Bruno Vrcic to the rim

Even if the 17th of March 2024 will always be remembered as the day that Fraport Skyliner legend Quantez Roberton´s immortal number 23 was raised up to the rafters next to Pascal Roller´s, there was still a game to be played between the Fraport Skyliners and Eisbaeren Bremerhaven. The Fraport Skyliners were sitting comfortably in second place always ready to pounce at Trier for first place while they met the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven who were resting in 11th place fighting to reach the playoffs, but were 3 wins away. The Fraport Skyliners were playing solid ball having won 3 of their last 4 games and had allowed a masterful 62 points in Bayreuth while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven had lost 3 of their last 5 games including the last 2 games where they averaged a pathetic 100 points allowed on defense. The Fraport Skyliners wanted Quantez Robertson (188-SG-1984, college: Auburn, agency: Interperformances) to leave the arena with a smile and obviously wanted to keep their winning streak alive and did upending the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven 84-78. It was a game that the Fraport Skyliners controlled from the first quarter, but never was able to completely shake the guests as they fought back all game long and even retained the lead shortly in the second half. However in crunch-time the Fraport Skyliners executed great at both ends of the court and allowed Skyliner legend Quantez Robertson to leave with joy the way a legend should “We all knew how important a win would be for Tez. He has a special story in that he was with one club his whole career. The love from the club and him for each other was special. We wanted to make a show and send him off with a win. Key for the win was playing solid defense for 40 minutes. There will always be stretches where you don´t play so well, but we did a good job for the most part. On offense we were very good on the pick and role and being aggressive and attacking and sharing the ball well”, stressed Fraport Skyliner center Ife Ajayi. The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven never gave up for 40 minutes, but consistency was something they could of taken a page from the Skyliners. “We weren´t there for the first 10 minutes, but were there for the last 30 minutes. We chipped away all game long, but overal we had dug to big of a hole to get back out of”, stressed Eisbaeren Bremerhaven head coach Steven Key.

Aaron Cook at the FT line

The Fraport Skyliners had a deep roster for the game while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were missing American Jordan Giles and Icelandic player Hilmar Henningson. The Fraport Skyliners began with a bang which helped them carve the route of the game which had the guests playing catch up basketball all afternoon long. The Fraport Skyliners jumped all over the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven leading 14-2. In the run Frankfurt did a good job attacking and getting buckets as their three wasn´t falling at a consistent rate. Undersized center Ife Ajayi was in attack mode from the start using mismatches and scored twice, while German Jacob Knauf and Canadian Aiden Warnholtz added 5 points a piece and 2 three´s. Frankfurt found a sound flow early and played pretty team basketball, while the guests couldn´t get into their sets well and opted for isolation play. Frankfurt also were a force on the offensive glass being more aggressive. Athletic German monster Justin Onyejiaka set the tone on defense with 2 massive blocks helping ignite the offense. “I talk with him a lot. He is a very special player. He is a great defensive player already at age 19 despite still having much room for growth”, stated Ife Ajayi. Bremerhaven had little team paly and relied on versatile forward Nick Hornsby to supply points and he added 5 points as Frankfurt led 19-9. Ex Oldenburg guard Kevin McClain added free throws for the 21 -11 Frankfurt advantage after 10 minutes. “Our goal going into games is to set the tone right away. We began that on defense which set the tone for our offense”, stressed Ife Ajayi. The Fraport Skyliners shot 44% from the field and 30% from outside and had 13 rebounds and 3 turnovers while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven shot 27% from the field and 25% from outside and had 8 rebounds and 5 turnovers.

Kevin McClain at the FT line

In the second quarter the Fraport Skyliners continued to control the game. Despite Bremerhaven being able to cut the Frankfurt lead down to 6 points, Frankfurt still led by 9 points at the break. The first few minutes was a game of runs as Frankfurt began with a 5-0 run with a trey from ex Indiana State (NCAA) guard Cameron Henry and free throws by ex Artland Dragon Jacob Knauf for the 26-11 lead. However the Eisbaeren punched back with a 7-0 run to trail only 26-18 as ex NCAA 3 player Kevin Charles sunk a 20 footer, 2018 NBBL champion with Alba Berlin Hendrik Drescher added frere throws and ex Citadel (NCAA) sniper Matt Frierson scored from down town. Both teams weren´t converting from outside as well so opted to attack the paint and Frankfurt got buckets from McClain and Ajayi while the guests got a put back by ex Paderborn center Robert Oehle and free throws from ex Artland German Adrian Breitlauch as Frankfurt led only 30-24. The runs continued as Frankfurt escaped out on a 10-4 run to lead 40-28. In the run, it was Mr energizer Booker Coplin who scored 3 times while Cameron Henry added a lay in and Ajayi free throws. Bremerhaven did end the second quarter with a 5-2 run as Nick Hornsby continued to give Frankfurt fits with his annoying 1-1 play making an off balance shot and ex Eastern Kentucky (NCAA) German Jarelle Reischel made a lay in, but it was the McClain to Ajayi combination that had all Skyliner fans off their seats. McClain attacked and drew a defender and then gave a swift bounce pass to Ajayi who finished with authority and a slam dunk for the 42-33 half-time lead. “McClain found me. He is a great player. That was a small snippet of what is still to come from him. Even if he is known as a scorer, he is totally unselfish. He is an underrated passer”, warned Ife Ajayi. The Fraport Skyliners were shooting 46% from the field and 29% from the three point line and had 15 rebounds and 4 turnovers while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven shot 38% from the field and 33% from outside and had 12 rebounds and 7 turnovers. “In basketball there will always be ups and downs. We wanted to be sure that we wouldn´t let their run get as high”, expressed Ife Ajayi.

Nick Hornsby with the jumper

In the third quarter the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven had their strongest offensive quarter scoring 25 points and stealing the lead back, but Frankfurt stole it back again leading 62-58 after 30 minutes. The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven struck back with a 8-2 run to start the second half to trail only 44-41. Their offensive success was pushed with 2 three pointers by ex Gonzaga (NCAA) finalist Aaron Cook and Matt Frierson who likes to study the games of Ray Allen, Steph Curry and JJ Reddick. Cook also added free throws and had stepped up his aggressiveness from the first half. Bremerhaven finally moved the ball better and upped their physicality which Frankfurt couldn´t match After a Coplin step back jumper, it was Bremerhaven who continued to pressure Frankfurt well getting a lay in from the aggressive Cook and another lethal three pointer by Frierson as Frankfurt led only 47-46. After a Warnholtz mid distance shot for the 49-46 Frankfurt lead, the guests reached their maximum in the third quarter going on a 9-3 run to get their first lead of the game at 56-52. Frierson and Reischel provided baskets inside the paint while Breitlauch added 3 free throws and Cook 2 free throws. However the guests couldn´t hold the momentum as Frankfurt slapped Bremerhaven back with a 10-2 run to lead 62-58 after 3 quarters. In the run Frankfurt was led by 2 Muenkat three´s and Knauf also added a lay in. “We lost our rhythm. We weren´t defending as well and not getting stops trickled down to our offense”, commented Ife Ajayi. “We changed our defense a bit and defended their pick and roll better. On offense we got away from the isolation and played better team basketball”, commented Adrian Breitlauch. The Fraport Skyliners shot 53% from the field and 33% from the parking lot and had 22 rebounds and 10 turnovers while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven shot 43% from the field and 38% from the parking lot and had 23 rebounds and 14 turnovers.

Bruno Vrcic with the lay in

In the fourth quarter the Fraport Skyliners managed the lead well and despite letting Bremerhaven come back twice within 3 points, the guests couldn´t get over the hump. Frankfurt began with very aggressive defense and got 3 swift stops which led to 5 points with a trey from Coplin and free throws from 2 time NBBL champion Bruno Vrcic as Frankfurt led 67-58. Coplin was a force on many occasions in the game making big buckets when the team needed it most. Frierson stopped the Skyliners run with brutal three pointer for Bremerhaven´s first field goal of the fourth quarter. After Coplin fed Knauf for the big dunk and 69-61 lead, it was Bremerhaven that stormed right back with a Hornsby hook shot and Breitlauch three pointer as Frankfurt led only 69-66. Even if Bremerhaven was sticking around, Frankfurt was in control and then roared out on a 9-4 run to lead 78-70. In the run Frankfurt did a good job finding the mismatches and feeding big man Lorenz Brenneke for 2 easy lay in´s while McClain made a lay in and free throws. The team ball of Bremerhaven had disappeared again which allowed Frankfurt to get away. Hornsby did all he could being a one man wrecking crew scoring twice, but his team couldn´t generate stops as Frankfurt got to the line getting points from Muenkat and Henry. Reischel hit a clutch three pointer to cut Frankfurt´s lead down to 82-78 with 7,5 seconds remaining, but Cameron Henry sealed the win with free throws. “They did a lot of 1-1 play and Hornsby was their biggest threat. He is a great playmaker, but wasn´t threatening enough to get them the win. Our defense won us the game. We have good versatile big men and played team basketball”, warned Ife Ajayi. “We got into 1-1 play. Frankfurt played very good defense”, stated Adrian Breitlauch. The Fraport Skyliners were led by Booker Coplin with 17 points while Jacob Knauf added 16 points while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were led by Nick Hornsby with 21 points while Adrian Breitlach added 14 points. The Fraport Skyliners shot 53% from the field and 32% from outside and had 31 rebounds and 14 turnovers while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven shot 44% from the field and 42% from outside and had 29 rebounds and 16 turnovers.