The FC Bayern Munich's basketball players won their BBL home game against Bremerhaven 91-80 just 42 hours after the important EuroLeague victory in Podgorica. In front of 4,492 spectators in the Audi Dome, the Munich players were clearly superior from the very first minute and remain as standings leader. Captain Danilo Barthel and Stefan Jovic were rested for the game and Petteri Koponen was the top scorer with 15 points.
The Bavarians will play against Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Audi Dome next Thursday at 20:30 and need a victory in the EuroLeague in their fight for the playoffs.
Before the match, Danilo Barthel and Devin Booker handed over a check worth 36,830 euros to Christiane Bronner of the Outpatient Children's Hospice Munich (AKM). The money was collected during the FCBB cup deposit campaign in the Audi Dome ("Dunk Dein Pfand") and at an auction of the FCBB Business Circle last Sunday for the FCBB partner facility.
Points per quarter Bayern - Bremerhaven: 27-14, 28-23, 23-24, 13-19.
FCBB Stats: Petteri Koponen (15 points/3 threes), Nihad Djedovic (14), Maodo Lo (14), Leon Radosevic (11), Derrick Williams (11), Vladimir Lucic (7), Alex King (5), Robin Amaize (5), Marvin Ogunsipe (4), Braydon Hobbs (3), Nemanja Dangubic (2) and Stefan Jovic (dnp).
Quotes:
FCBB head coach, Dejan Radonjic: "We had a very good game in Podgorica, especially the first ten and the last 20 minutes. For this game only 40 hours later the plan was to win and distribute the minutes well. We managed that and we controlled the game, so I'm satisfied. Danilo and Stefan didn't play today to spare them; they're ok and ready for the next practice."
Bremerhaven head coach, Michael Mai: "We knew that the game would be a big challenge, they have an incredibly good team. We only had one day to prepare and therefore had a limited offensive game plan. But the commitment of most players was good. Our discipline in the game, our rotation and other small things were not always good, and if you give a team like Munich a few millimeters, they take advantage of it. We need to play better on defense but the guys didn't give up and fought to the end, I hope we can repeat that in the next games. Then we'll see what's possible before the end of the season, our goal is of course to stay in this top league."
1st quarter
Maodo Lo, Nihad Djedovic, Nemanja Dangubic, Derrick Williams and Leon Radosevic started the game for the German champions. The Munich team needed just twelve seconds for their first basket when Nihad Djedovic score at the rim with no contest. A quick 7-0 run brought a 9-2 lead and caused Michael Mai, the new coach of the polar bears, to take a time-out. Maodo Lo enraptured the fans by hitting multiply hook-shots and Bayern took a commanding 13-2 lead. The Bavarians made life difficult for the polar bears with their defense and forced five turnovers and brought the lead to an outstanding 15-points at 17-2. After the first ten minutes the FCBB was up 27-14.
2nd quarter
The guests then surprised the Bavarians with a sudden increase in commitment and caused FCBB coach Dejan Radonjic to take a time-out after the lead had shrunk to four after a 9-0 run for Bremerhaven. The time-out seemed to help and the team brought a much more intense defense which helped again take a double-digit lead. Leon Radosevic slammed home an AlleyOop off an assist by Robin Amaize and the score was 43-27 with three minutes to play in the half. The Bavarians got a bit sloppy again with a few turnovers but Derrick Williams hit a three-pointer and a dunk to set things right again. With a clear 55-37 lead the Bavarians started the half-time break relatively relaxed.
3rd quarter
Nihad Djedovic started the quarter with a three and this led to a sudden 8-0 run for the Munich team with six points coming from Leon Radosevic. Bremerhaven countered with a 12-2 run, but nobody in the Audi Dome had the slightest feeling that Bayern would possibly lose this game. After 30 minutes of play the Bavarians led commandlingly, 78-61.
4th quarter
Vladimir Lucic drilled another three and ended any hopes that the Bremerhaven Polar Bears may have had. The game seemed to be decided and Bayern didn't score for several minutes until Nihad Djedovic finished the dry spell from the free-throw line. The polar bears were anxious to make the final score presentable and the Munich team let things get a bit away from them and the lead shrunk to ten. The Bavarians picked things up when they needed to most and Robin Amaize sank a three to take a 91-78 lead with one minute to play. The game ended as it had begun, with Bayern on top.
Photo credit: Eirich, Stickel & Rauchensteiner