Pic credit: Angel Media

Devonte McCall (198-F-1998, college: Post) is a 27 year old 198 cm forward that was born in Amherst Mass and is playing his fourth professional season and fourth in Germany and first with the EPG Baskets Koblenz. He played his rookie season with the wiha Panthers Schwenningen (Germany-ProA) averaging 12.9ppg, 4.9rpg, 2.0apg, 1.3spg, Blocks-3 (1.2bpg), FGP: 56.7%, 3PT: 32.5%, FT: 68.5%. He played the last 2 seasons with Phoenix Hagen (Germany-ProA) averaging 10.3ppg, 4.1rpg, 1.3apg, FGP: 49.8%, 3PT: 23.5%, FT: 68.5% and 7.9ppg, 2.9rpg, 1.4apg, FGP: 54.9%, 3PT: 24.7%, FT: 70.3%. He began his basketball career at Westminster and then played a season at Franklin Pierce University (NCAA2) averaging 5.0ppg, 3.5rpg, FGP: 53.8%, 3PT: 26.7%, FT: 41.2%. He then moved to Post University (NCAA2) averaging 12.6ppg, 7.9rpg, 1.6apg, 1.5bpg, FGP: 51.9%, 3PT: 35.4%, FT: 50.0% and in his last season averaged 19.3ppg, 7.5rpg, 1.9apg, 1.4spg, 2.1bpg, FGP: 48.0%, 3PT: 37.4%, FT: 66.9%. He spoke to germanhoops.com after the big 96-79 win in Munster to sweep the season series.

Thanks Devonte for talking to germanhoops.com. How good does it feel to sweep Munster 96-79?

It feels good to sweep even if I wasn´t around for the first win. It was a great bounce back win after 3 loses.

How big was the urgency to win this game after the disastrous loss in Nurnberg?

It was very high. We had good practices the last days. We all had the same focus and intensity in practice as well as the same mentality. The result showed.

What kind of soul searching did the team do the last days?

We just looked at each other and held each other accountable. We told each other what we had to improve on. This win was a big wake up call and one we can only grow from

The first 5 baskets were bang bang bang with three´s. Did it feel like the Hagen game?

Yes it did. They began hot not missing. We did a really good job weathering the storm.

In the second quarter the high tempo continued and Munster continued to hit three´s. What made it so difficult to slow them down better?

They got easy looks off transition and offensive rebounds. They are a really good shooting team and were at home. We made it too easy early on and that gave them confidence.

Calvin Wishart kept the pressure on and hit big shots and got Koblenz in a position where they lost the lead. How big was his leadership in that phase?

He is one of the best players in the Pro A. He has been great and stepped up whenever we needed it.

The EPG Baskets led 51-47 at the break. What was the team still lacking a bit at the defensive end?

We gave them too easy looks on transition. We were scoring well, but our half court defense wasn´t good enough. That changed in the second half.

Koblenz led 75-65 after 3 quarters. How vital was the defensive aggression in the third quarter? You forced 6 turnovers and slowed down Nicholas McMullen then.

I think that Jannis Sonnefeld did a really good job. We switched 1-5 and were a lot more dynamic. We were flying around and even when there was a mismatch against us, we communicated well.

What did head coach Stephan Dohrn tell the team to do for the last 10 minutes?

He told us not to let up. We have given up leads in the fourth quarter this season. We did a good job stomping out the fire and didn´t give them any hope. We were able to get a 12 point lead to 20.

The team allowed only 32 points in the second half. How proud are you of how the team stepped up and finished the game strong?

The way we played the second quarter was huge. I think the last 8-12 quarters, we allowed way too many points per possession. We stepped up our defense and that did a lot for our mentality.

The EPG Baskets Koblenz lost the rebound battle 45-36 and allowed 18 offensive rebounds. Why is rebounding a problem?

We go through phases. I think when I arrived here we were one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the league. Luck is involved in rebounding. Our effort is there, but sometimes it´s just the way the ball bounces.

What new positives did you see in the team play after 40 minutes?

I think big was how we moved the ball well. We got all involved early in scoring. Our good defense also led to transition baskets.

You next face Bochum at home. You won the first game 107-87. What will be key to getting the sweep?

We can´t let them get early looks early. We have to make them work for everything. We have to fyl around defensively and make then do things out of character.

Thanks Devonte for the chat.