FC Bayern Basketball is German Cup Winner 2021

The FC Bayern basketball team is the German Cup winner 2021! Head coach Andrea Trinchieri's team defeated rivals Alba Berlin 85-79 in the final of the Top Four at the Audi Dome on Sunday after a rousing fight. Only about 20 hours after the 104-102 thriller in the semifinals against Ulm, Bayern, led by national player Paul Zipser - made up an early 15-point deficit against the initially fresher Berliners before the break. With great effort on defense, they wrestled down the defending champions despite some ailing players like Zan Mark Sisko and Vladimir Lucic. The Serb again delivered the decisive plays with memorable blocks against Lammers and Fontecchio and was awarded MVP of the final tournament. Among the first congratulators on court was President Herbert Hainer, who was again watching live in the Audi Dome.

After a Monday off, Bayern will start the playoff series against the Crailsheimer Merlins on Wednesday at the Audi Dome.

Quotes:

Andrea Trinchieri: "Today it was a great performance from the whole team. We played 50 minutes yesterday, but wanted the title so much. Berlin scored everything in the first seven minutes. But we did not fall apart. We then put ourselves in the only possible position to win the game. With solid defense, great fight and a lot of effort. It's always hard to win a title in your first year. To get one with these players tastes especially sweet. (...) It's very hard to win a title in your first year at a new club, with new players, but my team did a fantastic job today. At the beginning we were a bit shy and Alba led by 15 points, but we didn't give up and then started to play the way we wanted to - as a team and with a very solid defense. Our conditions were far from ideal, we played ten minutes more yesterday, had to rotate our guards and had foul problems right at the beginning of the first quarter. It's a great win, I'm so proud and I think my team deserved to win today and get a title. Of course, the season is not over yet, but these games say a lot about us. I want to congratulate all my players again: how they played, that they trusted me and how much effort they put in the game. It was the only way to win the game. My thoughts - and this is not a cliché - go to JaJuan Johnson, Nick Weiler-Babb, Diego Flaccadori and Nihad Djedovic: they also have a hand on the trophy and are part of the team, without them we would not have won a title. Our team chemistry is outstanding. (...) We are not perfect basketball-wise, but we are perfect as a group of people. We are a great team in the little things. We are together every day. When you spend that much time together, it builds a human chemistry that is more than just basketball. I'll celebrate with a good bottle or two of wine and a good cigar."

Leon Radosevic: "It was very, very exhausting. I have to thank our physios and doctors first and foremost. They worked all last night to regenerate us. I am very grateful to be able to play today. We played almost all over 35 minutes yesterday, which is why today was very important for us. It's the first culmination of everything we've been doing this season. We knew that we have some problems with our style of play in the German league. But after the EuroLeague, we can now fully focus on the playoffs and can manage to adjust to that." 

Paul Zipser: "To win here at home just feels super awesome. We had a score to settle here and it's so nice to reward ourselves with the first title now. I wasn't happy with myself yesterday. But I talked a lot with Andrea Trinchieri and Daniele Baiesi afterwards to go in with the right mindset today. Everyone really gave their all from the start. Whether it was yesterday's rotation or today's, it was just a huge team effort. What makes us special is that when someone has a bad day with us, everyone is behind you. You can stick up for each other. We are just there and help each other until the end."

Vladimir Lucic: "This is everything we work for. Moments like this are the reward for the hard work since August. I think so far we are having a great season. But we lost game five in the EuroLeague playoffs and I think that's why we just want to win titles. We have one now and we still have one to go.  Alba is a great team, one of the best teams to watch. It's always special when two of the best teams in Germany meet. It's always a tough battle between us. We wanted it maybe a little bit more today and we deserved the title. I don't know yet how we can celebrate it. It's the first title under these special circumstances. Therefore, there will not be a big celebration. The playoffs start in three days and the past two days have been hard. We need to recover and be ready for the playoffs. But maybe we can organize a little something."

Marko Pesic, General Manager: "After the game yesterday and after the first quarter today, nobody actually believed that we could win this. But we fought and fought and fought and got into a rhythm. Once we got that, we played like we did in the EuroLeague. I think the team deserves this title. With everything they've done in the last two months. I think it's also a reward for the great EuroLeague season. Let's see if this can carry us into the playoffs. For the whole club, I think it's another motivation to believe in themselves and a sign that you always have a chance to win something. We won't be able to celebrate at the moment because of Corona. That is a disadvantage, especially without fans. But there's also a second title up for grabs."

Game recap:
Wade Baldwin, Robin Amaize, Paul Zipser, James Gist and Jalen Reynolds were the starting five for the Cup Final. The Berliners found open shooters in Marcus Eriksson and Jayson Granger and started with an 8-0 run. Andrea Trinchieri didn't like that at all, which is why he took a timeout after just two minutes. This had an effect: Zipser, Reynolds and Baldwin bought Bayern a place on the scoreboard but despite high intensity on Munich's defense, Alba rarely got out of the rhythm they found early and scored 29 points in the first quarter (29-17).

As so often, Trinchieri's team did not let itself get rattled by a rough start and, led by Zipser (13 points without a break in the first half), started the second quarter with fire (31-25/13th). While Berlin was only allowed difficult shots in this phase, Sisko directed resulting fastbreaks. A 13-2 run was the result and they crept to within one (31-30/15th ) and Jayson Granger used his routine against the pressing of Bayern. They kept the physicality high and came shortly before the end of the first half to the first lead of the game (41-39).

The second half initially developed into a choppy dog fight with both teams turning the ball over twice in two minutes. Again, Zipser proved to be a good option, which is why he played through to the 25th minute (50-49). Bayern's offense stayed hot - Lucic moved to the basket with power and Reynolds also let it rip. For Coach Aito's team, Peyton Siva tried to take over, but struggled to get his points. With a four-point play by D.J. Seeley, the Munich team managed to build a small lead in the third quarter (6-58).

In the final quarter, the Albatrosse tried to get a lot of speed into the game and attack early. Bayern answered with a strong defense and forced three straight attacks with no ponits for Berlin (72-63/34th). The pressure of the Trinchieri team remained extremely high. Again and again they managed to break free from the press in a ruthless manner and use the resulting free space via Baldwin (78-72/38th). Siva tried numerous attacks to the basket, but missed some resulting free throws. Seeley and Radosevic did better on the other side, taking advantage of the fouls to take an eight-point lead (81-73/90 seconds left). A tough three-pointer by Granger and a free throw by Eriksson again cut the deficit to three points with forty seconds to go. But Tim Schneider sent Sisko to the line shortly afterwards and he had ice in his veins. A monster block by Lucic against Simone Fontecchio put the crown on the whole thing. The Cup victory was not to be taken out of the hands of the FCBB. (85-79).

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