TAYLORHOOPS.COM ULM UPDATE
ULM travels to Karlsruhe for Michelin Cup!!
ratiopharm Ulm travels to Karlsruhe, Germany this weekend for another excellent preseason basketball tournament as they participate in the Michelin Cup Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Europahalle in Karlsruhe. A week after upsetting ULEB Cup teams ALBA Berlin and Euphony Bree, ratiopharm Ulm prepares to challenge themselves against teams from the German Bundesliga, France Pro A, first division Croatia and first division Poland. Ulm tips off tournament action against Croatia's KK Zagreb Friday September 23rd at 2pm German time.
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Group A
Koszykarski Polonia Warschau SSA (Poland Semifinals)
BG Karlsruhe (10th place Bundesliga)
Walter Tigers Tübingen (14th place Bundesliga)
USC Freiburg (2.Bundesliga South)
Gruppe B
KK Zagreb (Croatian Semifinals)
Stade Clermontois Basket Auvergne (13th place French Pro A)
EnBW Ludwigsburg (Bundesliga 8th Place)
Ratiopharm Ulm (2. Bundesliga South)
Friday September 23rd, 2005
Game 1 2pm KK Zagreb – ratiopharm Ulm
Game 2 4pm Polinia Warschau – Tübingen
Game 3 6pm Stade Clermontois – Ludwigsburg
Game 4 8pm Karlsruhe – USC Freiburg
Saturday September 24th, 2005
Game 5 2pm Loser Game 2 - Loser Game 4
Game 6 4pm Loser Game 1 - Loser Game 3
Game 7 6pm Winner Game 2 - Winner Game 4
Game 8 8pm Winner Game 1 - Winner Game 3
Sunday September 25th, 2005
Game 9 10am 7th Place Game
(Loser Game 5 - Loser Game 6)
Game 10 12noon 5th Place Game
(Winner Game 5 - Winner Game 6)
Game 11 2pm 3rd Place Game
(Loser Game 7- Loser Game 8)
Game 12 4pm MICHELIN CUP FINAL
(Winner Game 7 - Winner Game 8)
TEAM PREVIEWS
ratiopharm Ulm enters the Michelin Cup in Karlsruhe with excellent energy from their successful run at their own Fritz & Macziol Cup last weekened. After upset victories over top teams Euphony Bree (Belgium Champions) and ALBA Berlin (German power) on back to back nights, Ulm took Walter Tigers Tubingen to the wire before falling 75-72 in the finale. In the tournament, Ulm established excellent chemistry and gained great confidence. Players stepped up and into their roles including combo guard Christian Grosse, shooting specialist Jan Sprunken and versatile forward Florian Mobius. Center Maksym Shtein was in top form as were American players Jonathan Levy and Jeff Gibbs. Ulm Head Coach Mike Taylor also welcomes British power forward Darius Defoe to the team for a weeklong tryout. The 20 year old can play with a double lisence for Ulm and Neu Ulm and is being tested for a "prospect" spot within the organization. Building on their strong preseason, ratiopharm Ulm looks forward to the challenging tests ahead at the Michelin Cup this weekend.
Karlsruhe, a streaky team throughout last seasons Bundesliga schedule, narrowly missed the playoffs down the stretch and finished in a respectable 10th place. While most Bundesliga teams revamped their rosters with the "World-wide Open" changes allowing almost unlimited imports, Karlsruhe re-signed the majority of their roster keeping continuity within the team. Key players for Head Coach Uwe Sauer include Bundesliga All Star and smooth scorer Narcisse Ewodo, American power forward Derrick Allen (Ole Miss), veteran German big man Jens Uwe Gordon, American guard Dominic Jones (VCU) and German forward Rouven Roussler. Unfortunately, a key addition, American shooting guard Troy Devries, suffered a serious knee injury in action last weekend giving Karlsruhe a set back. Keep the tournament hosts as an early favorite to hoist the Michelin Cup!
Unlike Karlsruhe's continuity, Walter Tigers Tubingen made significant changes to their team this off season. After last weekends Fritz & Macziol Championship in Ulm, the moves look to have sparked improvement in the Tigers who finished 14th in the Bundesliga last season but were successful in staying in the league after moving up from the 2.Bundesliga South the season before. Head Coach Pat Elzie has assembled an extremely athletic and versatile team with skilled shooters. Power forward Bingo Merriex is a talented player who should prove to be a great addition for Tubingen and Igor Perovic adds a tremendous perimeter threat to the team. Athletes like Ron Selleaze and Antwine Williams give the Tigers speed in transition and quickness defensively. Hardworking forward Robert Wintermantel provides leadership and represents the Tigers rise over the last seasons. A big key will be in how the team adapts to Antwine Williams at the point --- a true scoring wing, Williams has played well in the early preseason as a point after being thrust into the position when Tigers point Kevin Burleson went to the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats in August. Expect more tenacious efforts from the Tigers this weekend in the Michelin Cup as they hunt their second consecutive tournament victory this preseason!
French Pro A team Stade Clermontois enjoys a strong tradition in French basketball. This season several key players will be counted on for big production. 2.Bundesliga South fans will remember high flying forward Andrew Hunter, affectionately known in Crailsheim as "Air Canada", who now plays in Clermontois. American big man Darrell Tucker, a 6'9 scoring forward from University of San Francisco, mans the middle and athletic big man Kevinn Pinkney from Nevada-Reno provides strong defense. Veteran French guard David Melody is the floor general with several seasons of experience. American guards Cliff Hawkins (Kentucky) and Tai Crutchfield (Phildelphia-Textile), are perimeter threats. Now on the same team, both Hawkins and Crutchfield played in the USBL this summer --- Hawkins in Dodge City and Crutchfield with the Kansas Cagerz. An strong and respected league, French Pro A is always competitive and challenging. Stade Clermontois hopes the Michelin Cup can help them prepare for the season ahead.
Powerful Eric Taylor (St Francis PA), a double double machine, might be the best inside big man to play in the Michelin Cup this weekend. Experienced and aggressive, Taylor averaged 10.7ppg and 7.3rpg last season with his Polonia Warschau team good enough for 3rd best in Polish rebounding. After bouncing around to Venezuela, France, Puerto Rico, Israel and Argentina, Taylor has settled in for Polonia and produced effectively inside. Complementing the physical inside play, American guard Brandun Hughes (Southern Indiana) keys the perimeter game. A strong,undersized, athletic playmaker who excells with driving penetration, Hughes has been productive in Poland for the last several seasons. Advancing to the Polish semifinals last season, expect a strong and skilled team from Polonia this weekend in the Michelin Cup in Karlsruhe. The first game matchup with Tubingen should definitely be one to watch!
Croation first division team KK Zagreb takes on ratiopharm Ulm 2pm Friday afternoon in the Michelin Cup at Europahalle in Karlsuhe. Zagreb made it all the way to the Croatian Semifinals last season and also finished 12th in the strong Adriatic League. An excellent basketball tradition, the Ants took 5th place in Group A of the 2003-2004 ULEB Cup after finishing 4th in Group D playing in the 2003-2003 FIBA Champions Cup. In the teams history, KK Zagreb has participated in the Korac Cup, the Saporta Cup and the European Cup. Two key players from last seasons team must be replaced --- Marko Tomas (19ppg) signed with Real Madrid while Damir Miljkovic (19ppg) went to Dynamo St Petersburg in the Russian Superleague. Last weekend, Split outlasted Zagreb 85-77 for 3rd place in the tournament at Siroki Brijeg. Zagreb was led by Krunoslav Simon with 20pts. KK Zagreb will be an interesting opponent for everyone at the Michelin Cup and should make their mark on the tournament as well.
Former BG Karlsruhe Coach Dr Ivan Vojtko returns to Europahalle with his 2.Bundesliga South USC Freiburg squad for the Michelin Cup. A replacement team for Austria's Gmunden Swans who backed out of the weekend tournament, USC Freiburg has made several changes to their team and look to unveil the new players this weekend. Recently signed Swedish under20 national player Bojan Atanasoski joins the team. New players Babes Douloudis and Peter Holubek will help the team and American Charles Perry brings a presence in the paint. Recently added American forward David Gardner arrives from Ivy league Dartmouth where he averaged 10.4ppg and 4.9rpg while shooting 59% from the floor. Nils Menck and Jef Tomsech return from last seasons team and provide perimeter shooting. Two weeks ago, Freiburg went 2-1 in a preseason tournament in Lich beating the hosts TV Lich 88-82 before falling to TV Langen 93-91 and finally beating 2.Liga North team Wolfenbuttel 73-72. The Michelin Cup will clearly help Frieburg as they challenge themselves against top teams.
ULM TOURNAMENT PLANS
ratiopharm Ulm will be staying in Karlsruhe Friday and Saturday nights. A complete Michelin Cup tournament summary will be posted on Taylorhoops.com Monday September 26th. For updates throughout the weekend, please check www.basketball-ulm.de and www.bg-karlsruhe.de
Follow all the fast breaking ratiopharm Ulm basketball action all season long on Taylorhoops.com!
GO ULM!
MIKE T
