Author: Miles Schmidt-Scheuber

Basketball journalist and play by play commentator

EasyCredit BBL Playoff Preview 2018: Alba Berlin-MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg 3-2

Never count out a John Patrick no matter what the circumstances are. The American experienced coach who has no difficulty having a sound conversation in German at anytime has shown it over and over in his career no matter where he has coached that he is capable of not only building a talented team, but also be able to mesh each player´s qualities together so they function properly on the court at a consistent rate. Not too mention not always having a sufficient budget to operate from, he consistently gets the most out of what he has to work with. The ex Stanford(NCAA) player displayed his coaching expertise bringing BG Goettingen to the BBL and reaching the playoffs at a consistent rate while topping his run off with the Eurochallnege title in 2010 and also discovering guys like John Little, Chris Oliver, Kyle Bailey and Taylor Rochestie and putting them on the basketball map. With s.Oliver Wurzburg he led the team into the playoffs and upset Alba Berlin in the 2012 playoffs. He came and saved the MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg in 2013 being a fireman and since then has led the organization into the playoffs five consecutive times. So when the 2018 Basketball Champions League Final 4 were completed and nobody witnessed the big smile of Thomas Walkup on the winner´s podium, but instead a dejected team escaping Athens with a disappointing fourth place finish, many might of thought that the club would return home and have difficulty erasing the weekend blues from Greece. Ok so my 3-0 FC Bayern Munich prediction over the Fraport Skyliners made me eat my words and now I´m officially going to eat my words again after my medi Bayreuth-MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg prediction of 3-2. I have to be honest, I always believed that John Patrick and co would beat the Bavarian squad 3-0, because I have always believed and respected Patrick´s work but wanted to be right had a medi Bayreuth upset occurred. Shame on me! How could that ever have happened. John Patrick is a coaching master and once again showed how quickly he could transform a dejected squad to a focused team. With the amazing 3-0 sweep of medi Bayreuth, Patrick was able to reach the semi-finals for only the second time in his career. The question now is can he keep the team momentum going and upset the mighty Alba Berlin that has a core of snipers that could possibly outgun the Golden State Warriors with them having a semi cold night. Never count out a John Patrick no matter what the circumstances are, because if you do then you will get bit in the butt quicker than a David Mccray reflex can lead to a steal and transition bucket.

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber and John Patrick in the Fraport arena in 2018

The road to the easyCredit BBL semi-finals wasn´t as easy for Alba Berlin and in no means a cake walk as they had to tough out an exciting 5 game series against the Ewe Baskets Oldenburg where each team won their home games. Alba Berlin went into the series with the EWE Baskets as the heavy favorite not only with their incredible regular season, but also because how the underdog had presented itself in the last weeks. But as one had seen last season, when you have a Rickey Paulding you always have a chance a she showed last season against Bayreuth and Ulm. The 2009 BBL champion didn´t hide their faces in the sand, but really came to play. In the first two games, Alba Berlin were far away from being a fourth best defensive team in the league as the EWE Baskets Oldenburg averaged 96 points per game 20 more than what Alba Berlin allowed all season. It was no secret that both teams can put up points quickly and both did. However Alba Berlin was able to make good adjustments after every loss and let up less points each home game while never really losing consistency on offense as they averaged 92 points in the high scoring series.

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Seger Bonifant´s Mentality Is Knowing Anytime He Misses A Shot That The Next One Is In

Seger Bonifant is a 24 year old 201cm forward from Berlin, Ohio that just completed his second professional season and first with Team Ehingen Urspring (Germany-ProA) playing 30 games averaging 12,6ppg, 2,0rpg and 2,5apg while shooting an astounding 48,7% from outside. Last season as a rookie he played for Cocinas.com CB Clavijo Logrono (Spain-LEB Gold) playing 32 games averaging 9.2ppg, 2.0rpg, FGP: 50.0%, 3PT: 45.3%, FT: 82.9%. He played at W.Liberty St. (NCAA2) form 2012-2016 playing a 126 games and improved his scoring, rebounding and assists average each season. There he established himself as a real sniper as he shot over 50% from outside for a season three times and as a senior played W.Liberty St. (NCAA2) playing 35 games averaging 25.5ppg, 5.3rpg, 3.0apg, FGP: 58.4%, 3PT: 49.6%, FT: 83.5%. He spoke to German Hoops at the end of his season with Ehingen.

Seger, thanks for talking to German Hoops Where are you at the moment and how did you spend your last days in your second professional season in Europe?

Right now I am at home in Berlin, Ohio. I will spend the summer here, working out everyday and getting better at my game. My last days In Ehingen I just relaxed and spent the days with my roommate Davonte.

Did you catch some sights in Europe after the season or did you return right away to home to Ohio? If yes what was the first thing you did before seeing family or friends? I can imagine you sought out one of your favorite local eateries?

I went right home after the season. My flight was scheduled 2 days after the last game so I didn’t have time to travel. My first stop at home was my favorite place to eat, chipotle. I really missed it and love it!

You had a solid season in terms of what you accomplished on the stat sheet, but your team Ehingen was unable to remain in the Pro A. With what kinds of feelings and thoughts do you have about your second professional season?

Obviously it was very tough losing as many games as we did. My whole life I have been on very high profile teams that win a lot of games. So being on the opposite side of that was tough, but a great learning experience. Also, our team never gave up and never felt sorry for ourselves and worked hard everyday. Besides losing, the season was a good one.

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FC Bayern Munich Live Another Day Crushing The Fraport Skyliners 85-50 Forcing Game 5

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber and Reggie Redding after the big 85-50 FC Bayern Munich win in game 4 in Frankfurt

Many people that don´t know Fraport Skyliners head coach Gordon Herbert will call it a miracle while people that know him better in terms of basketball mastery won´t be at all surprised what he has been able to get out of his team in the last week. 11 days ago after the disappointing 85-72 loss which for many wasn´t untypical, the Fraport Skyliners and Philipp Scrubb had a long bus ride home and had a lot of soul searching to do already noticing in that game that they had the game to compete with Germany´s most famous team. A week later the ever so reserved Mr Canada Philip Scrubb had another long bus ride home, but this time he could probably sneak in the one or other smile after hearing a Robertson and Morrison joke, because the Fraport Skyliners were up in the best of five series 2-1. Who would have thought that at the start of the series? Many thought after the game two win in Frankfurt that they would see one last home game at home and then summer vacation would begin. Instead with the help of a furious 29 point third quarter that rescued the 2004 BBL champion from 18 down, they showed extended heart and won in Munich 86-83 with the help of a gigantic Scrubb trey with 18 seconds to go and overall 13 three´s that the club dropped as a shocked FC Bayern Munch were wondering when this nightmare would end? FC Bayern Munich CEO Marko Pesic had another annoying reminder just how dangerous a Philip Scrubb is in crunch-time moments. The Fraport Skyliners returned home with an ace up their sleeve having the momentum and ready for the knock out as FC Bayern Munich now had their backs to the wall and suddenly had to play their best basketball to survive and did crushing the Fraport Skyliners 85-50 forcing a game 5 on Thursday night in Munich.

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Devonte Brown Had An Amazing Experience In Paderborn Being Coached By Coaches Who Cared About Improving Their players

Brown Devonte Brown is a 24 year old 188cm guard from Killeen, Texas that completed his second professional season and first with the Uni Baskets Paderborn averaging 14,2ppg,5.5rpg and 2,6apg. Last season as a rookie he played with OKK Sloboda Tuzla (Bosnia-Division I) playing 28 games averaging 8.2ppg, 2.9rpg, 3.0apg, Steals-3(1.9spg), FGP: 53.1%, 3PT: 26.7%, FT: 64.5%. He started his basketball career in 2012 with Indiana St. (NCAA playing a total of 129 NCAA games. As a senior he played 32 games averaging 15.5ppg, 4.8rpg, 2.8apg, FGP: 42.0%, 3PT: 23.2%, FT: 75.8%. He spoke to German Hoops after finishing his season in Germany with Paderborn.

Devonte thanks for talking to German Hoops. Where are you at the moment and how is your very early summer going at the moment?

I’m currently in Houston with the family , working on my early morning conditioning while spending time with some of my extended family members.

Did you get to visit any European sites after the season ended or did you go right home to PB-Trier-Brown Texas?

After the season I was fortunate enough to have the chance to visit a couple cities that wasn’t close to any opposite cities. Before leaving to go back to the US I had a chance to see Berlin and Amsterdam, two cities I’ve only seen in movies.

What was the first thing you did when you got back to the states? Was checking out one of your favorites eateries high on your list?

The first thing I did was join some of family and friends on vacation and enjoy a good amount of sun in Florida .

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The Fraport Skyliners Make Me Eat My Words And Did Philip Scrubb Already Pass His FC Bayern Munich Screen test?

The last weeks before the FC Bayern Munich playoff series have been at times a disgusting roller coaster ride for the Fraport Skyliners and for a Philip Scrubb he might already have completed a short season ending vacation to Paris or secretly been in Munich for a meal with Marko Pesic concerning lucrative bucks for next season and been back in Ottawa where he is in the offseason and already getting up extra shots in preparation for next season had the club lost their last regular season home to Science City Jena which they were very close to doing after a seemingly curse was erased by the basketball God as three mishaps were rewarded by defensive stops and a Shawn Huff shot saved their season. Two weeks later the Fraport Skyliners aren´t at home digesting a second non playoff season and wondering where they would be with a Jordan Theodore, but are back at their basketball home Fraport arena with seemingly help from the basketball God again as they sit in the driver´s seat having an amazing and really unbelievable 2-1 game lead against Germany´s most famous sports club FC Bayern Munich and can end their season that had very high expectations on Tuesday with a victory. But then again is this really a miracle, because over the years Gordon Herbert has time in and time out shown what he can master even when the odds look bleaker than a tornado filled Oklahoma sky and produce success. He has showed again how he can get the best out of each player at the right moments and how his pinpoint scouting can bring an experienced and so talented team like FC Bayern Munich to unending riddles to how they can counter react when Frankfurt makes a successful adjustment. No matter how this series ends, the Fraport Skyliners should follow Science City Jena and do what they did for Bjoern Harmsen and give him a indefinite contract. He deserves it because he lives for the Fraport Skyliners even if his back would rather decline comment on the matter. Maybe Gordon Herbert is a basketball God in disguise. The last week, he surely has driven his team to go above and beyond, but can they make that last step and slam the door on this season best and most successful team FC Bayern Munich?

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber interviewing 2018 easyCredit BBL scoring champion Philip Scrubb after droping 8 points and dishing out 8 assists

If there is anyone in Frankfurt basketball country that had the audacity to say now that they had predicted a Fraport Skyliners series win, they are most likely lying. I have been a staunch believer in the masterful work of head coach Gordon Herbert over the years, but as this series with FC Bayern Munich approached, I saw no hope in this team surviving against Jared Cunningham, Devin Booker, Danilo Barthel and co. I predicted an easy sweep by FC Bayern Munich and then corrected myself giving them possibly one win already remembering that the Fraport Skyliners had won games against FC Bayern Munich in the past and had won game 2 in their living room in the 2015 series. I just wanted to be on the safe side, but my inner thoughts were flooded with sweep, sweep, sweep for the Bavarian side. It was a normal basketball reaction from me as basketball reality was staring in my face. How could I predict a Fraport Skyliners series win after seeing Frankfurt stink up the house against Science City Jena and being crushed in Berlin as the team suffered one of it´s worst defeats in franchise history.

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Sharif Hudson (HSB Landsberg): If I Have To Continue To Prove That I Can Play Then That’s What I’m Going To Do

Sharif Hudson is a 26 year old 188cm guard playing his third professional season and first with HSB Landsberg (Germany-2.Regionalliga). He played his first two professional seasons with BG Aschersleben Tigers (Germany-Regionalliga) an din his rookie season played 25 games averaging 14.8ppg, 5.2rpg, 2.6apg, 2.2spg, FGP: 52.5%, 3PT: 29.9%, FT: 64.8%. Last season with BG Aschersleben Tigers (Germany-Regionalliga) he played 19 games averaging 15.2ppg, 4.2rpg, 3.0apg, 1.8spg, FGP: 54.0%, 3PT: 27.3%, FT: 78.5%. He started his basketball career at Southern Union CC and then played his last two seasons in the NCAA 2 with Ark.-Monticello (NCAA2) playing 29 games averaging 10.1ppg, 4.5rpg, 1.6apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 47.4%, 3PT: 37.1%, FT: 61.3%. In his senior year he played 13 games averaging 14.3ppg, 6.5rpg, 2.2apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 45.1%, 3PT: 35.8%, FT: 78.7%. He spoke to German Hoops about basketball.

Sharif, thanks for talking to German Hoops. You are in your third professional season and many Americans dream to be in your situation even though your far away from a top level. How thankful are you for having the opportunity to play the game you love for a living?

It’s a blessing to be able to just play the game. Regardless of the level that I am at right now, just being able to lace up every week and compete with a group of guys is something that I don’t take for granted.

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Corban Collins Hopes He Put His Name Out There As A Rookie In Germany

lokal Corban Collins is a 23 year old 190cm guard from North Carolina that completed his rookie season in Germany with the Kirchheim Knights were he played 30 games averaging 17,1ppg, 4,6rpg and 3,9apg and 1,3spg. He played a total of 118 NCAA games with LSU, Morehead State and Alabama from 2012-2017. In his senior year with Alabama he played 32 games averaging 7.0ppg, 1.8rpg, 1.5apg, FGP: 35.7%, 3PT: 34.9%, FT: 65.0%. He spoke to German Hoops about basketball after the season ended.

Corban thanks for talking to German Hoops. Where are you at the moment and did you explore a bit in Europe before returning back home after playing your rookie season with the Kirchheim Knights?

No problem at all! I’m currently in North Carolina, no I didn’t explore any or Europe. I just got home yesterday.

How tough was it being overseas and away from home as a rookie? What was the first thing you did when you arrived home besides seeing family and friends? Did you scope out one of your favorite eateries?

It wasn’t as tough as I thought it was going to be, being away from home. I think I got used to being away from my family in college being so far away and at different schools. First I did when I got back was go to Chick-Fila.

How tough was it for you and the Kirchheim Knights to play a solid season, but land in 9^th place missing the playoffs? Did it take a while to digest?

It was really tough to not make the playoffs. It took me a long time to digest the fact that we weren’t making the playoffs. We felt like we played a good season, we just came up short

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Never Say Never As Mike Morrison Nails First Professional Three As The Fraport Skyliners Show Heart Outlasting FC Bayern Munich 75-69

16 hours after the Fraport Skyliners had lost game one in Munich, the team had already had their post game cool down in their training facility BCM in Frankfurt and some guys exited the gym with Quantez Robertson, Tai Webster, Jordan Sibert and Mike Morrison who were in a good mood especially the latter with the Florida native who when he saw my Boston Red Sox shirt started to marvel about the amazing game three finish by the Boston Celtics. They had won on the expertise of possible NBA coach of the year Brad Stevens as the 17 time NBA champion last second inbounds play as ex NCAA champion with Florida Al Horford created a mismatch hauled down the lob and made the difficult basket for the win. That game three started at the time where the Fraport Skyliners were journeying back to Frankfurt on the bus trying to digest the tough 85-72 loss so it was more than likely that many of the players tuned into the NBA thriller to help pass the time and help forget the 21 point effort by Vladimir Lucic. The Fraport Skyliners came out to a quick 12-3 lead and played a solid first half, but overtime couldn´t handle the overpowering Munich team as they produced less points each quarter as they watched the favorite be able to play their game and dominate the boards and ease by them with their pinpoint shooting accuracy when they needed it most. The Fraport Skyliners needed a win desperately at home to salvage some kind of leverage going back to Munich and not having their backs to the wall down 0-2. In a way the Fraport Skyliner´s situation was a bit like the Celtics, who also were the underdog against the Philadelphia 76ers. Possibly the Fraport Skyliners could remember some of that energy and excitement the Boston Club presented on that bitter Saturday night as they were coming home from the bitter loss and they could possibly take some of their spirit and create extra toughness to give the Bavarian side a game that they would never forget. The Fraport Skyliners came to play and controlled the game for 40 minutes even if FC Bayern Munich was always on their doorstep, the 2016 Fiba Europe Cup teams slammed the door on the faces of the Bavarian team countless times with big shots that denied the opponent to get over the hump winning 75-69. After the win, Mr Canada Philipp Scrubb who´s beard had gotten a bit bushier since game one reflected on the big win. “Key today wasn´t only that we had many guys hit key shots at the right time, but also got rebounds and stops at the right time. When they went on a run and we lost energy, it was our bench that really stepped up. Bonga, Sibert and Huff were huge”, stressed Fraport Skyliner guard Philipp Scrubb. FC Bayern Munich snuck out of the locker room one by one, but ex Giessen 46er and Mr game changer Braydon Hobbs gave his reflection why his team was unable to go home with a 2-0 series advantage. “We have to give Frankfurt credit. They played good defense and we lacked the needed energy. When you score only 69 points, it won´t be easy to win games”, stressed FC Bayern Munich guard Braydon Hobbs. Fraport Skyliner head coach Gordon Herbert didn´t leave the Boston Celtics subject totally untouched and gave his two cents to how a NBA coaching poll of coaches didn´t give one single vote to Brad Stevens for coach of the year. “I don´t know how that can be, but I like to take things from his coaching style”, smiled Gordon Herbert.

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EasyCredit BBL Playoff Preview 2018: MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg-medi Bayreuth 2-3

It was supposed to be the big weekend for the MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg in Athens with the perfect story book ending with the club returning home with the 2018 Basketball Champions League title bringing some added special prestige to the 87,000 populated city of Ludwigsburg, giving the club only the 5^th international German club title, bringing the versatile Thomas Walkup some added elevation in his stock as he is on the verge of the NBA and Euroleague and bringing head coach John Patrick another step up into the elite coaching corner in Germany as his development of the club in the last years has not only deserved unending praise, but the utmost respect as his work is exemplary, but instead the team returned home without a title and only a disappointing fourth place finish as they lost both games. The most satisfying aspect the club most likely could bring back to German soil was having had a free 48 hour vacation in the breathtaking city of Athens as a visit off the court to the famous Akropolis which is as much of a must see as it is visiting the Residenzschloss in Ludwigsburg and on the court having the pleasure and opportunity of witnessing the amazing Oaka Olympic Indoor Hall that seats 18,989 crazy and loud fans that make an arena visit so unforgettable that just being there for a game can supply exciting stories for a lifetime that could easily overshadow any incredible play, amazing shot, no look pass or crushing dunk seem like an absolute side note. Perhaps the unbelievable energy level and noise level of the OAKA arena could of doused the intense thoughts of head coach John Patrick at times after the loss in the arena, but then again his competitive nature most likely didn´t let him. The MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg lost their semi-final game to the French squad Monaco on Friday night 87-65 that boasted ex Alba Berlin center Elmedin Kikanovic and played a solid first half, but lost their rhythm in the second half getting outscored 51-27 and had problems taking care of the ball. One of the worst things about a final 4 tournament is losing in the semi-final and having to play that unwanted game for third place. Instead of hiding your head in the sand and then flying home quickly, one has to remain and battle the unending thoughts about what went wrong in the semi-final and what could have been done better to win as well as try to focus on winning the game for third place. The German club were unable to salvage at least one positive thing on the court and went home 0-2 losing to Spanish side Murcia 85-74 as they got killed on the boards as the injured Justin Sears really was missed. Instead of leaving Athens on a massive high, the MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg have to shift gears now and get ready fast for the easyCredit BBL playoffs as they meet tough opponent medi Bayreuth. Can the MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg forget their disappointing Athens weekend on the court and be ready for medi Bayreuth, or will they suffer a second heartbreak in a row? Anyone that knows John Patrick, knows that he is a fighter and will have his torn and battered club ready for medi Bayreuth and not fall over and wilt like a flower.

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber interviewing medi Bayreuth PG James Robinson after scoring 9 points in a 72-68 loss against the Fraport Skyliners in Frankfurt

It was an incredible season for the MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg in the easyCredit BBl as they finished in third place with a record of 26-8 which was their best record dating back to the surprise second place finish in the 2006-2007 season. It was also the most successful season for John Patrick with the MHP Riesen as coach as he had two eighth place finishes and one fifth place in 2015-2016. They started well winning 8 of their first 9 games, but then had a little drought losing 2 of three games getting beat by Munich and Wurzburg. Then they were back to their old consistent ways winning 11 of 13 games, but did get swept by FC Bayern Munich. They finished the season with a 5-3 record losing to teams like Bamberg and Alba Berlin. John Patrick did a great job being able to build a strong team that quickly found their chemistry and their roles as he almost completely added new players as the only guy from last season was veteran David Mccray.

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Alba Berlin Reach 2018 NBBL Top 4 Easily Disposing Of Eintracht Frankfurt-Fraport Skyliners 95-62

Basketball competition can´t always be fair and often you do have those examples where one would love to see that Davey and Goliath situation prevail where the small clobbers the big, but more often than not that is only a dream and occurs in fairytales or if the opponent suddenly had some Lebron James´s cloned for their upset attempt. NBBL team Eintracht Frankfurt/Fraport Skyliners had the unwanted and not desired task of meeting the super mighty and powerful club of Alba Berlin as the German capital team were the overwhelming favorites. They came into the series with a 15-1 record against the 10-4 Frankfurt record and an arsenal of offense talent that had scored 90 points or more nine times and 100 points or more five times and had that NBA type scoring atmosphere working. On top of that Alba Berlin had a roster where eight players averaged 10 points or more compared to Frankfurt having three youngsters attaining that feat and had the overwhelming size advantage with 9 guys listed at 2,00 meters or taller. Alba Berlin also brought two of Germany´s biggest talents with Jonas Mattisseck and Henrik Drescher that get minutes in the EasyCredit BBL and also two notable names with Franz Josef-Wagner who is the kid brother of 2018 NCAA finalist with Michigan Moritz Wagner and Elias Rodl who is the son of 1993 NCAA champion with North Carolina Henrik Rodl. Of course Alba Berlin didn´t bring all players like Rodl, but sure had a great variety of players to chose from. One could quote one of the bank robbers from the classic Boston made film The Town as the thugs are about to rob another bank with “Say your prayers”, because no team has had an easy time with the powerful Alba Berlin team. Eintracht Frankfurt-Fraport Skyliners was in their own smug living room staring at a do or die game as they had been destroyed in game one 91-61 as Alba Berlin controlled the boards and forced the Frankfurt club to a pathetic 35 turnovers.

Could Davey and Goliath make a statement or was Alba Berlin destined to make another trip to the NBBL Final 4? There would be no Skyliner miracle as game 2 took a very similar pattern to game one as Alba Berlin dominated at both ends of the court easily disposing of Eintracht Frankfurt-Alba Berlin 95-62. After the game, the Alba Berlin players were all huddled in the corner of the gym as they had just taken care of business again chilling and wondering when the pizza would arrive to help tame their stomachs during the long 8 hours bus drive home and top German guard Jonas Mattisscek reflected on the win as if it was the most normal result ever. “We didn´t get rattled by their physicality and were able to play better than them. We did a good job pressuring them for the whole game and just were allowed to play our game and put constant pressure on the ball”, stressed Alba Berlin guard Jonas Mattisseck. Eintracht Frankfurt-Fraport Skyliners had a solid season, but were totally outmatched in every area of the game, but gave their best and had their moments like 15 year old Len Schoorman who led all scorers with 25 points who was a bit in awe of the incredible talent of Alba Berlin. “I have never played against such a great team. One can really learn a lot from them. I felt we played better in game 2 than game 1. We did a better job against their press this time. There were very big and played well so together, but we gave it our best”, stressed Eintracht Frankfurt-Fraport Skyliners guard Len Schoorman.

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