Bayern succeeds in their dress rehearsal for the Top Four at the Audi Dome

FC Bayern's basketball team had a successful dress rehearsal for Saturday's Cup semifinal against Ulm: Head coach Andrea Trinchieri's team won 89-71 at the Telekom Baskets Bonn on Tuesday evening after a generally superior performance, thus picking up its 23rd victory in its 30th BBL game. After a strong first quarter (33-18), Bonn came as close as 66-63 at the end of the third quarter, before Munich team started to defend better again. Top scorers were Jalen Reynolds (24) and Wade Baldwin (22). The FCBB was missing Vladimir Lucic, James Gist, D.J. Seeley and convalescent Nihad Djedovic.

The FCBB return to action on Wednesday night. On Friday evening, they - like the other Top Four participants Ulm (FCBB semifinal opponent on Saturday, 16:00./free access on MagentaSport), Goettingen and Berlin - will move into the tournament hotel "Leonardo Royal" near Munich's Olympic grounds.    

Points per quarter Bayern - Bonn: 33-18, 14-18, 19-24, 23-11.

Stats: Two-point shooting: 66% (FCBB) // 50% (Bonn); Three-point shooting: 29% // 33%; Free throw shooting: 77% // 73%; Rebounds: 40 // 24; Assists: 16 // 11; Turnovers: 11 // 11.

Quotes:
Andrea Trinchieri: "I think we had a solid game with a very good first quarter. We defended well in the first and second quarter, which was our goal because we knew Bonn has good players. They can score, like with Chris Babb and Micovic. We lost that in the third quarter and allowed 24 points, which is way too much. But then we defended well again in the last quarter and only allowed eleven points. It was a good way to fight back after a very bad game defensively against Braunschweig - and on to the next game."

Paul Zipser: "Unfortunately, we have such phases of slacking off too often, especially in the BBL, when we sometimes pull away with ten, 20 points. We played very well together, in front and behind, had a good rhythm in the first half - especially in the first quarter. Then it shouldn't happen to us the way it happened to us again. But then we show character again. When you notice that they come a little bit closer, like today to three points, then we just don't feel like losing. That's why we then kicked it up a notch again, but it should be more continuous for us, that we keep our focus and energy, even if it's hard."

Nick Weiler-Babb: "We won the game, but my brother played well and hit some difficult shots against me. But for me it was also the first game after an injury. We have a tough cup game coming up on Saturday, and the win today was very important to get back in rhythm and get that valuable preparation game back on track today. With my injury, it is getting better day by day with the good care and treatment. Today was the first outing in two weeks, so I don't have to play that many minutes yet."

Game recap:
Wade Baldwin, Jason George, Nick Weiler-Babb, Paul Zipser and Leon Radosevic made up Trinchieri's starting lineup. Radosevic continued his convincing performance in the game against Braunschweig and scored six points in the opening phase (9-2 /3rd). Wade Baldwin put on a show with his athleticism and this resulted in a 7-0 Baldwin run (18-11/6th). Zipser's three-pointer gave Munich its first double-digit lead (21-11/7th). Bayern appeared committed and focused, the clearly recognizable plan was to avoid another defeat in the BBL. After the first quarter they led convincingly 33-18, Baldwin alone had contributed a whopping 15 points.

The Bonners also played into the Bayern's hands with numerous turnovers and the lead was extended to 43-25 (14th). Babb against Weiler-Babb was an entertaining duel to watch, the elder Chris Babb, playing for the Bonners, proved to be more accurate at least up until the second quarter. Coach Trinchieri distributed the game time on several shoulders and David Kramer via three-pointer took a 47-29 lead (18th). The Baskets immediately took advantage of an offensive lull by Bayern to go on a 7-0 run - 47-36 after the first half.

Jalen Reynolds kept his scoring rate flawless - his shots found their way into the basket from all over the court as if magnetically attracted (51-38/22nd). The worry lines on the coach's forehead did not bode well and Trinchieri was not satisfied with the effort of his players. Bonn sensed some breathing room and were several times on the verge of a single-digit deficit, but Baldwin had something to say against it (59-47/27th). After a rather bizarre decision on a technical foul against Baldwin, the Bonners were within nine points (59-50/28th). The FCBB did not really get going again and the lead melted further to 66-60 (30th).

The Bonners had gained the momentum and pushed for the lead change, but Reynolds used his power under the basket and scored six points in a row (72-65/33rd).  A brisk 8-0 run was the deserved reward up flipping an energy switch - time-out Bonn (76-65/34th). Concentration was back as can be seen from the high percentage of made shots. Youngster Jason George took advantage of the coach's confidence and scored from the free-throw line for an 80-67 lead (36th). The impressive willpower made the lead much more comfortable heading into crunch time - 86-69 with 120 seconds left on the clock. . The nicest gesture of the evening was the exchange of jerseys between the "Babb Brothers" after the game.

TO THE SCHEDULE

Photo credit: Stickel, Ittermann