It was do or die time in Frankfurt. That happened because ratiopharm Ulm struck back in game 2 winning 83-78. Despite a big Frankfurt comeback, Ratiopharm Ulm showed great team play and endurance in the last 10 minutes and got an explosive game by raw big man Endurance Aiyamenkhue with 14 points and 19 rebounds. There is nothing more spetacular than a do or die game in any sport. Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners had to do a better job on the boards in game 3 and show that hustle and fight of game 1 in order to move on. Eintracht Frankfurt had more difficulty on the boards than in game 2, but it was actually the explosive first quarter that ended their season 76-59 as they couldn´t recover from it as they won the last 3 quarters 49-48, but couldn´t get over the hump as that one own massive run eluded them. “They were the better team from the start. I felt like our focus was good, but they were better than us both mentally and physically. They overpowered us from the start especially in the post up and rebounding. We never gave up and fought until the end. The next days will be very hard accepting that our season is over”, stressed Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliner guard Namori Omog. Ratiopharm did a great job coming into the game being the aggressor and set the punches early and played tough defense from the start stifling the Frankfurt drive to the rim. “Congrats to my team. We played with courage and very adult like. But I also give a lot of respect to Frankfurt and how they fought to the end. Key defensively was keeping control of Omog and Edoka and finding to our game early”, stressed ratiopharm Ulm head coach Florian Flabb. Omog did sparkle with 20 points, but Edoka only mustered 7 points on 3/13 shooting.

Jamie Edoka at the FT line

It was do or die in Frankfurt and ratiopharm Ulm knew better than Frankfurt just how high the stakes were. They didn´t waste anytime throwing the punches and began with that massive run that would allow them to have that comfortable lead until the end and never looked back. The guests began scoring quickly as the game was 6-0, 9-2 and before anyone really had understood what had happened, Frankfurt was looking up from a deep hole down 14-2. The trek up the steep hill kept getting steeper as suddenly ratiopharm Ulm led 19-4. In the run, ratiopharm Ulm was displaying a keen touch and combination of team basketball and incredible individual qualities that would give Frankfurt problems all afternoon long. The guests found their touch instantly dropping 4 three´s as Young Croatian Niko Jerkic (197-F-2007) connected twice, as did Swiss army knife Joel Cwik and Danish youth national player Frederik Erichsen. Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners had a big problem finding a rhythm as their ball movement was average and they couldn´t get to the rim as easily as they were used to. Plus Dutch big man Endurance Aiyamenkhue was like a brick wall in the paint and didn´t give Frankfurt anything easy. The Frankfurt big 3 of Crnjac, Edoka and Omog weren´t getting easy looks. Crnjac did give Frankfurt 5 points, but overall shots weren´t falling regularly as they were only 4/17 after 10 minutes. German Jordan Mueller connected for a trey at the end and ratiopharm Ulm had the staggering 28-10 advantage after one quarter. “We couldn´t find a rhythm and they did a good job packing the pant. Ulm played solid 1-1 defense and Frankfurt got nothing easy”, stated Skyliner Junior Florian Dietrich. “We were unsure and began very slowly while Ulm hit shots”, stated Raphael Edward. Ratiopharm Ulm shot 59% from the field and 63% from outside and had 14 rebounds and 3 turnovers while Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners shot 24% from the field and 14% from outside and had 7 rebounds and 2 turnovers. “We played with a lot of energy and were well prepared”, commented Niko Jerkic.

Jordan Mueller from outside

In the second quarter Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners began well, but just couldn´t take that early momentum and manufacture it into a bigger run as ratiopharm Ulm executed well on offense and led by 21 points at half-time. Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners began with better energy than the first quarter and received back to back lay in´s by Maximillian Peters and Namori Omog to trail 30-15. However Frankfurt just couldn´t find consistency at both ends. They gave up a 10-2 run to Ulm and trailed 39-17. A big plus for Ulm head coach Florian Flabb was his bench as their depth was a big advantage over what Frankfurt had to offer. Young German Milo Murray came off the bench and instantly hit a trey. Cwik and Aiyamenkhue also added lay in´s as Frankfurt couldn´t match their physicality and at times athleticism. Frankfurt just didn´t execute regularly which kept them behind. Ivan Crnjac had good moments as he manufactured 5 points and undersized big man Raphael Edward added another basket. He was a huge force on defense especially in the second half and finished with 4/5 and 4 steals in 22 minutes. “He is always in good spirits. He is so vocal and such a fighter. He gives so much energy and is like a mini hulk. He does so many key things not seen on the stat sheet”, warned Florian Dietrich. Ratiopharm Ulm got some key lay in´s from Erichsen and solid role player Jonas Zilinskas, but what really hurt Frankfurt was fouling Jervis Scheffs with 0,6 seconds behind the three point line. He made all 3 as Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners trailed 47-26 at half-time. “We kept fighting, but just couldn´t go on a big run. Frankfurt´s body language was better. It is never easy to come back when your down so much especially against a strong team like Ulm”, added Florian Dietrich. Ratiopharm Ulm shot 44% from the field and 43% from the three point line and had 30 rebounds and 7 turnovers while Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners shot 28% from the field and 15% from the three point line and had 16 rebounds and 5 turnovers.

Raphael Edward with the runner

In the third quarter both teams kept punching back and forth as the guests won the quarter 19-18 as the big damage of the first quarter continued to haunt Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners. Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners came out refreshed and quickly dealt ratiopharm a blow with a rapid 6-1 run to trail only 48-33. In the run, the athletic players Omog, Messer and Edoka all found their spots and made lay in´s. But that little Frankfurt spurt was quickly erased as ratiopharm Ulm stepped it up again and did what Frankfurt couldn´t do which was go on a bigger run. Ulm slapped a 12-3 run in Frankfurt´s faces and once again they were looking up a steep road down 60-36. In the run the guests played excellent team ball as many guys shared in the success as Aiyamenkhue scored twice and swatted away a ball while Cwik added another trey and Scheffs added a 20 footer. In the last minutes Frankfurt got 5 points from Omog and a clutch three pointer from role player Finley Pruever, but Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners still had the giant deficit of 23 points. Jerkic also added a turn around shot finishing with 20 points leading his team in scoring and showed again that he is such a vital player for Ulm. “He is a 3 level scorer that gives us a lot of advantages when posting up. He is a hard worker and also very important on the defensive end”, stated Florian Flabb. Ratiopharm Ulm shot 45% from the field and 37% from the parking lot and had 41 rebounds and 14 turnovers while Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners shot 33% from the field and 22% from the parking lot and had 22 rebounds and 10 turnovers. “Ulm was prepared very well. There was simply too much trading of baskets instead of us going on a run”, commented Namori Omog. “We continued to keep our energy up and Endurance closed up the paint areas”, stated Niko Jerkic.

Niko Jerkic at the FT line

Even if Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners ended their season against ratiopharm Ulm, they did finish the game strong winning the fourth quarter 15-10. Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners didn´t want to end their season hanging their heads, but really gave all they had led by Raphael Edward who was a defensive stopper. Edward led the charge with 2 steals, extreme hustle and keeping the Frankfurt intensity high which led to 6 stops against Ulm in the first minutes. Unfortunately for Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners only one bucket and free throws from Omog came in this phase as ratiopharm Ulm led 66-48. Aiyamenkhue finally got Ulm on the scoreboard at the 5,37 minute mark with a lay in. After a Crnjak runner, Aiyamenkhue scored again in the paint as Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners trailed 70-50. Down the stretch, Ivan Crnjac added 6 points, but time was running out and the deficit just never got any less. Jordan Mueller dropped another trey while Namori Omog scored Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners last basket of the season with a lay in. “I think one saw that we had our chances in the last quarter. They weren´t unbeatable. I feel like we could of achieved more, but just didn´t use our chances better”, said Namori Omog. “We managed the big lead well and just kept fighting on defense until the end”, said Niko Jerkic. Ratiopharm Ulm was led by Niko Jerkic with 20 points while Frederik Erichsen and Endurance Aiyamenkhue added 12 points a piece while Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners was led by Namori Omog with 20 points while Ivan Crnjac had 19 points. Ratiopharm Ulm shot 46% from the field and 35% from outside and had 49 rebounds and 24 turnovers while Eintracht Frankfurt Skyliners shot 33% from the field and 22% from outside and had 28 rebounds and 15 turnovers.