Paul Albrecht (208-PF-1993) is a 29 year old 205cm forward playing his second season with the Dragons Rhoendorf (Regionalliga). He has played 162 pro A games with teams like Jena, Paderborn, Essen, Hanau and the Artland Dragons. He also played 49 Pro B games with the Baskets Akad.Weser-Ems/Oldenburger TB. Last season with the Dragons Rhondorf, he averaged 8.3ppg, 8.3rpg, 1.8apg, FGP: 56.5%, 3PT: 16.7%, FT: 50.0%. In 2010, he played for Germany at the U-17 World Championships dueling against Future #1 NBA Draft Pick Anthony Bennett and future NBA player Andrew Wiggins. He spoke to germanhoops.com after the massive 92-74 win over Lok Bernau.

Congrats Paul for the big win over Lok Bernau in the first Playdown game. How good did it feel to win again?

It is always good to win. We are all happy. It is priceless to win the first game of the playdowns. But we still have five games to go. We all had a lot of energy and every player was on tonight.

With kind of feeling did you go into the game knowing it was your birthday and you had last hit them with a triple double?

Today was a nice birthday. My family did all they could to make me feel good. Even though it was my birthday, it wasn’t any different than usual. I was still able to have my normal game day routine. We had a very good practice week. All were motivated going into the game. Plus we had a very good feeling going in.

Today you turned 29 years old. Do you feel like the boys were extra motivated to play tonight?

I don’t know. We recently had a few birthdays. Yesterday it was Oshane Drews birthday. We already had a good feeling at the shoot around this morning. It was nice to see that we were able to translate our good week of practice into the game.

When Oshane Drews nailed the three for the 5-2 lead, did you know that this could be a very good evening for the Dragons Rhondorf?

Yes definitely It isn’t usual for him to make three’s. I didn’t even notice it right away. But when I did I was very happy for him.

The Dragons Rhondorf exploded for 33 points in the first quarter. Isn’t it usually a good omen when Nicolas Buchholz gets going early?

Yes it is a good omen. He scored the last games, but his percentages weren’t as good. But we all know how good of a shooter he is. But not only that he also drives very well to the basket.

A big strength tonight was not allowing Lok Bernau to get over the hump. This already began in the second quarter. Was the mental toughness where you wanted to see it today?

We were all very strong tonight and were on the same page. Every player did their job tonight and were mentally strong.

In the third quarter Lok Bernau continued to fight. A big thorn in the Dragons side was Gian Aydinglu. Is he the type of small guard that every opponent hates and teammate loves?

Yes he is very small and quick and a real pain. He did a good job against us and annoyed us. But despite his play, I feel that we were always ready to give them an answer and not give up a crazy lead.

In the fourth quarter the Dragons Rhondorf continued to hold the double digit lead. What was key in crunch-time for conserving the win?

We remained focused at both ends of the court. I have to give a lot of praise to Oshane Drews. He always made good decisions. He would drive and draw some guys and then find the open man.

How key was it holding ex easyCredit BBL player Mauricio Marin to 8 points? He did leave some open looks at the three point line

We knew that he is a good shooter. He took a lot of three’s tonight. I thought that we had him pretty good under control and was able to take him out of the game.

In the last five games the Dragons Rhondorf gave up more than 85 points per game. What did you like with the defense against Lok Bernau?

Our defensive philosophy this season is simple. The whole team have to be there on every possession. If one guy is sleeping, we get punished. We were all there tonight and had little individual mistakes.

The Dragons Rhondorf hit 16 three’s. Did the team take extra shooting practice last week or was the self-confidence just higher than usual?

When you get stops and make little mistakes on defense, you get self-confidence. When you get on a roll and have self-confidence, it gets easier to execute.

The Dragons Rhondorf have legendary Martin Otto on the sidelines. What new nuances has he given the team since his arrival?

He motivatesd us a lot. He also has been focusing on certain basics that we had forgotten. One is not to give up when a guy is near you. He has been very key for the young players believing in his concepts. Also he and Julius Thomas took turns on the sidelines. I think it is great that Julius accepts it. That isn’t self-evident as I could imagine other head coaches not accepting this. They split up the coaching and each guy gives their own impulses.

The Dragons Rhondorf start with three homes games. Is that something that could bite the team in the butt on the road?

We couldn’t have it any other way since their will be repairs done on the Dragon Dome. I think it was important to have this great start. If we can keep it now in the next home games will be important. We will be on a wave and have a lot of self-confidence and go in focused into the last 3 road games.

You beat the RheinStars Cologne twice. What will be key to winning for a third straight time this season?

It will be a tough game. They have had an upward trend since their loss to us. But we know that each playdown game will be big. Today we will enjoy the Bernau win. We will focus on Cologne starting Monday.

What is your favorite childhood birthday moment?

Just being with my family. Back in the day with my parents and brother in Oldenburg. They couldn’t be here today, but I know we will celebrate soon. Now I have a family with two kids and a dog. It is the nicest feeling to be with them on this day.

Thanks Paul for the chat.

Ta