TAYLORHOOPS.COM ULM UPDATE
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BLAST OFF IN BAMBERG!
ULM UPSETS BAMBERG IN SEASON OPENER!
ratiopharm Ulm tipped off the 2008-2009 Bundesliga season with a memorable moment --- a terrific team performance resulting in an exciting 66-64 upset win over powerful brose Baskets Bamberg Wednesday night before 7,000 fans at JAKO Arena. Winless against Bamberg before Wednesday, ratiopharm Ulm was powered by an intense defensive effort and strong bench production. All Star power forward Jeff Gibbs went to work for a 16 point 12 rebound double double and rookie forward Dan Fitzgerald added 11 points off the bench in the win. Without injured starter Dru Joyce, 20 year old rookie Per Gunther was outstanding in his first Bundesliga start leading Ulm's attack with poise of a veteran. Wednesday night ratiopharm Ulm's season tipped off at JAKO Arena in Bamberg and for the team and fans, the memorable upset win turned the regular season tip off into their 2008-2009 Bundesliga blast off!
All Star Power Forward Jeff Gibbs powered his way to a 16 point 12 rebound double double in Ulm's upset win over Bamberg at JAKO Arena Wednesday night.
Click here for Ulm @ Bamberg Photo Gallery from Bamberg!
ratiopharm Ulm's 2008-2009 Bundesliga season tipped off with Sean Finn at the jump ball against former Miami Heat center Nate Johnson.
Prior to Wednesday nights season opener at JAKO Arena in Bamberg, ratiopharm Ulm point guard Dru Joyce meticulously went through pregame warmups testing his injured ankle. Under the careful watch of Ulm physio Andi Lacher and team doctor Dr Christoph Buch, Dru aimed to be ready for the first official game of the 2008-2009 season. Unfortunately, mid-way through warmups, Dru's ankle was not ready forcing Ulm coaches and staff to put plan B into motion. Ulm's plan B was really 'plan P' as 20 year old rookie Per Gunther was penciled into the starting lineup. Making his first Bundesliga start against a top team on the road in front of 7,000 fans Per played with poise and composure of a veteran and ran the team effectively. Like the Ulm team upsetting Bamberg in their first regular season game, Gunther's Bundesliga debut could not have been better.
In his first Bundesliga start, playing in front of a 7,000 fans in a sold out JAKO Arena, 20 year old rookie point guard Per Gunther gave Ulm outstanding minutes as a young floor general earning Player of the Game accolades from the Bamberg press.
While the rookie Per at point played a terrific game filling in for injured started Dru Joyce, Ulm's bench gave the team a determined effort and a big boost throughout the evening as well. KeithTriplett made immediate impact on the defensive end with tremendous ball pressure and momentum building steals. Sebastian Betz entered the game and brought energy with his effort and shooting. Michael Schroeder provided a physical presence in the lane on both ends. Captain Emeka Erege provided key minutes with intense defense in the first half and rookie forward Dan Fitzgerald gave Ulm a big boost with terrific three point shooting and intelligent play. Overall, the Ulm bench became a key strength in the teams opening game upset victory.
Ulm's Dan Fitzgerald sparked his team with an excellent game off the bench including three big three point shots the most exciting of which came at the halftime buzzer! The rookie from Marquette scored 11 points in Ulm's win.
At tipoff, the sold out JAKO Arena anticipated their brose basket Bamberg team with high expectations. New Head Coach Chris Fleming and his talented new team faced their home opener with a short preseason and limited time to get acclimated. On top of the short time span to come together, Bamberg would matchup with Ulm without two key players point guard John Goldsberry and big man Eric Taylor, two talented Bundesliga veterans. For Bamberg, the talented team and new personalities simply need time. For Ulm, to play against Bamberg, Wednesday night was the perfect time.
Ulm forward Romeo Travis finishes inside as Sebastian Betz (7) and Michael Schroeder (14) look on. Romeo scored 7 points with a hardnosed 10 rebounds in the exciting win.
Opening a fast 5-1 lead, Per Gunther made a big play seconds into the game. Grabbing a loose ball defensive rebound, Per raced the entire length of the floor creating a 2 on 1 with Romeo Travis. The rookie PG cooly dropped off a pass to Romeo who was fouled. Bamberg responded and took a brief 6-5 lead at the 4 minute mark. It would be their only lead of the night. Ulm's Gibbs scored inside and baskets from former members of the Bamberg organization Sebastian Betz and Michael Schroeder drove the offense. At the end of the first quarter, Ulm held a surprising 15-10 advantage.
Quarter two continued with intense defensive play on both ends. Dan Fitzgerald, Keith Triplett and Sebastian Betz gave Ulm excellent minutes off the bench. Michael Schroeder picked up four fast fouls with physical play but protected the Ulm rim well on the defensive end. Bamberg young talent Tim Ohlbrecht stepped up for his team sticking two three point shots bringing momentum to the home crowd. Bamberg evened the score at 22 but Ulm surged ahead again. Dan Fitzgerald and Lee Humphrey three pointers pushed the inspired underdogs further forward. Captain Emeka Erege enterd the action and provided terrific defensive play with ballpressure and active cutting. As the first half clock ticked down, Ulm swiftly pushed the ball up the right sideline to Dan Fitzgerald who quickly took one dribble and fired a deep runner from 35'. Swishing the shot home a second before the halftime buzzer, Dan's halfcourt buzzer beater sent ratiopharm Ulm into the halftime locker room with a 39-32 lead. Ulm's upset dreams were alive after 20 minutes. But half the game remained.
Ulm's Keith Triplett heads to the basket on a breakaway layup after a second half steal. Trip's relentless defense helped set the tone and made several big plays for his team.
At the half, Ulm huddled in their visitors team room at JAKO Arena and went over the coaching points from the first half on the offensive and defensive end. The teams intense defensive effort and excellent bench minutes were key points of the conversation. Reviewing two or three points of emphasis for the second half, the energized Ulm team returned to the floor with focus to finish their opening night-upset bid by rising to the challenge of the powerful Bamberg team in the second half.
Center Michael Schroeder gave ratiopharm Ulm a physical presence off the bench against his former team Bamberg.
As Ulm opened teh second half, the offense resembled a typical opening night unit. Several turnovers slowed the Ulm attack. Bamberg capitalized. As Ulm's mistakes mounted, Bamberg's experience took advantage. Filberto Riveral pushed the ball for Bamberg and Jared Newson made an athletic slam forcing an Ulm timeout. Holding a 46-45 lead with 2 minutes remaining in the third, directly out of the timeout, Lee Humphrey stepped up to drill a key three pointer from the left wing . Teammate Dan Fitzgerald continued his outstanding evening with a tough left wing three of his own. The bulls-eye accuracy from Humphrey and Fitzgerald sparked Ulm to finish the quarter strong and answer the Bamberg run. As the teams went into the fourth, Ulm had rebuilt an 8 point lead 53-45. Last March in JAKO Arena, Ulm attempted to outscore the then Euroleague brose Baskets only to have the talented Bamberg beat them at their own game. Wednesday night, the defensive oriented flow found Ulm outscoring Bamberg 14-13 in the third quarter of a hotly contested Bundesliga opener.
Ulm's Lee Humphrey played a strong floor game with intense defense and minutes at the point. Known for his perimeter shooting, the former Florida Gator hit two big three pointers for Ulm in the win over Bamberg.
Ulm's strong play continued into the early fourth quarter as defensive demon Keith Triplett made plays. With five minutes remaining Ulm had built a 61-49 lead. But the experienced Bamberg squad made their run. Scoring forward Predrag Suput sank a right wing three pointer and was fouled turning his clutch basket into a crucial four point play pulling Bamberg back. When Jared Newson scored Bamberg cut the Ulm lead to 61-57. After an Ulm timeout, it was an unexpected go-to guy for the hungry guests. Down the stretch, it was Ulm's 7 foot center Sean Finn who registered money baskets scoring Ulm's final five points. But the games final plays included early season excitement. With under one minute to play, Ulm's Keith Triplett was called for a foul as he attempted to run with and level off Bamberg pg Rivera in a transition play across halfcourt. Rivera did a terrific job selling the call and Triplett was whistled for the foul. As momentum from the players continued an Ulm shove was called as an intentional foul. In the key moment, Ulm lost Triplett to five fouls and gave up 2 Rivera free throws plus ball possession. Rivera cooly sank both free throws and trimmed the Ulm lead to 65-64. On the ensuing possession, Suput was called for a moving screen after Ulm defenders switched a wing ballscreen play. The ball went back to Ulm and Ulm's final timeout set the teams strategy. Again, after Bamberg defended the first option Gibbs, Sean Finn stepped up. Fouled while working for post position, the Ulm big man stepped to the line in a big moment in the game. Finn missed his first but sank his second. Ulm led 66-64 with 18 seconds to play. Bamberg put Rivera in a top of the key ballscreen as they searched to breakdown the Ulm defense. Swinging the basketball, Robert Garrett attempted a shot from the left wing which bounced hard to the free throw line area. A hustling Beckham Wyrick snarred the rebound and quickly put up a running second attempt. Again, the shot rimmed out this time to the right --- and fittingly Per Gunther was right there. Controlling the loose ball and pivoting away from pressure, Ulm's 20 year old rookie darted up the left sideline right in front of the Ulm bench avoiding fouls and running out the clock.
Jeff Gibbs goes to work in the lane against a Bamberg double team of Predrag Suput (8) and Tim Ohlbrecht (14).
For ratiopharm Ulm, there was no better way to tip off the 2008-2009 Bundesliga season than with a terrific team performance filled with heart and effort from an entire roster. Jeff Gibbs led the attack with 16 points 12 rebounds and played like the franchise player he has been for his entire Ulm career. Dan Fitzgerald added 11 points including 3 of 5 three point accuracy providing a fantastic spark of instant offense from the bench. Romeo Travis gave Ulm all around solid play that produced an important 7 points and 10 rebounds. Center Sean Finn scored 5 of his 7 points down the stretch while adding a solid 6 boards and 1 block to his evening. Sebastian Betz also gave Ulm outstanding minutes off the bench finishing with 7 points 3 boards. Per Gunther and Lee Humphrey chipped in 6 points apiece along with quality guard play. Keith Triplett's key defensive efforts resulted in three steals, 3 rebounds along with 3 assists and Michael Schroeder scored 3 points with 3 boards and tough physical defense for his Ulm team. Simply put, Ulm found a way to win.
The win was 'synergy' in action as Ulm's offensive numbers were not impressive. Ulm shot 40% from the floor, 6 of 21 from three (29%), made only 10 of 25 free throws (40%) and turned the ball over 18 times. What Ulm did well was defend and rebound winning the battle on the boards 44-36. Bamberg shot 41% from the floor and made only 3 of 16 threes but converted 21 of 31 free throws (68%) while suffering 19 turnovers.
After months of waiting through the summer and offseason followed by more six weeks of waiting through the preseason, the countdown for the 2008-2009 Bundesliga season finally arrived Wednesday night. For months, fans have anticipated all of the exciting basketball ahead. For ratiopharm Ulm and fans, their first win over brose Baskets Bamberg was not just a road win, the memorable moment was a blast.
Riding their momentum from the season opening road win, Ulm now looks ahead to Saturday nights 7pm home debut at Sportszentrum Kuhberg against NewYorker Phantoms Braunschweig. Follow all the fast breaking ratiopharm Ulm Bundesliga Basketball action all season long on Taylorhoops.com!
GO ULM!
MIKE T
