Alba emerges victorious during the initial phase of the play-offs. - Thiemann, the world champion, involved in a wild armpit sweat three-way!
Alba Berlin triumphantly defeats Telekom Baskets Bonn 94:68 in the initial quarter-final match of the Easycredit Basketball Bundesliga's knockout phase. Berlin holds a 1:0 lead in the best-of-five series, maintaining their reputation as Germany's dominant team with 11 championship titles. The competition continues this Sunday at 5 pm (live on Dyn and WELTTV/Test Dyn for two days free of charge/show).
In the latest clash between Berlin and Bonn, the second-ranked team takes on the seventh-ranked squad. Is there a past history? Yes, but not a happy one for Berlin. Last season, they were also the second-place finishers in the quarter-finals, only to be eliminated by seventh-ranked ratiopharm Ulm, who went on to win the German championship.
Berlin started off strongly, scoring 10:3 in the opening part of the playoff game between the two teams in 15 years. Dyn basketball pundit Philipp Hartwich (BG Göttingen, with 111 Bundesliga games) believes the Berliners are strong contenders for the title, stating, "27 wins at the end of the season equate to a house number!"
Alba Berlin topples Telekom Baskets Bonn
Alba Berlin will be without Justin Bean, who incurred an unfortunate ankle injury during the last pre-game session. The American is sidelined. Benefitting from Bonn's misfortune, Benedikt Turudic returned after missing his last game in December due to a back issue.
At the midway mark, Alba's score leads 41:31; the game's outcome is all but certain. Bonn defeated MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg in the qualifying playoffs on Tuesday.
Halftime saw a memorable moment when world champ Johannes Thiemann connected on a trey, widening the gap to 50:35. Dyn commentator Florian von Stackelberg quipped, "Johannes Thiemann! Ho, ho! With the definition of 'In your Face!' I think he picked up Brian Fobbs' armpit sweat while scoring." Hartwich applauded, "Absolutely perfect!"
By the end of the third quarter, the scoreboard displayed 68:51. Hartwich, a prominent league insider who garnered attention in November for a live TV love revelation, celebrated the Berliners, "Alba isn't just Tim Schneider – it's also Jonas Mattisseck and Malte Delow. They are all three mental powerhouses. All three are timeless so far." Stackelberg chuckled into the microphone, "Oh, very nice. We've acquired a basketball poet."
The Uber Arena in Berlin saw a standing ovation in the final moments of play. Alba's Matt Thomas (18 points) rested on Dyn following the match, "Winning the first game is significant. Bonn is an impressive team, but we had a solid run that brought us the victory. The second game will be a fierce competition!"
Till Pape of Bonn shared, "The last two minutes of the first half were critical. We surrendered a 10:0 run, which we desperately tried to avoid. The playoffs are an entirely new experience for many of us. We have to learn from this match."
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Source: symclub.org
