The basketball players of FC Bayern Munich won their third game this week: Against the MBC the final score was 96-86 and thus the BBL defending champs remain the standings leader with an 8-0 record. In front of 5,180 spectators in the Leipzig Arena Bayern was able to take a lead early and stay in front for the rest of the game. In the last quarter the hosts got to within three points but Bayern put the game away with a 10-0 run. All Munich players scored, six in double-digits. Nihad Djedovic was still missing and Danilo Barthel rested as well.
The November marathon for the FCBB will continue on Tuesday (26.11.) when relatively local rival, Ulm, will compete in the Audi Dome- tip-off 20:30 CET. The Swabians recently surprised Bamberg with an 81-78 win and whooped Hamburg on Sunday (102-69). Afterwards, the trip to Istanbul will lead to a matchup at the EuroLeague runner-up, Anadolu Efes (Friday, 18:30 CET).
Tickets: FCBB vs. Ulm
Points per quarter Bayern - MBC: 26-18, 22-25, 25-18, 23-25.
Facts & Figures - Two-point shooting: 68% (FCBB) // 46% (MBC); Three-point shooting: 50% // 45%; Rebounds: 34 // 31; Assists: 19 // 24; Ball losses: 10 // 10. - Injuries: TJ Bray (post-foot surgery), Josh Huestis (in training) and Nihad Djedovic (knee).
FCBB stats: Paul Zipser (16 points), Maodo Lo (13), Diego Flaccadori (13), Petteri Koponen (10), Greg Monroe (10), Mathias Lessort (10/8 rebounds/4 blocks), Alex King (8), Vladimir Lucic (6), DeMarcus Nelson (6), Leon Radosevic (4) and Danilo Barthel (dnp).
Quotes:
FCBB head coach, Dejan Radonjic: "Our schedule is very difficult right now with five games in ten days and only 40 hours between games. That's why it was important today to have enough energy and to be very concentrated. We had some good phases and others that weren't so good because the MBC also played well and fought their way back to within three points. But after that we quickly had it under control again. The important thing today is a victory and that we could give some players a little break. Danilo had the plan from the start not to play in this one. We'll continue on Tuesday against Ulm."
Maodo Lo: "Ideally we could have extended our lead more and more, but we were too inconsistent today. On the other hand, it's also good that we know we can flip the switch. Today it was important that the minutes were well distributed and that everyone could get into their own rhythm in order to contribute to the success."
1st quarter
DeMarcus Nelson, Vladimir Lucic, Petteri Koponen, Alex King and Greg Monroe were the starters for FCBB coach, Radonjic. The Syntainics MBC started on fire and hit three threes forcing Radonjic to take a time-out down 11-4. The discussion had the desired effect as the defense was intensified and they were able to prevent open shots. A three from Koponen began a quick 13-0 run and the guests had the matter under control and led 26-18 after quarter number one.
2nd quarter
The defense for Munich was a bit weak and allowed some easy points to the last-place team in the BBL. Fortunately, the offense for the defending champions played well and kept the lead. Center Mathias Lessort received a lot of playing time and set a good tone on both sides of the court. But suddenly mistakes crept in and the MBC used this to tie things up at 39-39 with three minutes to play in the half. The FCBB remained calm, however, and two free throws from Monroe and another Koponen three re-claimed the lead. The playing time was distributed on many shoulders, all ten Munich players had entered themselves into the scorer list.
3rd quarter
Lo hit his second three-pointer for a seven-point lead while Monroe struggled to hit his shots. Paul Zipser hit a big three and forced a time-out by MBC as Bayern took a ten-point lead. Zipser now put his stamp on the game and slammed home a spectacular dunk with four minutes to play in the third quarter. The Munich team missed some chances towards the end of the quarter and were a bit sloppy defensively but still managed to keep a double-digit lead, 73-61.
4th quarter
The hosts put a lot of effort into the final quarter and pushed Bayern to an uncomfortable final segment. The Bavarians passed the ball quickly and cleverly but could not manage to get the ball into the basket. This kept the MBC within reach and gave them some hope for their second BBL win. Radonjic took a time-out with five minutes remaining before the MBC shortened the lead to 80-77. Exactly at the right time, the Munich team found their feet and played like the top team that we know them to be. Zipser sunk a three from the corner, then Lo drilled a three oof his own for a nine-point lead. Lessort and Lo completed the 10-0 run and the eighth victory in eight games was secured.
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Photo-Credit: Stickel & Boesener