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ULM SCRIMMAGES IN NORDLINGEN! One day after holding their first post practice session, ratiopharm Ulm traveled just over an hour through the beautiful snow covered central German countryside to the mideval town of Nordlingen for a scrimmage Thursday night. Off since their December 12th home victory over Nordlingen --- a win that helped the team improve to 10-2 in 2.Bundesliga South play--- Ulm players and staff enjoyed family and friends for the Christmas Holiday before reuniting in Kuhberghalle Wednesday night December 29th for a energized session. Rested and refreshed, players reported in good condition as their bumps, bruises and injuries had plenty of time to heal. Ulm used the Christmas break as an opportunity to make several roster moves as well. The most significant change came with the releasing of talented power forward Niki Arinze leaving ratiopharm Ulm with an open import roster spot. Forwards Florian Mobius and Antoine Sinclair will play the 4 spot for the team. Ulm management also placed Dennis Woolfolk in charge of the newly acquired farm team in Neu Ulm. The veteran guard, Woolfolk will work as Mike T's assistant in Ulm and serve as the player/head coach of Neu Ulm. The excellent move with Dennis opened up a roster spot with ratiopharm Ulm for top flight youth prospect Benni Gulde who will play with a double lisence for Ulm and Neu Ulm.
Ulm huddles in a timeout during the Nordlingen scrimmage Thursday's scrimmage, one of two mid-season break exhibition games for ratiopharm Ulm, was arranged to help the team regain their sharpness and rhythm after the extended holiday. As expected, Ulm came out rusty. Sloppy passing and ballhandling and an inability to catch passes stymied the Ulm attack. Working hard on defense and in transition, Nordlingen began to edge ahead. Ulm's relaxing break revealed itself in the teams 12 point first quarter. Trailing 18-12 after one, ratiopharm Ulm remained persistent as they were determined to eliminate the rust from their game. The second quarter saw Ulm perform with a better tempo on both ends of the floor. Reducing their turnovers and passing and catching better, the team cut into Nordlingen's lead. Back to back possessions of poor transition defense allowed Nordlingen to rebuild their double digit advantage forcing an Ulm timeout.
Center Maksym Shtein sinks one of his two three pointers Maintaining their composure and working through their adversity, Ulm began to show signs of life. Strong rebounding from Antoine Sinclair and Florian Mobius provided the team with help on both ends. Christian Grosse made his mark on the game with excellent three point shooting and forward Emeka Erege ran the floor hard in transition while relentlessly going to the offensive glass. Unfortunately, the only negative for Ulm's second quarter, center Big Mike Niebling landed on an opponents foot when leaping for a loose ball. He would not return to the game as he nursed an ankle sprain. Trailing 37-29 at the half, Ulm was not surprised by their position. Focusing on making strong plays against pressure, attacking quicker in transition, defensive discipline and determination to find the rhythm, Ulm elevated their game in the second half. A 30-24 third quarter drew Ulm within 2 at 61-59. Again, Antoine Sinclair made it happen in the paint and on the boards while Christian Grosse sank three after three in a hot shooting display. Bursting out of the blocks beginning the 4th, Ulm extended their advantage to double digits and never looked back. The two teams played an extra fifth quarter featuring end to end excitement and action. Taylorhoops.com Player of the Game Antoine Sinclair posted an impressive double double with 19 points and 11 boards. Christian Grosse drilled 5 of 8 threes on his way to a strong 17 point night while Maksym Shtein and Emeka Erege all played well down the stretch. ULM STATISTICS from 12-30-04 Nordlingen Scrimmage Bree 9pts 3 reb 3 ast 6 turn 2 stl 3-8shooting (3-5 from three) Price 12pt 4reb 1ast 2stl 5-9shooting (2-3 from three) Erege 15pt 5reb 2ast 2turn 7-13shooting (1-2 from three) Mobius 6pt 11reb 1ast 3turn 3-10shooting (0-1 from three) Shtein 15pt 6reb 1ast 2turn 4-6shooting (5-6 free throws) (2-4 from three) Heizer 3pt 1-5shooting (1-1free throw)(0-4 from three) Sinclair 18pt 11reb 3turn 2stl 9-12shooting Niebling 3pt 2reb 1-1shooting (1-1free throw) Grosse 17pt 1reb 1turn 2stl 6-12shooting (5-8 from three) Waitzinger 4pt 1turn 2-2shooting Gulde 2pt 1ast 1turn 1stl 1-1shooting score by quarters 1 2 half 3 4 final 5 Total ULM 12 17 29 30 23 82 21 103 Nordlingen 18 19 37 24 11 72 23 95 Follow all the fast breaking ratiopharm Ulm baketball action all season long on Taylorhoops.com! GO ULM! MIKE T
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