The march up the Pro B standings continue for the Dragons Rhondorf as they just keep winning. Except for a loss in Ulm against Orange Academy, the club has mostly played explosive offensive basketball. Especially in the last 3 games, the team has averaged 106 points and have found a smooth offensive rhythm. Their defensive game continues to be up and down as last week they gelled, but 2 weeks ago allowed 100 points in Coburg. Their next opponent were TSV Troester Breitengussbach a club that brought a 3-7 record to Rhondorf. They are one of those daring teams that play without an import player. They are a solid defensive team, but offensively can´t match the explosiveness of Rhondorf. They arrived in Rhondorf with a 2 game losing streak and were well undermanned having only a 7 man rotation as Alexander Engel, Henning Nielson and Manuel Feuerpfeil were all out, but they gave all they had for 40 minutes, but it was only obvious that they would have massive problems as they bowed out in style 101-72. Rhondorf moved to 10-1 and Breitenguss bach moved to 3-8. “It was tough against a strong and powerful Rhondorf team. We fought hard and gave all we had. You could see that we had problems with their high individual class”, stated Breitengussbach guard Timo Dippold. Talking after a win with Dragons guard Kelvin Omojola (183-G-1997, college: Northwest) is always a delight, because even after 40 minutes, the Las Vegas native still sprouts as much energy with words as he does with his game. As he spoke his first words, teammate Badu Buck snuck up behind him and yelled Rubio and if you checked his stat line, his 12 assists played justice to the name. Omojola was just one of many that gave their 2 cents to the victory. “This was a total team effort. We had 7 guys in double figures. It was also a great team defensive effort. We showed tonight that were leveling up our defense. I guess that’s my new nickname with Rubio. Coach empowers me to play the point guard roll even though it´s the first time I`m playing it this season. I´m thankful I could play behind guys like Kone and Shungu in Karlsruhe. I learned so much from them”, stressed Dragons Rhondorf guard Kelvin Omojola.

Lucas Wagner at the FT line

Despite the guests having injury woes, the Dragons Rhondorf also had their problems as their top guards Badu Buck and Tyrese Blunt were out as was big man Jekabs Beck, but in the first few minutes, they didn´t any let any of that effect their game as they jumped all over the guests taking a commanding 13-2 lead. Young German teen sensation Janne Muller began with 5 points while ex Cologne forward Antonio Pillipovic hit a runner, Omojola a trey and Texas native Avery Sullivan connected on a 20 footer. The Dragons offense was rolling with good ball movement while their defensive pressure was presenting the Bavarian team with woes as they coughed up the ball 3 times. Rhondorf lost their offensive rhythm in the second half of the first quarter as they didn´t make as good decisions while Breitengussbach attacked the rim with more intensity as veteran Steffen Walde scored twice as did 19 year old German Leo Trummeter and German Marlon Stephan nailed a trey as Rhondorf led only 20-11 after 10 minutes. “We put our feet off the gas pedal after the good start. We have to learn that once we have the lead, we have to keep it or build on it with our bench guys”, stated Kelvin Omojola. The Dragons Rhondorf shot 44%from the field and 25% from outside and had 9 rebounds and 1 turnover while TSV Troesster Breitengussbach shot 31% form the field and 14% from outside and had 9 rebounds and 6 turnovers.

Avery Sullivan lay in

In the second quarter The Dragons Rhondorf continued to control and keep the comfortable double digits lead, but allowed the guests to hang around. Rhondorf got back to back put backs from ex Bamberg center Leon Bulic and Avery Sullivan while producing 3 stops and leading 25-11. Breitengussbach finally got their first field goal at the 7,20 minute mark with German big man Luca Worrlein who made a turn around shot. Rhondorf continues to demonstrate that anyone can score in bunches as Pilipovic added 5 points for the 30-15 advantage. The offensive machine of the Dragons was in full throttle and their defensive pressure was spot on, but then the guests made an adjustment going to zone and striking back with a 9-2 run to trail only 32-24. In the run the Bavarian team got support from German captain Lucas Wagner and Worrlein while Walde added 5 points including a turn around shot. In the last minutes, the Dragons got solid offensive support again as 20 year old Matej Silic added 5 points and Muller 4 points. The Dragons got more adjusted to the Breitengussbach zone making better decisions that led to better execution. At half-time the Dragons Rhondorf led comfortably 41-30. “Our zone worked well, but only for a certain time. We can play well for 5-6 minutes, but never for a whole quarter”, stated Timo Dippold. “Their zone gave us problems. I think that was the first real zone we have seen this season. We have prepared for it. Once we made adjustments we got more comfortable”, expressed Kelvin Omojola. The Dragons Rhondorf shot 39% from the field and 21% from the three point line and had 23 rebounds and 4 turnovers while TSV Troesster Breitengussbach shot 29% from the field and 8% from the three point line and had 24 rebounds and 9 turnovers.

Timo Dippold from outside

The Dragons Rhondorf stepped up their game in the third quarter producing 30 points and having an overwhelming lead of 19 points after 30 minutes. The Dragons Rhondorf came out storming going on a 10-4 run to lead 50-35. The Dragons opened with back to back three´s from Silic and Pilipovic while Omojola and Sullivan also scored in the paint using their flashy athleticism and quickness. This was the best offensive spurt of the Dragons since the first few minutes of the first quarter. The ball movement was popping again and Breitengussbach was mixing it up playing more high tempo instead of trying to slow it down. A big difference between both teams was simple in that the Dragons were able to share the responsibility on many shoulders while the guests only had one guy with young 19 year old Leo Trummeter who scored 11 points in a row for his team, but they still trailed by 20 points. The Bavarian side couldn´t string up a row of consecutive stops as Muller and Omojola hit three´s while Pilipovic and Silic added energy scoring inside. Rhondorf continued to do a super job taking care of the ball and had the upper hand on the boards as they led 70-51 after 3 quarters. “We did a better job running our sets and not having any quick shots and we also attacked the rim better. We kept it simple. Basketball made it easy for us”, stated Kelvin Omojola. “We were too slow with our zone and they had good ball movement. It effected out mentality”, said Timo Dippold. The Dragons Rhondorf shot 41% from the field and 28% from the parking lot and had 37 rebounds and 5 turnovers while TSV Troesster Breitengussbach shot 37% from the field and 13% from the parking lot and had 30 rebounds and 12 turnovers.

Antonio Pilipovic at the FT line

In the fourth quarter the Dragons Rhondorf did a fine job conserving the lead and closing out the game strong. Both teams traded early three´s as Silic and Stephan scored, but Rhondorf still held the comfortable 77-56 advantage. After a Wagner put back, the Dragons Rhondorf put the last big exclamation mark on the win as they strolled out on a 9-2 run to extend their lead to 93-60. In the run, the Dragons got good support from Silic and Pilipovic from outside, but also from Janne Muller who supplied 5 points and was on his way to a career day with 24/7/4 stats. “Janne is a real pro. I don´t look at him as a 17 year old. He plays with good pace and has a high IQ. I love his game”, warned Kelvin Omojola. In the last minutes, the guests got some added production from Wagner and Worrlein in the paint and buckets from Dippold and Walde while the Dragons Rhondorf cracked the 100 points from Janne Muller while Marko Rosic added 4 free throws. “We managed the lead well and just stuck to our principles and closed out the game well”, stressed Kelvin Omojola. The Dragons Rhondorf got 17 points from Antonio Pilipovic while Matej Silic added 16 points and Leon Bulic had 12 points and Marko Rosic and Avery Sullivan had 11 points apiece while TSV Troesster Breitengussbach were led by Leo Trummeter and Steffen Walde with 16 points a piece. The Dragons Rhondorf shot 42% from the field and 31% from outside and had 44 rebounds and 8 turnovers while TSV Troesster Breitengussbach shot 40% from the field and 24% from outside and had 31 rebounds and 20 turnovers.