Before the return journey, coach Gordon Herbert gathered his team once again for a meeting in the "Merida" room: A brief review of the big victory in Barcelona and a moment of refocusing before the next challenge on their path. With three games remaining in the regular EuroLeague season, Bayern's basketball team remains in a strong position in the race for the postseason.
"I told the players that I am proud of how they responded to the setback in Baskonia, already against Rostock," Gordon Herbert explained on Wednesday morning before the return flight. "If we are still thinking about Barcelona when facing a strong team like Partizan, we have a problem. That kind of mistake happens often in sports, and we need to keep that in mind when playing in front of our fans."
Herbert: "No more thinking about Barcelona"
After the thrilling 102-101 victory at Barça, marking Munich’s 18th win of the season, the next showdown follows immediately. On Thursday at 8:30 PM (MagentaSport), Bayern hosts Partizan Belgrade in the SAP Garden, which has been sold out for weeks with 11,200 fans. With a 16-15 record, the Serbian powerhouse is also fighting for a chance at the playoffs or play-ins. Led by legendary coach Željko Obradović and World Champion Izzy Bonga, who transferred from Munich, Partizan secured an 84-71 home win against bottom-ranked Berlin on Tuesday in front of 19,000 fans. Bonga, who returned last week from a hand injury, contributed 14 points, making him the team’s third-best scorer behind Brandon Davies (22) and Carlik Jones (15).
On the flight back to Munich, Herbert studied the upcoming opponent. On game day, he will go over the details once again in the SAP Garden and remind his team of their mentality against Rostock (91-66) and in Barcelona. "In both games, you could see how connected we are as a group and how everyone is willing to sacrifice for the team," the Canadian coach emphasized. "Today, we can't feel too good about yesterday. Looking ahead to Partizan, we must internalize how we approached the last two games."
Belgrade looking to close the gap
Elias Harris, who had an outstanding performance in Barcelona as Booker’s backup, scoring 17 points and grabbing three offensive rebounds behind top scorer Carsen Edwards (19.6 PPG), will likely play a key role with his experience. "I try to replace Devin as best as I can," said the 35-year-old power forward about his teammate, whose comeback could be imminent. "But a win like the one at Barça is only possible with a strong team effort. We have to stay focused on the next game – it doesn’t help to start looking at the standings and doing the math now."
The complex standings arithmetic is something for Nobel Prize winners. What is clear, however, is that FC Bayern, with an 18-13 record before Wednesday’s games, sits two wins ahead of 11th place (Partizan, tied with Milan), which is outside of the play-in spots. Partizan won the first matchup on Matchday 3 in mid-October, 86-78.
The visitors will do everything they can to close the gap. Alongside Bonga, who averages 25 minutes on the court (7.4 PPG, 41.6% three-point shooting, 4.2 RPG), Partizan relies on its American core, featuring Carlik Jones (13.6 PPG) and Sterling Brown (12.7 PPG), as well as big men Brandon Davies (9.7 PPG) and Zach LeDay (11.7 PPG, 6.0 RPG).
Despite the offensive spectacle at Palau Blaugrana, Bayern demonstrated in the final minutes – with an 11-2 run – that they can adjust defensively. Key defensive rebounds by captain Vladimir Lučić and Nick Weiler-Babb’s shutdown defense against Barcelona’s go-to guy Kevin Punter in the closing seconds showcased Munich’s toughness and composure. Both qualities will be crucial again on Thursday evening when the next thriller unfolds.