With their last bit of strength and sheer willpower into the semifinals! FC Bayern Basketball won the second away game in Ludwigsburg thanks to a real show of energy, winning the quarterfinal series 3:1.
In front of 3,450 fans, including President Herbert Hainer, the cup winners held their ground in a borderline physical duel for 40 minutes, never trailing and winning 76:69 (40:34).
MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg - FC Bayern Basketball 69:76 (34:40)
FCBB:
Carsen Edwards (22 points), Devin Booker (13, 8 rebounds), Elias Harris (8), Serge Ibaka (7, 6 rebounds), Vladimir Lucic (7, 8 rebounds, 4 assists), Leandro Bolmaro (7), Andreas Obst (5), Niels Giffey (4), Isaac Bonga (3, 9 rebounds, 4 assists), Nelson Weidemann, Niklas Wimberg, Ivan Kharchenkov (dnp)
Top scorer Ludwigsburg:
Eddy Edigin (15 points, 14 rebounds)
Referee
Gentian Cici, Carsten Straube, Johannes Hack
Attendance
3,452
First home game on Wednesday
Starting Wednesday (May 29), FC Bayern Basketball will face surprise team Würzburg, who sensationally won their series against champions Ulm with a 75:72 win to make it 3:1 on their home court. Semifinal 2 – each game at BMW Park at 8:30 PM – will take place two days later (Friday, May 31). The date for a possible fifth game in Munich: Thursday, June 6.
Once again without Francisco and Babb
In Ludwigsburg, Francisco and Weiler-Babb sat on the sidelines and cheered on their team. The start was successful with a 13:5 run (8th minute), with Giffey showing off some casual hangtime twice. The largest lead was 22:11 (12th minute), but Bayern missed too many shots at the free-throw line. Eventually, Giffey caught a bloody nose, and he was out.
Quotes
Pablo Laso, Head Coach FC Bayern Basketball: "Congratulations to my players for today's victory and the series win. We knew it would be tough because Ludwigsburg plays very aggressively on both ends of the court. After losing Francisco and without Weiler-Babb, our rotation in the guard positions was very short, and Ludwigsburg put a lot of pressure on us. But we understood after the first game that we needed to play solid defense, and that’s what brought us the victory. In the TV interview, I was asked about Carsen Edwards and how important it is that he is clutch at the end – of course, but we first had to defend. The whole team did a good job, stayed together, and defended well in our three wins. It's hard to keep up with Ludwigsburg, they are aggressive, create well out of the pick and roll, and have good shooters, but we were able to control them defensively, and that’s what brought us the victory in this series. Congratulations to Coach King, I think he did a great job this year. We need to focus on the semifinals starting tomorrow. (...) I think Elias Harris is having a great season for us. We have managed his minutes well throughout the year, he has stayed fit, and he gives us a lot when he’s on the court. He knows how to play. From day one, he has done a great job."
Isaac Bonga: "Shoutout to Ludwigsburg, the guys gave it their all, every single game was a real battle. It was really hard work. It’s a challenge, and I’m very proud of my defense – Ludwigsburg is a good opponent for that. (...) I expect the same kind of battle against Würzburg, we will prepare and make sure we play our game."