TAYLORHOOPS.COM ULM UPDATE
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FINN'S TIP-IN LIFTS ULM TO WIN!
Sean Finn's last second tip-in lifted ratiopharm Ulm to an exciting 80-78 road win over the Koln 99ers Saturday night at Rheinenergie Dome in Koln. With the 99ers charging back to even the game at 78 with 5 seconds to play, Ulm inbounded the ball to Lee Humphrey who raced the length of the court weaving in and out of Koln defenders before floating a perfect lob pass to Finn for the game winning bucket. Lee Humphrey drilled five of six three pointers to topscore with 17 points for Ulm while Sebastian Betz sank 3 of 6 threes to add 16 points. All Star power forward Jeff Gibbs finished with 16 points 7 boards and Romeo Travis added 14 points 8 boards in the physical and intense game. Completing their two game road trip with the important road win, ratiopharm Ulm upped their record to 18-9 and took a major step forward toward sealing their first playoff spot.
ratiopharm Ulm floor general Dru Joyce sinks a key second half foul shot in Saturdays 80-78 road win over the Koln 99ers at Rheinenergie Dome in Koln.
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ratiopharm Ulm team defense helped them earn the exciting road win in Koln.
ratiopharm Ulm's two game road trip opened with a hardfought loss against powerful ALBA Berlin at O2 World in Berlin Wednesday night. While the team was not completely pleased with their performance, ratiopharm Ulm quickly refocused to arguably the more important game on the road trip Saturday night at Rheinenergie Dome against the Koln 99ers. With an excellent road trip which included both practice time and free time in Berlin and Koln, the Ulm team aimed to bounce back with a better performance against the 99ers and prepared for a physical and intense game in the back end of their two game trip.
ratiopharm Ulm center Sean Finn made 3 of 4 free throws but his biggest points won the game as he tipped in a Lee Humphrey lob pass at the buzzer lifting Ulm to the win.
At tip off, it was clear Koln was ready for the challenge. Just as expected, the action was physical and instense as ratiopharm Ulm pushed for the playoffs while Koln worked for a key win to seperate themselves from the 'abstiegskampf' and stay in the league. The revamped roster and new coach meant a different look to the 99ers from their last game with Ulm back in November --- and this 99er team was ready to play. Veteran point guard Michael Jordan controlled the action well and was particularly effective in ballscreens. New post man Stevan Milosevic provided Ulm post defenders with plenty of problems and scoring guard Jeremy Hunt created scoring opportunities effectively. Koln held a 12-9 lead five minutes into the game, but Ulm's Lee Humphrey hit two first quarter threes and Sebastian Betz came off the Ulm bench to bring energy on both ends. Philipp Schwethelm buried two big three point shots to spark Koln and after the first ten minutes, the 99ers held a 21-20 lead.
ratiopharm Ulm forward Romeo Travis was excellent on both ends for his team scoring 14 points with 8 rebounds and strong defense in the win.
Quarter two saw ratiopharm Ulm make a run. Sean Finn powered his way to an inside basket against talented young 99er post man Tibor Pleiss and Romeo Travis found a few ways to score in transition, flashing to the high post and crashing the offensive boards. Dru Joyce was sharp leading the Ulm break as he dished out 5 assists in the first half. Ulm edged ahead taking a 32-27 lead with five minutes remaining in the half. Physical play on both ends highlighted the intensely competitive action. Lee Humphrey sank his third three of the first half and Sebastian Betz caught fire hitting 4 of his 5 first half shots to total 10 points in the first 20 minutes. Ulm changed their defensive matchups frequently attempting to find the best lineup against the 99er attack. The physical inside play of Milosevic, who finished with 14 points in the first half, combined with the perimeter shooting of Edin Bavcic and Mike Jordan's experience seemed to always put the ball in the right place. By the final first half horn, ratiopharm Ulm clung to a tight 42-41 advantage.
ratiopharm Ulm guard Sebastian Betz hit three of six threes to score 16 points in Koln. Basti was outstanding in both games of Ulm's road trip hitting 10 of 17 shots including 4 of 9 threes to score 28 points in the two games against ALBA Berlin and Koln.
At the half, the game was statistically very even. ratiopharm Ulm and Koln both shot 55% from the floor with Ulm hitting 6 of 13 threes (46%) to the 99ers 4 for 10 (40%) and Ulm sinking 4 of 8 free throws to Koln's 5 for 10. Ulm outrebounded the 99ers 16-13 on the boards. Most important for Ulm was maintaining their poise in the face of the intense, physical atmosphere and competitive Koln effort. Wanting to waste no time or energy on discussions with officials or complaining about calls, ratiopharm Ulm needed complete focus on their mission, working to win on the road in Koln. Perimeter players Lee Humphrey and Sebastian Betz gave Ulm a big boost in the first half with excellent performances. Ulm's post players needed to adjust to the extremely physical game in the lane and the team returned to the floor for the second half focused to make every play strong.
ratiopharm Ulm rookie point guard Per Gunther gave his team outstanding minutes against Koln. Here, Per advances the ball across halfcourt facing defense from veteran 99er point guard Mike Jordan.
As the third quarter opened, ratiopharm Ulm made a run to take control. Starting the second half with an 11-5 surge, Ulm opened a 53-46 lead. Jeff Gibbs finished strong inside on consecutive possessions and Romeo Travis flew in to finish a fast break with a thunderous two hand slam. Ulm's picked up their post defense and the details within their defensive game plan were better executed. In particular, Romeo Travis was excellent helping in the lane as he deflected several passes and covered for big men during their rotations. On the perimeter, Dru Joyce came up with two clutch steals which helped trigger Ulm fast breaks. After stretching the lead to double digits, Ulm took a 63-55 advantage into the fourth quarter.
ratiopharm Ulm All Star power forward Jeff Gibbs scored 16 points with 7 rebounds against a physical and aggressive 99er defense. Gibbs was particularly effective passing out of the double team getting teammates like Lee Humphrey and Sebastian Betz open shots.
And Ulm's momentum carried over to the fourth as the teams bench players maintained a 9 point cushion at 68-59 through the first few minutes of the last quarter. But with their backs against the 'abstiegskampf' wall, fighting for survival to stay in the Bundesliga, the 99ers rallied. A 9-0 scoring run from the Niners evened the score at 68-68 with 4 minutes to play. Moments later with just over two minutes to play, two Edin Bavcic free throws gave Koln their first lead since the second quarter. Romeo Travis cooly sank clutch free throws and Jeff Gibbs hammered home a dunk off a beautiful pass from Ulm point guard Dru Joyce helping Ulm regain the lead 76-75. Koln's athletic forward Robert Turner converted one of two free throws and the game was even once again at 76. At the other end of the floor, ratiopharm Ulm's floor general Dru Joyce drove strong to the basket and finished a tough contested runner along the right baseline. Joyce's big bucket gave Ulm a tight 78-76 lead with 28 seconds to play.
ratiopharm Ulm's Romeo Travis scans the floor for an open teammate Saturday night at Rheinenergie Dome in Koln.
Koln called for a timeout to set their attack trailing by two with 28 seconds. Recently appointed head coach Zoran Kukic organized the 99ers and the team took the floor putting the ball in the hands of experienced point guard Mike Jordan. As the Ulm defense rose to the occassion, the 99ers executed their ballscreen plays which was the bread and butter of their attack throughout the game. As the 99ers reversed the ball, post man Stevan Milosevic sealed strong in the lane. A perfect pass slipped through contesting Ulm defenders to Milosevic, who used his angle to the right side of the rim to lean in for the basket. Once again, Ulm's Romeo Travis made a big play on the defensive end --- this time, the Akron native hammered Milosevic unselfishly fouling out to prevent the game tying basket and sending the Koln center to the foul line. At the foul line, Milosevic was 2 for 9 for the game to that point.
ratiopharm Ulm floor general Dru Joyce works off a top of the key ballscreen from teammate Jeff Gibbs Saturday night at Rheinenergie Dome in Koln. Dru scored 8 points and dished out 8 assists in the Ulm win.
While Milosevic stepped to the line, ratiopharm Ulm called their final timeout with 14 seconds to play. Ulm attempted to 'ice the shooter', covered their blockout-rebounding details and organized their fullcourt press attack. The intensely competitive game had reached an emotional peak. Milosevic missed his first. And then Milosevic missed his second. As 8 players hustled after the miss, the live basketball was tipped out of the congested lane beyond the three point line where Koln tracked it down. Frantically attacking as the clock ticked under ten, Koln evened the score at 78-78. Setting up their press attack, Ulm had five seconds to work with. Dan Fitzgerald inbounded the basketball and found Lee Humphrey open on the right wing directly in front of the Ulm bench. Humphrey took the pass and wheeled against pressure quickly manuevering between 99er defenders toward the middle of the floor. Weaving in and out of Koln players, Lee jetted up the floor attacking the basket along the left lane line. Racing against the clock, Lee rose up for a runner as Koln defenders rotated to challenge and block the shot. But in an alert play, Lee softly floated a lob pass to Ulm center Sean Finn who stood alone at the right side of the rim. Sean cooly extended high above the rim, collected the accurate pass and tipped in the game winning basket before the buzzer lifting Ulm to the exciting 80-78 road win!
Ulm's Sebastian Betz handles the basketball against ballpressure from Koln 99ers Philipp Schwethelm in Saturday nights game at Rheinenergie Dome.
As the buzzer sounded, ratiopharm Ulm players celebrated the thrilling finish running onto the floor to mob Sean Finn and Lee Humphrey. In a fantastic team moment, ratiopharm Ulm demonstrated mental toughness and poise along with several players stepping up to make big plays down the stretch to help the team earn the important road win.
ratiopharm Ulm shot 52% from the floor making 9 of 20 threes (45%) and 13 of 21 free throws (62%). Ulm also outrebounded the 99ers 33-32 and both teams dished out 17 assists. The 99ers hit 46% of their shots and made 7 of 21 threes (33%) along with 17 of 29 (59%) from the foul line. Lee Humphrey led the Ulm offensive attack making 5 of 6 threes to topscore with 17 points. Sebastian Betz buried 3 of 6 threes to finish with 16 points 3 rebounds and Jeff Gibbs added 16 points 7 boards in a strong game in the post. Romeo Travis also played well on both ends of the floor producing 14 points 8 rebounds while floor general Dru Joyce was solid with an 8 point 8 assists evening. Stevan Milosevic led the 99ers with a strong 24 point 10 rebound double double with Robert Turner and Edin Bavcic chipping in 13 points apiece. Point guard Mike Jordan dished out 10 assists to go with his 7 points.
Now 18-9, ratiopharm Ulm completed their two game road trip with and excellent road win over the Koln 99ers Saturday night at Rheinenergie Dome in Koln. Ulm remains in fifth place and on track for a Playoff spot as they look ahead to next weeks 'Baden Wurtemburg Derby' against the rival Walter Tigers Tubingen. Follow all the fast breaking ratiopharm Ulm Bundesliga Basketball action all season long on Taylorhoops.com!
GO ULM!
MIKE T
