TAYLORHOOPS.COM ULM UPDATE
86 
58
DEFENSIVE-TEAM WIN!
On the strength of outstanding defensive effort and inspiring teamwork, ratiopharm Ulm stifled SellbyTel Baskets Nurnberg with an 86-58 victory at Sportszentrum Kuhberg in Ulm Saturday night. Bouncing back from last weeks loss in Paderborn and overcoming the loss of star guard and leading scorer Jonathan Levy, ratiopharm Ulm turned up their defensive intensity and then turned to each other on the offensive end. Ulm's team defense held Nurnberg to 58 points, limited the Falke to 33% floor shooting and forced 17 turnovers. In a game which saw every Ulmer score, All Star power forward Jeff Gibbs exploded in the second half to finish as the games topscorer with 26 points. Austen Rowland added 12 points and 5 assists and Maksym Shtein netted 11 with 4 boards. Energizer Konrad Wysocki produced a 10 point 10 rebound double double off the bench for Ulm. Now 11-12, ratiopharm Ulm extended their Sportszentrum Kuhberg winning streak to five and once again benefitted from an electric Kuhberg crowd. For ratiopharm Ulm, Saturday night was a terrific "Defensive-Team Win".
Ulm earned a "Defensive-Team Win" Saturday against Nurnberg!
Click here for complete Ulm @ Nurnberg Box Score
click here for Ulm v Nurnberg Photo Gallery!
With a week of hardwork on the practice court, ratiopharm Ulm was focused to improve their defensive play Saturday night against Nurnberg. Unfortunately, pre-game decisions would "play it safe" with star guard Jonathan Levy --- not only the teams leading scorer, but also arguably Ulm's top perimeter defender. As the team prepared for the game mentally and physically, Ulm players aimed to fill the Levy void "collectively" with team plays on the offensive end rather than with individual solo efforts. Meanwhile, everyone on the roster was challenged to raise their level defensively. In the starting lineup replacing the injured Levy, athletic combo guard Ian Young was prepared for a solid game. A hardworking backup who has really helped the Ulm team at times this season off the bench, had patiently awaited his turn within the rotation. For Ian Young Saturday night, his time was now.
Ulm's Jeff Gibbs powers to the basket against Tim Nees of Nurnberg. Gibbs sparked Ulm's run with 20 points in the second half on his way to a game high 26 in the win!
After winning 2 straight games to pull even with Giessen in the battle to avoid relegation from the Bundesliga, Nurnberg was at full strength and playing their best basketball of the season. Head Coach Stephan Harlander has helped keep his team on track despite much adversity this season. Playing with hunger and desparation to stay in the Bundesliga, ratiopharm Ulm knew Saturday nights game would be much different from their 89-73 road win at Nurnberg Arena back in October. For Ulm, Saturday nights challenge was clear --- bounce back from last weeks loss while overcoming this weeks lineup loss of Jonathan Levy.
As expected, the game got off to a physical, halfcourt start. Both teams gave excellent defensive effort in the first half. Nurnberg defense seemed to frustrate the Ulm attack by drawing several charges on big players in the post. Offensively, Nurnberg opened with quality play from Ryan DeMichael, Michael Lake and Sotirius Gioulekas in the first half. Accurate three point shooting was a key to Nurnberg's first half attack as the team drilled 5 of 9 from beyond the arc. Ulm countered with a balanced team effort as the players attempted to find their rhythm without Jono. After one quarter of defensive oriented action, Ulm held a 20-16 lead. In the first quarter, the Sportszentrum Kuhberg crowd was pleased to see the return of Jan "the Gun" Sprunken to the floor. In an attempt to emphasize the "Team Attack", all 10 active Ulm players played in the first half and the bench was rotated actively. Ulm's full court pressure created turnovers that helped the team build momentum. On one possession, Austen Rowland simply "took" the ball from a Nurnberg guard and then raced in uncontested for a layup. Foul quickly added up for both benches. Former Ulm C Tim Nees was hit with his third personal foul midway through the second quarter. Meanwhile, Ulm power forward Jeff Gibbs was saddled with his second soon to be followed by C Bryan Lucas. As a result, the second quarter finished even at 12 and Ulm went into the halftime lockerroom with a 4 point advantage 32-28.
At the half, Ulm had shot 44% from the floor compared with Nurnberg's 35% and outrebounded the Falke 21-17. The major statistical concern was Ulm's 0 for 8 three point shooting while Nurnberg sank 5 of 9. Clearly, Nurnberg's good accuracy was a point of emphasis and Ulm discussed several defensive points. However, the defensive effort and intensity was clearly excellent and the major concern for Ulm was the offensive end. Without Levy, the team seemed to be searching for a rhythm and working to figure itself out. Focused on maintaining defensive intensity and effort until they solved the puzzle, ratiopharm Ulm returned to the floor determined to be the team that made the run.
And what a run it was! Powered by power forward Jeff Gibbs, who scored 6 points in the first half with foul trouble, Ulm exploded to a 21-5 third quarter run to break the game open. Gibbs drilled a three, finished a traditional three point play and drove coast to coast for a finish and a foul bringing the fans to their feet! Ulm outscored Nurnberg 30-16 in the third quarter and took a 62-44 lead into the fourth. In the fantastic team effort, the entire active roster made contributions to the regular rotation. Konrad Wysocki was a key player for Ulm in the surge, rebounding and running for scores. Ian Young played strong defense and executed well at both the two and point positions. Big men Maksym Shtein and Florian Mobius were effective in the paint and Christian Grosse finally broke the ice by sinking Ulm's second three pointer before the third quarter buzzer.
Ulm Captain Emeka Erege was outstanding on defense and contributed 6 points and 4 boards to the team win!
As Ulm hoped at the half, maintaining their defensive intensity helped the team eventually find a way to break the game open. Thanks to a terrific defensive effort from the entire team, Ulm was positioned to win the game. Finishing the fourth quarter strong, Ulm outscored Nurnberg 24-14 over the last ten minutes. Forward Florian Mobius put the exclamation point on the victory with a breakway slam dunk at the buzzer sealing Ulm's 86-58 win. Enjoying the performance, the Sportszentrum Kuhberg crowd celebrated the fourth consecutive home win with their team!
Jan Sprunken scored 4 points with 1 rebound and 1 assist in his return to action at Sportszentrum Kuhberg after missing over two months rehabbing a broken bone in his face suffered November 11th against Braunschweig.
For the game, ratiopharm Ulm's defensive effort held Nurnberg to 58 total points, 33% floor shooting, forced 17 turnovers and outrebounded the guests 44-36. Jeff Gibbs sparked Ulm's second half outburst with 20 points in the final 20 minutes to finish with a game high 26 and 5 rebounds. Austen Rowland played a crafty game on his way to 12 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds and 3 steals. Maksym Shtein was also strong in the second half run scoring 11 points with 4 rebounds for the game. Konrad Wysocki added 10 points and 10 rebounds in a productive double-double for Ulm. Ian Young, Emeka Erege and Bryan Lucas added 6 points apiece with solid contributions for their team. Jan Sprunken scored 4 points in his return to home court action, Christian Grosse 3 and Florian Mobius 2 points with 5 rebounds. The team defensive effort and teamwork on offense was the clear key to victory Saturday. Meanwhile, for Nurnberg, Sotirius Gioulekas scored 17 points with 7 rebounds while Ryan DeMichael added 11 points 3 boards.
Ulm Forward Florian Mobius was again strong from the bench!
Earning win number 11, Ulm moved 6 wins clear over Nurnberg and positioned themselves well for their season's goal of staying in the Bundesliga. The young Ulm team continues to make positive steps forward and learn what it takes to be successful in the Bundesliga.
Christian Grosse turns the corner against Nurnberg's Dwayne Lee!
At 11-12, ratiopharm Ulm is now in 12th place after 23 Game Days. With much basketball remaining and the top 8 making the playoffs, Bundesliga standings are as follows:
W L +/-
1 Ludwigsburg 18-5 +180
02 Berlin 17-5 +172
03 Köln 16-6 +70
04 Bonn 15-9 +40
05 Quakenbrück 14-9 +19
06 Bamberg 13-8 +166
07 Bremerhaven 13-9 +189
08 Frankfurt 12-11 -78
09 Oldenburg 12-11 +96
10 B'schweig 11-12 -48
11 Paderborn 11-12 +51
12 ratiopharm Ulm 11-12 -16
13 Leverkusen 11-12 +13
14 Tübingen 10-12 -40
15 Trier 8-15 -88
16 Gießen 6-17 -154
17 Nürnberg 5-19 -257
18 Karlsruhe 2-21 -315
Ulm C Maksym Shtein draws a foul in the second half of his teams win. Shtein was strong in the second half run on his way to 11 points and 4 rebounds!
Jonathan Levy missed Saturday nights game but is expected to return for next weeks road game in Bamberg.
Returning to the practice court this week, ratiopharm Ulm will prepare for the challenging road game against powerful brose Baskets Bamberg at Jako Arena in Bamberg Saturday March 10th. Follow all the fastbreaking ratiopharm Ulm Bundesliga basketball action all season long on Taylorhoops.com!
GO ULM!
MIKE T
