbe nailed 2 three-pointers in scoring 12 points with 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 block in a win over EWE Baskets Oldenburg.
F: Philipp Herkenhoff, ratiopharm ulm
Herkenhoff had another solid all-around game with 9 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assist, 1 steal and 2 blocks in a hard-fought low-scoring win over MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg.
F: Collin Welp, BG Göttingen
Welp scored a career-high 20 points against FC Bayern Munich and added 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals.
C: Johannes Voigtmann, FC Bayern Munich
Voigtmann flirted with a triple-double against BG Göttingen as he collected 12 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists to go with 1 block.
Young Guns
Johann Grünloh, 18, C, RASTA Vechta
Grünloh gets a spot with the Young Guns this week after a decent showing against NINERS Chemnitz. He scored 4 points on only 3 shots as Vechta’s guards could not get him the ball, but the 18-year-old chipped in 3 rebounds, 1 steal and 3 blocks with 3 turnovers in 28:04 minutes.
Sananda Fru, 21, PF, Basketball Löwen Braunschweig
Fru made his season debut for Braunschweig and played 17:54 minutes against MLP Academics Heidelberg. The 21-year-old scored 2 points on 1 of 3 shots (0/1 threes) and added 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 3 blocks in 17:54 minutes.
Ivan Kharchenkov, 18, SG, FC Bayern Munich
Kharchenkov got his real first chance with Bayern this season with 14:08 minutes against BG Göttingen. The 18-year-old scored 6 points on 2 of 6 shooting (0/3 threes) while adding 1 rebound, 1 assist and 1 steal.
Germans Abroad
One of the regulars in the Young Guns was Radii Caisin, who came up in the German ranks with Vechta, Ludwigsburg, Crailsheim and Weissenfels. The 2001-born shooting guard started his second season with Austrian club BC Raiffeisen Flyers Wels in style with 23 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 block.
