TAYLORHOOPS.COM ULM UPDATE
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TAKE YOUR PLACE!
Ulm Visits Giessen, Hosts Bremerhaven in Two Game Weekend!
DOUBLE GAME DAY PREVIEW!
ratiopharm Ulm @ Giessen 46ers
Friday April 13, 2007 8pm
Sporthalle Giessen East Giessen, Germany
ratiopharm Ulm v Eisbaren Bremerhaven
Sunday April 15, 2007 4pm
Sportszentrum Kuhberg Ulm, Germany
With five games remaining in the 2006-2007 Bundesliga regular season, ratiopharm Ulm tips off an exciting "Double Game Day Weekend" this Friday traveling to Giessen before hosting Eisbaren Bremerhaven Sunday at Sportszentrum Kuhberg in Ulm. Entering Friday 15-14, success this weekend can go along way to help Ulm in their surprising chase for a playoff place. Winning on the road in Giessen presents the first challenge as the 46ers have won two straight games and are playing arguably their best basketball of the season. On the back end of the double-pack, ratiopharm Ulm returns home Sunday in search of their 9th straight home win at Sportszentrum Kuhberg when they meet powerful Eisbaren Bremerhaven. While both opponents present challenges, the two games provide ratiopharm Ulm opportunity to take steps forward toward taking a playoff place!
ratiopharm Ulm power forward Jeff Gibbs leads the Bundesliga in rebounding with a strong 9.5 rebounds per game. The Ulm All Star also ranks 10th in scoring at 15.2ppg.
FIRST THING FIRST
With only five games remaining in their "rookie" Bundesliga regular season, ratiopharm Ulm continues to chart their course through uncharted waters of the stretch run and playoff race. Entering this weekend's "Double Game Day" in a surprising 7th place, Ulm has far surpassed their season goals of simply staying in the Bundesliga. Now, as the young team continues to make progress, ratiopharm Ulm finds themselves focused for an exciting road trip to Giessen in Game Day 30 of the 2006-2007 Bundesliga season. Splitting two games against the 46ers earlier this year, Ulm dropped a disappointing 82-76 game to Giessen Sunday December 10th at Sportszentrum Kuhberg before rebounding to knock the 46ers from the German Cup 79-74 Wednesday Febuary 14th. Now, the rubber-match between the two teams has the most on the line. For ratiopharm Ulm, Fridays game at Giessen is the next opportunity to take one step closer to achieving the "unachievable" --- playoffs as an "Aufsteiger". Meanwhile, for the 46ers, Fridays game is the next opportunity to securely earn their right to stay in the Bundesliga by making the "Klassenerhalt" official (a Giessen win gives Nurnberg the "ziggy" of relegation).
Ulm shooting guard Jonathan Levy ranks 8th in scoring with a sharp 15.4 point per game average.
Giessen has righted their ship after a mid-season coaching change brought in current boss Ken Scalibroni. After dealing with injuries and adversity, the 46ers have currently found their form and won two important games which has positioned them well to stay in the Bundesliga. The next Giessen win or Nurnberg loss officially relegates Nurnberg to the second division while secures Giessen's spot in the first league. Interestingly enough, Giessen currently is celebrating their 40th year of participation in the 40 year old Bundesliga --- certainly the 46ers have been a major part of the tradition of the league. This year, Giessen relies on scoring wing Rouven Roussler (11.2ppg 2.6reb 33% three) to make big plays. Roussler buried the game winner in last weekends upset win in Frankfurt over the Skyliners and has become a go-to guy for Giessen. Point guard Obie Trotter plays a well rounded game averaging 10.3ppg 3.6reb and 2.9ast while shooting 33% from three. Trotter has battled nagging injuries lately but when he plays well, the 46ers have a great chance to win. In the post, veteran big men Gerit Terdenge (10pt 5reb 34% from three) and Robert Maras (9.3pt 6.6reb 40% three) provide outstanding experience and inside-outside scoring ability. Wings Jean Francois (7.1pt 4reb 28% three) and James Head (7.2ppg 4.5reb 43% three) can go inside to post up and rebound or drill threes from beyond the arc. Tough guard Brian Snider (5pt 3.1reb) is a team-oriented playmaker who can mix it up inside or play the point. Physical back up big man Florian Hartenstein (2.3pt 2.2reb) is a hardworking team player and Marco Buljevic (3.1pt 26% three) adds a terrific young shooting touch. Also with the team, talented combo guard Mike Helms, a strong combo guard who can create for himself or others, has been sidelined several weeks with a torn calf muscle.
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Ulm Point Guard Austen Rowland currently leads the Bundesliga with sizzling 5.7 assists per game.
Winners of three of their last four and eight straight at home, ratiopharm Ulm has emerged as a potential playoff team. Several players have stepped up their game to spark Ulm. Point guard Austen Rowland has been fantastic in recent weeks posting two 12 assists games as he has risen to the top of Bundesliga assist charts with 5.7apg. Shooting guard Jonathan Levy has elevated his game leading Ulm in scoring against Karlsruhe with 26 and in Braunschweig with 18. Levy currently ranks 8th in scoring at 15.4ppg. Power forward Jeff Gibbs produced double-doubles in each of Ulm's last three wins: 20 points 15 rebounds against Karlsruhe, 19 points 13 rebounds versus Bonn and 16 points 14 rebounds in Braunschweig. The All Star Power forward from Ulm has now risen to the top of Bundesliga rebounding charts averaging 9.5rpg. As a team, ratiopharm Ulm is now aiming to be at their best this weekend. One Ulm player who will certainly enjoy the road trip to Giessen, is Forward Konrad Wysocki. For Wysocki, a road game in Giessen is really a home game. Konrad grew up in Giessen and his family still resides there. The athletic energizer who has been outstanding for Ulm as 6th man this year, started Ulm's German Cup win in Giessen and was a major force in the victory. Understanding how challenging the German Cup victory in Giessen was, ratiopharm Ulm enters Friday's game ready for an intense, physical and competitive game. Taking a win and two points for a victory on Friday can be a powerful step forward in the Bundesliga standings. With all the challenges ahead in their exciting "Double Game Day Weekend", ratiopharm Ulm is ready to put first thing first with complete focus on the 46ers.
ULM CAPTAIN EMEKA EREGE IS FOCUSED FOR SUCCESS!
EISBAREN COMETH!
Sunday evening, ratiopharm Ulm returns home for a 4pm "Family Day" tip off against powerful Eisbaren Bremerhaven, a team who mauled Ulm 92-65 December 17th. Posting a strong 10-5 record since losing in Bremerhaven, ratiopharm Ulm has demonstrated tremendous improvement and taken several steps forward as a team. But will their progress result in a playoff place? Sunday, for the back end of their "Double Game Day Weekend" ratiopharm Ulm has their opportunity to take another step forward. Winners of 8 straight at Sportszentrum Kuhberg, ratiopharm Ulm has the chance to rise to the challenge and take their place.
Ulm's Forward Konrad Wysocki is excited to return home to Giessen on Friday!
Heading into the two game weekend, Bremerhaven boasted a three game win streak as they entertained fading Deutsche Bank Skyliners Thursday night April 12th in Bremerhaven. With a record of 18-11, the second year Bundesliga team Bremerhaven is on schedule for a second playoff appearance. Last year, playing as an "Aufsteiger", Bremerhaven made the playoffs and advanced into the semi-finals before losing to ALBA Berlin in a deciding game. 2005-2006 Bundesliga Coach of the Year Dr. Sarunas Sakalauskas brings an intelligent, team oriented approach to the game and his team features the weapons to make his system work. All Stars CJ Wallace (13.2ppg 8.4reb) and Nick Jacobsen (13.7ppg 2.7reb 2.2ast 37%three) provide a tremendous skill level for Bremerhaven. Point guard Brian Jones (8ppg 3reb 5.1ast) sets the tone and uses his physical presence to overpower other guards. Sharpshooting Zygimantas Jonusas (12.3ppg 3.1reb 39% three) is an active wing with a snipers shot. One of the most physical front lines in the Bundesliga, C Adam Chubb (10.8ppg 7reb) brings athleticism while RT Guinn (7.2ppg 3.3reb 47% three) provides rebounding, post D and three point shooting from a big man. Recently added Paul Miller (4.4ppg 2.1reb 14gp) also adds depth and skill. Athletic John Bynum (4.6ppg 2.1reb 2.2ast) has overcome shoulder injuries to return and contribute as a hardworking, team oriented perimeter player. Also supporting Chubb and Wallace in the post, Vytas Danylius plays physical and works on defense and on the boards. Young talent Robert Kulawick continues to develop and Wiaczeslaw Rosnowski, with Nurnberg last year, adds depth on the wing to round out the roster.
Ulm Center Bryan Lucas brings his steady skills and experience to the froncourt.
Playing live on Premiere TV in Bremerhaven, ratipharm Ulm was flattened in their 92-65 loss. Overpowered physically on the boards and unable to deal with the Eisbaren defensive pressure, ratiopharm Ulm learned hard lessons that December evening. From this failure, Ulm grew and improved. Making a major step forward in competing in the Bundesliga after the Bremerhaven debacle, ratiopharm Ulm raised their game and won 4 straight games after Christmas. With a 10-5 record since losing in Bremerhaven, ratiopharm Ulm responded to the challenge with great effort. Responding to Sunday's challenge will also take great effort. The undersized Ulm front line has a major challenge against the big, physical and deep front line of Bremerhaven. At the point, Brian Jones successfully posted up Ulm PG Austen Rowland and made plays in the paint. A difficult matchup for any PG, the big and physical Jones uses his body extremely well in the lane for a G. After getting lit up in the Bremerhaven loss, Ulm wings must locate and eliminate three point looks for Eisbaren sharpshooters Nick Jacobsen and Zygimantas Jonusas --- both shot the lights out leading to the December 17th win. Perhaps the most interesting matchup is between the two all star power forwards, Ulm's Jeff Gibbs and Bremerhaven's CJ Wallace. Both Gibbs and Wallace are super skilled and versatile making them outstanding offensive weapons for their team. For ratiopharm Ulm to earn their 9th straight home win, the team must rise to the challenge and find a way to be productive against the powerful Eisbaren team.
ratiopharm Ulm is excited about the challenges from both games this weekend!
Tipping off their exciting "Double Game Day Weekend", ratiopharm Ulm aims to make more progress toward their dream goal of a Bundesliga play off place. With challenging games against Giessen and Bremerhaven, the action-packed weekend ahead provides fantastic opportunity for ratiopharm Ulm --- opportunity to be at your best and to take your place.
TAYLORHOOPS.COM GAME NOTES
HOME GAME FOR KONRAD
ratiopharm Ulm F Konrad Wysocki grew up in Giessen Germany before moving on to Princeton and several other stops continuing his basketball career. Growing up the son of a former Bundesliga player in Giessen, Konrad knows the 46ers tradition well and along with his family will enjoy special moment playing in Giessen for the second time in his professional career.
EARLIER THIS SEASON
Early this season, back in October, as the young ratiopharm Ulm team slowly navigated their way through uncharted waters, the teams first "Double-Header Weekend" provided the first signs of success for the "Aufstieger". Ulm swept a Friday-Sunday weekend beating Paderborn 87-74 Friday October 20th and topping SellbyTel Baskets Nurnberg 89-73 Sunday October 22nd.
FORMER TEAMMATES
As Ulm meets Giessen Friday, several players will see familiar faces. Ulm power forward Jeff Gibbs and talented young sharpshooter Marco Buljevic played together for a season in Ehingen. Also, Ulm big man Bryan Lucas was teammates for a short time with 46ers F James Head with the Westchester Wildfire of the USBL. Meanwhile, Sunday, Ulm F Konrad Wysocki catches up with former Princeton Tiger teammate Charles Judson Wallace.
PERUSING SOME STATISTICS
Bremerhaven ranks 3rd in three point percentage (36%) and 4th in Free throw percentage (71.1%). Bremerhaven (13.6) ranks #1 in offensive rebounds per game while Ulm ranks #2 (13.4). Bremerhaven leads the league in assists as a team (14.0) while Ulm ranks 4th at 13.6 assists per game.
FAMILY DAY AT THE RATIOPHARM ULM GAME!
Sunday is "Family Day" at Sportszentrum Kuhberg when ratiopharm Ulm tip off against Eisbaren Bremerhaven. A full event schedule complete with kids oriented activities and a fun halftime show has been planned for the sell-out crowd.
BUNDESLIGA STANDINGS HEADING INTO WEEKEND
# Team Pts. Diff.
01 Berlin 48:10 +236
02 Ludwigsburg 44:14 +235
03 Bamberg 40:18 +239
04 Köln 40:18 +82
05 Bonn 38:22 +65
06 Bremerhaven 36:22 +230
07 ratiopharm Ulm 30:28 +19
08 Oldenburg 30:28 +110
09 Leverkusen 30:28 +71
10 Quakenbrück 30:28 -30
11 Frankfurt 28:30 -122
12 Tübingen 28:30 -38
13 B'schweig 24:32 -98
14 Paderborn 24:32 +42
15 Trier 20:38 -74
16 Gießen 18:40 -194
17 Nürnberg 10:50 -379
18 Karlsruhe 4:54 -394
Follow all the fastbreaking ratiopharm Ulm Bundesliga basketball action all season long on Taylorhoops.com!
GO ULM!
MIKE T
Ulm Roster
Emeka Erege: outstanding captain demonstrating great leadership.
Jonathan Levy: versatility and athleticism key/15.4ppg leads Ulm
Jeff Gibbs: leads Bundesliga in rebounding (9.5)/key to Ulm inside game
Austen Rowland: in top form recently/leads league in assists (5.7apg)
Bryan Lucas: matchup with former German National team C Maras
Konrad Wysocki: grew up in Giessen and knows 46ers well!
EJ Gallup: Ulm combo G excited for challenges to help team!
Maksym Shtein: can be key factor in Ulm post game this weekend
Ian Young: limited minutes in recent games but remains ready!
Christian Grosse: steady progress with hardwork!
Florian Mobius: ready to hep front court vs 46ers!
Jan Sprunken: experience and J extremely valuable
Head Coach: Mike Taylor
Asst Coach : Rainer Bauer
Location: Giessen, Germany
Main Sponsor:
Home Court: Sporthalle Giessen East
website: www.giessen46ers.de
2005-2006: 11-19 11th place Bundesliga
Returning only two players from last seasons injury-riddled 46er squad, Giessen has struggled to an 1-11 record after 12 games in 2006-2007 and are currently in danger of being relegated into the 2.Bundesliga. Head Coach Stefan Koch parted ways with the Giessen management earlier this season and the team responded by hiring former Braunschweig boss Ken Scalibroni who coached his first game with the team in Ulm. After releasing F Reggie Moore, F Aleksander Cubrillo and G Ronnie Taylor, Giessen used their roster moves to add G Danillo Pinnock, F James Head and F Jean Francois. Since the last meeting with Ulm, Giessen has released Pinnock and now has one roster move remaining for the season. Through all the ups and downs the 46ers are starting to put things together. After their slow start, Giessen is 4-4 over their last 8 games helping them move two games ahead of the relegation spots. Giessen has plenty of time to right the ship and make progress to 16th spot and stay safe in the Bundesliga, a league they have been affiliated with for 40 seasons!
GM: Christian Maruska
Head Coach: Ken Scalibroni (took over 12-8-06)
Players:
Jean Francois: skilled combo F/powerful in post/ soft touch
James Head: versatile offensive threat/ quality F
Rouven Roussler: athletic wing new from Karlsruhe
Robert Maras: former German National team C/ big and skilled
Gerrit Terdenge: veteran forward/ lefty inside-out scoring big man
Flo Hartenstein: 46ers tradition/ hardworking team player
Marco Buljevic: talented young shooting guard
Obie Trotter: athletic G could be best defender/strong season
Brian Snider: intelligent combo G new to Giessen
Mike Helms: recovering from calf muscle injury/talented combo G
Location: Bremerhaven, Germany
Main Sponsor:
Home Court: Stadthalle Bremerhaven
website: www.eisbaeren-bremerhaven.de
2005-2006: 19-11 4th place
(W 1st R playoff 2-3 Artland; L 2nd R 1-3 ALBA)
Offense: Bundesliga Coach of the Year, Lithuanian Play Caller Sarunas Sakalauskas has assmebled a quality roster of talent including excellent power guard Brian Jones and dead-eye shooting Nick Jacobsen. Princeton University product Judson Wallace was one of the most underrated F in the Bundesliga last season and Wiaczeslaw Rosnowski moves to Bremerhaven from a solid season in Nurnberg. New Eisbaren include big men Kevin Gardner and RT Guinn from the USA. Vytas Danelius, Audrius Maneikis and Zigmantus Jonusas will also be expected to make an impact. Replacing departed C Darren Fenn (Bamberg) will likely be a team effort this season.
Defense: Well-coached, physical and competitive, Bermerhaven advanced into the playoff semifinals last season behind a strong defensive effort. Battle-tested and experienced, expect Bremerhaven to compete among the Bundesliga's best this year.
GM: Jan Rathjen
Head Coach: Sarunas Sakalauskas
Players:
Brian Jones: one of top G in Bundesliga/ physical and clutch/ playmaker
Nick Jacobsen: smooth shooter/ moves well without ball/ top 3pt shooter
Judson Wallace: crafty inside-out scorer? ALL STAR!
Wiaczeslaw Rosnowski: active 3 man with great touch
Vytas Danelius: joins Bremerhaven after playing in Giessen
Adam Chubb: US big man also played with Giessen
Audrius Maneikis: returns to Bremerhaven
John Bynum: hardworking G who carved a niche last season
Jannis Michael: bumps to big league after yr in Cuxhaven
Zigmantus Jonusas: joins Eisbaren from Poland/ outstanding 3pt shooter!
Robert Kulawick: young talent comes from ALBA Berlin
RT Guinn: veteran US big man with experience in minors
Paul Miller: star F for Wichita St in cinderella NCAA run!
