In the Beko BBL in the past there have been teams that have had the luxury of having a trio of players, three amigos or three musketeers however one wants to describe it that have helped their respective teams in special ways, be it in scoring, winning titles or just bringing a team to new heights. In the heyday of the Frankfurt Skyliners glory  days, the team had the Bermuda triangle of Americans mr everything Chris Williams, in the corner parked Tyrone Ellis and Skyliner legend Pascal Roller who helped carry the team to the 2004 title and 2005 Beko BBL final. In Paderborn, you had the three musketeers of slick scoring Tim Black who led the Beko BBL in scoring in 2008. The heart and soul of the team Marius Nolte and Mr versatile Steven Esterkamp who helped carry the small town to the Beko BBL in 2006 winning 50 games in a row in the second Bundesliga. This season the Telekom Baskets Bonn have  a trio of Americans with three ex NBA Draft picks of Jared Jordan who is the best point guard in the Beko BBL that led the Greece league in assists in 2011 and Beko BBL in 2012 and should be in the NBA now, Patrick Ewing jr who has a name that makes basketball cracks heads turn and could have a private competition with FC Bayern Munich as too which name is more famous in the world in their respective sports or Robert Vaden who can shoot out the lights on any given night and could probably make a swish shot from the top of the Chase tower in Indianapolis if a basket was on the ground. When seeing these three names, one can ask the question if they are the most talented trio of Americans ever to have set foot in Bonn? “Bonn had a good combination of Americans in the last years when you look at guys like ex NBA player Edward Basden, Winsome Frazier or EJ Rowland. Mike Koch always does a good job finding good Americans. Last season he brought in Tony Gaffney. I saw Patrick Ewing play at Georgetown at the NCAA Final 4. He had the skills, but not so much that fluid explosiveness, but that can be at age 22. Big guys often develop later. I was surprised he didn´t land in the NBA. I saw video of him this season and I like how he plays. He plays no real role in the Bonn offense. He lives off his rebounding. He goes there where it hurts. It is hard to say if this is the best group of Americans ever, but they will be a force. Vaden is your typical touch and shoot player. One also can´t forget what Koch has done with German players. He did a good job developing Alex King further. One thought that King would sink after he left the Skyliners, but he developed well in Bonn”, stressed basketball expert Steven Clauss. One Skyliner isn´t about to let a famous name ruffle his feathers. “Ewing is just another opponent. A name is a name”, smiled Zach Peacock.

Since head coach Michael Koch has had free reigns of gobbling up players each new season, his trust in American players and their abilities has been as strong as the Boston Bruins belief that their 2011 Stanley Cup win was no fluke and waiting another 39 years for the next one is out of the question, American singer Rihanna confident that her new album Talk Talk talk with hit single Take A Bow is a track that many people will rap about for years to come or Lindsay Lohan somehow not abruptly disappearing, but continuing to hang around in the news showing her support for legend Marilyn Monroe in her own essay for a new coffee book. In the last six years with 71 players on the roster, Koch has picked 38 Americans.  It has been no secret that Michael Koch Has had faith in the Americans the last years as much as Skyliner fans have seeing Quantez Robertson take new athletic and breathtaking lift offs to the basket this season, Bastian Schweinsetiger doing some more trick shots with the basketball, or Dashaun Wood feeding Derrick Allen an ally-op pass, but being rejected from behind at the second from Super Tez Robertson. However after not reaching the playoffs in 2010-2011 for only the second time in their basketball existence, the German coach decided to go in another direction supplementing the roster with only three Americans in 2011-2012 which could give the few Mcdonalds in the Rhine city less business now with less of an influx of Americans playing there. For some Americans going to Mcdonalds is about as regular as Germans going to the beer garden, going to Mallorca for vacation for driving a Volkswagen and sometimes when your in a new country and are shy and see the big yellow arches, one just can´t resist. “I actually only visit Mcdonalds about once a month in Europe, but I think the Americans rather have a greasy Big Mac and French fries then good tasty Wiener Schnitzel”, smiled  ex Beko BBL player Steven Wright. With less Americans and players from other countries, there might be an influx to taste the real German classic food. “The Mcdonalds might be down, but the Wiener Schnitzel will be up”, laughed EnBW Ludwigsburg Mark Dorris. Koch had the right feeling last season reaching the Beko BBL playoffs again even if it was on the last game day.

The Telekom Baskets Bonn have been in the playoffs since 1997 almost as often as Allen Iverson said “Practice” in his infamous press conference as the club of coach Michael Koch missed just two times in 2005 and in 2011, but have the cruel distinction of not being able to win the big title losing five finals and two cup finals that brings back memories to the NFL Buffalo Bills of the 90s as they perished in four Superbowl finals. The Telekom Baskets Bonn were BBL finalists in 1997,1999, 2001, 2008 and 2009 and Cup finalists in 2005 and 2009. If you lose one final, try try again and if you lose a second consecutive final try try again, but if you reach a third final then the team has to finally win or forever be classified as the German basketball version of the Buffalo Bills football team that had the distinction of being second way too many times. A Michael Phelps has never worried about being second since he has won 11 gold medals at the Olympics, two bronze medals, but no silver medals before the 2012 Olympics. Being second hurts about as much as catching someone cheating, but in the BBL with guys coming and going, the trademark of always finishing second shouldn´t really effect a team mentally as much as one might think. “I don’t think that it takes a toll on the team. Teams are usually building new teams each year. But with Bonn that has kept a good core of guys from the last years, that should help the team more than hurt it when it comes to winning a title”, added ex Gloria Giants Duesseldorf guard Steven Wright.

However in  2010-2011 was a season to forget for the Telekom Baskets Bonn as they finished in 13^th place with a record of 14-20. It is always difficult enough to be known as a team not being able to win a title, but not reaching the playoffs is about as unexpected as Bayern Munich soccer team losing games at the moment with their unbeaten record, Paris Hilton refraining from wearing big sunglasses anywhere as that fetish seems to have returned to her, or Boris Becker ever forgetting what happened in a London hotel closet. Bonn had a very talented team in 2010-2011 with seven Americans and at times were carried in many games by the trio of Nic Wise, Folarian Campbell and Jeremy Hunt that averaged 38 points out of the team total 71 points per game, however the team play just wasn´t consistent enough. “They had some great individual players, but they just didn´t seem to gell”, added ex Phoenix Hagen guard Mark Dorris. Their biggest wins were  against BG Goettingen, The EWE Baskets Oldenburg and The Artland Dragons. A big five game winning streak in December helped the team in the first half, but in the second half of the season the team seemed to falter as they finished the season from February to May with a 2-12 record and raised many questions. “I think that they had too many players that wanted to much for themselves than for the team”, remembered ex Tuebingen guard Steven Wright. In those 12 games, the team lost only three games by less than five points and lost the rest pretty easily.

With the misfortune of last year, the club decided to revamp and made a total facelift  saying farewell to 10 players. They kept the support and back bone of the team with Beko BBL dinosaur Chris Ensminger and young Germans Fabian Thulig and Jonas Wohlfarth-Bottermann. The team also kept long time coach Michael Koch who keeps the patience and trust of management and has a contract until 2013. The team brought in versatile power forward Tony Gaffney who has been with the Boston Celtics and Assist magnet Jared Jordan who returns back to the club after a year in Greece to round out the American trio. To help fill the void of new extra Americans, the team got two players from Lithuvania with Simonas Serapinas and Benas Veikalis and Zvonko Buljan. Koch also has trust in Germans Daniel Hain and Andrej Mangold. Koch works now with a 10 man roster and sees his switch from American ball to European ball as positive. “It is easier to integrate Europeans into a team than it is Americans who tend to think I before we”, stressed Michael Koch. This season, the Telekom Baskets started off hot winning their first five games including home games against FC Bayern Munich and the EWE Baskets Oldenburg. Soon after followed a five game losing streak where they lost three homes games in a row. Since then they have been a very up and down team never having more than a three game winning streak. Their biggest wins of the season since Christmas have been home games against Alba Berlin and the Artland Dragons. They were able to sweep the season series with Oldenburg. Their biggest problem has simply been depth. They have a very thin roster and the recent removal of Zvonko Buljan didn´t help their run in the playoffs if they make it. In a do or die game on the last game day, the team kept their composure and nerves giving the Fraport Skyliners a rude kick into early summer vacation. The team finished the season with a 18-16 record sneaking into the Beko BBL playoffs and having a date with the mighty Brose Baskets Bamberg. After a surprise 75-74 win Bamberg in game one something no Beko BBL team ahd done in 2 years dating back to the Deutsche Bank Skyliners, they lost the next three games as Bamberg went on to win the Beko BBL title

This season Michael Koch was back at the drawing board and was able to construct another very interesting team that will be fighting for the playoffs. As it is every season, there is always the difficulty of keeping talented players that had good seasons and get tempted by the big money. One of these players was Tony Gaffney who went to the ACB in Spain. The combination of Jared Jordan to Tony Gaffney ally-ops were about as usual at least each game as a Konstantin Klein to Johannes Voigtmann give and go play is with the Fraport Skyliners. The team also said farewell to mini microwave Taylor Battle and Simonas Serapinas and little used German Daniel Hain.  The team was able to keep dinosaur Chris Ensminger that is turning 39, but always seems to stay at the age of 28 in body on the court and top playmaker Jared Jordan who will be the key to the success of the team. Benas Veikalas was also kept as well as Germans Andrej Mangold,  Fabian Thulig and Jonas Wohlfarth-Bottermann. The team picked up four new players with three Americans and one German. The most famous name is Patrick Ewing jr who has NBA experience and is playing his first season in Europe and the club hopes that he will be even a bigger presence under the boards than Tony Gaffney was. Robert Vaden also has NBA experience as well as European experience. He is about as deadly a shooter as they come and will give the team a lot of depth from outside as well as from the mid distance where he hits a majority of his shots. Koch also brought in a rookie with Kyle Weems who is a power forward and played at Missouri State. He lost seven pounds during the summer and is agile enough to play the position three if needed. Finally Koch brought in David Mccray who had played in Ludwigsburg since 2007, but never was able to make the big breakthrough. He now has a new chance and is known as a rugged defender that can score when needed and runs around the court like the brother of Derrick Allen with his hectic play. He also is like an extra assistant coach on the court which can always be beneficial. The strength of the Telekom Baskets Bonn this season will be their quickness. With Jordan you have a passer that can find any teammate at any time. He will be the main force on keeping the offense going. The team also is looking forward to playing defense and have two pit bull dogs with Germans David Mccray and Andrej Mangold. A weakness could be the boards if the project isn´t done properly. Ensminger is turning 39 and one can never know if an injury will occur. The back up center is little used German Wolfarth-Bottermann. He will have to give stability and the team will have to pride team rebounding as a whole. Bonn will have to stay healthy if they want to have a chance of reaching the Beko BBL playoffs this season. “I like how Bonn play this season. They will play well. They have good gaurds and inside players. All in all a good mix of Indians and chiefs. They play disciplined basketball like bringing the ball to Ensminger and like to change the rhythm on defense. I think that Koch has done a good job this year with finding the right quality of players that will mesh together”, said basketball expert Steven Clauss.

In the last Six seasons, The Deutsche Bank Skyliners only have a 5-12 record. It doesn´t matter if Frankfurt played at the old gym or in the new arena, Frankfurt is 0-9 in this time. The last time, The Deutsche Bank Skyliners won in Bonn, New England patriot Tom Brady had not sipped champagne yet as a third Super Bowl winner, Jurgen Klinsmann was still coach of the German national soccer team, Paul Potts was still selling cell phones and singing in front of the mirror and the terrifying Tsunami was only a few days old as Frankfurt won in Bonn on January 1^st 2005 with a 79-67 win as Chris Williams exploded with 27 points and 16 rebounds.In the 2010-2011 season the Skyliners lost a tight 92-89 game shortly before the new year as Nic wise took control in crunch time.The 20 point, eight rebound and seven assist performance didn´t help in the losing cause from Dashaun Wood. Frankfurt got revenge in the return date in the Ballsporthalle as they took apart Bonn 78-60 as Dashaun Wood led all scorers with 20 points and no Bonn player scored in double figures. In their first meeting last season, the Telekom Baskets Bonn won 79-64 as Bonn was leading 41-34 at halftime and had a strong 22-12 third quarter that iced the cake for the win. Simonas Serapinas Led Bonn with 20 points, while the two ex Skyliners Justin Gray contributed 21 points and Jon Leuer 16 points. Frankfurt shot under 40% and were out rebounded badly. In the return game in Bonn, Frankfurt lost 81-62 not reaching the Beko BBL playoffs. The Skyliners had no method of stoping Chris Ensminger that had 24 points. Jermareo Davidosn added 18 points and Jimmy Mckinney had 13 points in his last game as a Skyliner.

The Fraport Skyliners come into the Bonn game resting in last place with a 1-5 record and are looking to snap their three game losing streak and reeling off another bitter loss in which they let Bremerhaven end the game with an 8-0 run losing 74-68. . Rebounding and limiting turnovers continues to be a problem for the Fraport Skyliners. The Telekom Baskets Bonn are resting in ninth place with a 2-2 record and are coming off a loss at home to the Artland Dragons. Bonn is a very strong rebounding team as they average almost 10 rebounds more than Frankfurt per game. Muli Katzurin will have to have his team ready on the boards. “Bonn is very strong inside and have big edge over Skyliners. Sklyiners need to pressure the Bonn guards much and the game will be determined under the boards. Frankfurt has to show enough power under the basket”, warned Steven Clauss. Frankfurt also has to focus on themselves. “We have to come out an dplay our game and not worry so much about the opponent”, stressed Quantez Robertson.

The club did a fantastic job complementing the team with 38 year old 209cm center veteran Chris Ensminger in 2009-2010 and has returned for a fourth season and just keeps going  is as known in the BEKO BBL as jiffy popcorn in the states. He is a BBL statesman that has won two BBL titles with Bamberg in 2005 and 2007, had season double double averages in the BBL with ppg and rpg from 2001-2005. He always gives 100% with relentless hard work under the hoop and one has to look closely for him to sneak a smile during a game. He is a strong center with fantastic rebound-skills, can score from the low-post. He is right handed, but shoots FTs with the left hand. His biggest success was with Bamberg, but he also played in Paderborn and MBC. Before he came to Germany, he played in the NCAA with Valparaiso from 1992-1996. Then he got his first experience as a professional basketball player in Portugal, France and New Zealand. In 2010-2011 for Bonn, he played EuroCup: 5 games: 16.0ppg, 10.0rpg, 1.0apg, FGP: 50.0%, FT: 75.0%; German League: 35 games: 12.8ppg, Reb-2(8.5rpg), 1.1apg, FGP: 54.9%, FT: 74.0%. Ensminger may be 37, but his intelligence may out weigh his talent. “Ensminger plays so hard and is always in the right position on the boards. He won´t out jump anyone, but he is pretty smart”, stressed Quentin Pryor. Former teammate Steve Wright has fond memories of the native from Ohio as they were played together in Paderborn. “Chris is smarter than his opponents and always puts himself in the right position. He is extremely disciplined and is a leader. I don´t think there is really a way to stop him as he is very consistent. He was like a big brother for me and when he gave me advice I listened”, added ex New Yorker Phantoms Braunschweig guard Steven Wright. The game of Ensminger also seems to have a special taste as he is always a joy to watch. “His hook shot at the 2010 BEKO BBL Allstar game was very nice. He has an old school game so I wasn´t shocked when I saw it. He seems to have a bag of shots like that”, commented Quentin Pryor. Alex King played two seasons with the veteran that plays like a 28 year old. “He is one of the best centers in the league and can do it all under the hoop, pass, and use both hands. He is just a complete player. Of the court he is a quiet player, but one that you can talk to. I have a lot of respect for him”, expressed Alex King. Last season, he played EuroChallenge: 11 games: 12.0ppg, 6.2rpg, 1.3apg, FGP: 60.6%, FT: 70.6%; German League: 37 games: 14.8ppg, Reb-4(7.3rpg), 1.4apg, FGP: 57.3%, FT: 75.4%

The team also brought back Jared Jordan who is a 28 year old 188cm point guard from Hartford that understands how to run a team. Has great court vision and leadership. He played at Marist from 2003-2007 and finished his last two seasons as the top assist man in the NCAA with 8,5a nd 8,7apg. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Clippers in the second round in 2007. He never played in the NBA, but was always very close as he visited training camps with The New York Knicks in 2007 and New Orleans Hornets in 2008. Before coming to Bonn in 2009, he played for top team Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius (Lithuania-LKL) and had a stint in the D-league for Rio Grande Valley Vipers (D-League): 36 games: 10.9ppg, 3.8rpg, Assists-2(9.0apg), 2.0spg, FGP: 45.9%, 3PT: 28.0%, FT: 70.3%. In his first season with Bonn, he played EuroCup: 5 games: 6.4ppg, 3.4rpg, 4.4apg, FGP: 37.9%, 3PT: 10.5%, FT: 80.0%; German League: 37 games: 9.0ppg, 4.2rpg, Assists-4(5.3apg), FGP: 43.4%, 3PT: 32.1%, FT: 76.8%. In 2010-2011, he played for VAP Kolossos Rodou (Greece-A1, starting five): 27 games: 6.3ppg, 2.6rpg, Assists-1(5.5apg), FGP: 52.3%, 3PT: 23.2%, FT: 56.0%. Last season for Bonn, he played German League: 36 games: 10.7ppg, 3.8rpg, Assists-1(8.2apg), 1.0spg, FGP: 49.7%, 3PT: 38.4%, FT: 81.4%; EuroChallenge: 12 games: 10.6ppg, 4.6rpg, Assists-1(8.8apg), FGP: 56.5%, 3PT: 36.1%, FT: 55.6%. The team also returns Benas Veikalas for a second season as he is a 29 year old 192cm guard from Lituvania. He got experience playing for Metropolitan St. (NCAA2). He then came back to Europe and played for  Nevezis Kedainiai (LKL) and two seasons for BK Prostejov (Czech Rep) before coming to Bonn last season. Last season for Bonn, he played German League: 35 games: 13.5ppg, 3.4rpg, 1.8apg, FGP: 61.4%, 3PT: 41.0%, FT-3(88.5%); EuroChallenge: 9 games: 11.3ppg, 3.1rpg, 2.9apg, FGP: 55.3%, 3PT: 34.3%, FT-3(93.3%).

The team also returns three Germans. The team also brought back 25 year old 190cm Andrej Magold, who might get his first real chance in Bonn. He has bounced around German yin the last years playing  regionalliga basketball with Hannover and TB Oldenburg and then playing second division ball with FC Bayern Munich from 2007-2009. In 2009-2010, he played for UBC Hannover Tigers (ProA, starting five): 25 games: 8.5ppg, 3.1rpg, 3.0apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 45.7%, 3PT: 35.7%, FT: 69.1%. last season, he played for the Artland Dragons Quakenbrueck (1.Bundesliga): 26 games: 0.5ppg; also a license to play for SC Rasta Vechta (ProB): 2 games: 1.5ppg, 4.0rpg, 2.5apg, 1.0spg. Last season, he played  EuroChallenge: 12 games: 1.8ppg; German League: 37 games: 3.1ppg, 1.3rpg. The team also return Fabian Thulig who is a 23 year old 196cm forward who has been with the club since 2006. He made his debut in the Beko BBL in 2008 at age 18. He has been brought along slowly, but has been developing well. In 2010-2011, he played 26 games Beko BBL games averaging 2.8ppg, 1.5rpg; EuroChallenge: 6 games: 4.5ppg; also played at Dragons Rhoendorf (ProA)15 games: 9.7ppg, 4.1rpg, 2.2apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 46.7%, 3PT: 25.0%, FT: 78.0%. Last season, he played EuroChallenge: 12 games: 4.4ppg, 1.5rpg; German League: 30 games: 1.2ppg Jonas Wolfarth-Botterman is a 21 year old 207cm center that has been with the club since 2007. In 2010-2011played 4 Beko BBL games averaging 1.5ppg, 1.8rpg; also have a license to play at Dragons Rhoendorf (ProA) playing 29 games: 12.8ppg, 7.9rpg, Blocks-1(2.1bpg), FGP: 54.9%, 3PT-1(50.0%), FT: 44.9%. Last season, he played EuroChallenge: 5 games: 2.0ppg, 1.0rpg; German League: 20 games: 2.4ppg, 1.5rpg.

Patrick Ewing jr is a 28 year old 203cm power forward from Marietta Georgia that also has the Jamacian citzenship,  and  has the distinction of being the son of NBA legend Patrick Ewing. He started his basketball career at Indiana and tthen played at Georgetown from 2006-2008. In 2008, he was drafted by the  drafted by Sacramento Kings (NBA,2rd(43). In 2008-2009, he started with the  Sacramento Kings (NBA), traded to Houston Rockets (NBA), in Sep.’08 traded to New York Knicks (NBA), left in Oct.’08, in Dec.’08 moved to Reno Bighorns (D-League): 29 games: 16.3ppg, 8.9rpg, 3.0apg, 1.4spg, 1.3bpg, FGP: 45.7%, 3PT: 23.4%, FT: 77.0%, In 2010-2011, he played for the New York Knicks (NBA), left in Oct.’10, then moved to Reno Bighorns (D-League): 25 games: 15.7ppg, 8.4rpg, 3.2apg, 1.6spg, 1.2bpg, FGP: 44.0%, 3PT: 34.4%, FT: 79.4%; in Jan.’11 traded to Sioux Falls Skyforce (D-League): 23 games: 19.9ppg, Reb-2(10.6rpg), 3.3apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 49.1%, 3PT: 33.8%, FT: 82.1%, in Mar.’11 signed at New Orleans Hornets (NBA): 9 games: 0.7ppg. Last season, he played for the Sioux Falls Skyforce (D-League): 11 games: 10.1ppg, 4.3rpg, 2.8apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 48.5%, 3PT: 22.9%, FT: 82.1%; in Feb.’12 signed at Iowa Energy (D-League, starting five): 19 games: 8.3ppg, 4.4rpg, 1.3apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 45.5%, 3PT: 34.6%, FT: 81.6%. The team also brought in Robert Vaden is a 27 year old 196cm swingman from Indianapolis that is an great offensive player, who can read screens, find an open shot for himself and serve the open teammate. Shoots well from outside and can become deadly from behind the European 3pts arch. Also, even being not so athletic, he’s really strong and knows how to defend, even on taller opponents. He played together with Ewing at Indiana from 2004-2006 before transferring to the Univeristy of Alabama at Birmingham where he played until 2009. In 2009, he was drafted by the Charlotte Bobcats (NBA,2rd(54). In 2009-2010, he started his professional basketball career for Aget Imola (Lega2, starting five): 29 games: 16.9ppg, 3.6rpg, 1.9apg, 1.8spg, FGP: 43.7%, 3PT: 40.0%, FT: 75.4%. In 2001-2011, he played for the Tulsa 66ers (D-League, starting five): 48 games: 11.0ppg, 2.5rpg, 2.2apg, FGP: 43.8%, 3PT: 40.5%, FT: 75.0%, in Apr.’11 moved to Oklahoma City Thunder (NBA), the same day assigned to Tulsa 66ers (D-League, starting five). Last season, he played for BK SPU Bemaco Nitra (Slovakia-Extraliga): EuroChallenge: 6 games: 16.8ppg, 4.2rpg, 1.7apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 43.2%, 3PT: 40.9%, FT: 75.0%; 18 games: 17.4ppg, 4.7rpg, 2.4apg, 1.8spg, FGP: 51.0%, 3PT: 40.0%, FT: 84.2% , in Dec.’11 moved to Minnesota Timberwolves (NBA), in Jan.’12 joined Tulsa 66ers (D-League, starting five): 36 games: 12.8ppg, 2.8rpg, 2.4apg, FGP: 42.1%, 3PT: 44.6%, FT: 78.6%. Kyle Weems is a 23 year old 198cm power forward from Topeka, Kansas that is a Beko BBL rookie. He played at Missouri State from 2007-2012 and in his senior year played 31 games: 15.4ppg, 7.1rpg, 1.4apg, FGP: 41.4%, 3PT: 40.3%, FT: 78.0%. He played a total of 134 NCAA games. This past summer, he played nBA Summer league for the Warriors and Raptors. 26 year old 188cm guard German guard David Mccray is playing his firsts eason in Bonn. He already made his debut in the BBL as an 18 year old in 2004 with BG Karlsruhe where he played until 2007. He is very athletic that can put the ball in the hoop. He is tough to stop on one on one defense and he is secretly the teams energizer and coach on the court. He can be very efficient on the court as he showed in 2009-2010 as he  scored 13 points in 15 minutes against Bamberg and 11 points in 12 minutes against Ratiopharm Ulm. In 2009-2010, he played 33 games: 5.0ppg, 1.9rpg, 1.1apg, FGP: 42.3%, 3PT: 37.2%, FT: 65.0%. In 2010-2011, he played 34 games: 5.7ppg, 1.4rpg, 1.8apg, FGP: 57.4%, 3PT: 31.8%, FT: 64.2%. Last season, he played 32 games: 2.4ppg, 1.2rpg.

 

 

 

 

Not only the two slow starts by the Fraport Skyliners and Eisbaeren Bremerhaven this season was on the minds off fans, but also the meeting between ex players Jacob Burtschi and Zach Peacocok with their respective teams was a topic of discussion coming into the showdown between the Skyliners and Bremerhaven in the Eisbaeren cage. However one link that involves two basketball minds stayed in the backround and seems to slip the minds of many is the fact that Bremerhaven head coach Doug Spadley and Skyliner captain Marius Nolte had a positive working relationship in Paderborn between 2001-2009. Spradley coached the gregarious Nolte in 223 total games and 103 Beko BBL games. The  most fond memories of both will probably be the 50 game winning streak they had in the second Bundesliga and moving up to the first division in 2006 as well as forcing 8 time Beko BBL champion Alba Berlin to five games in the 2009 playoffs. Nolte left Paderborn in 2009 for Frankfurt and Spradley for Bremerhaven. Both have very important roles as Spradley is trying to lead his team back to the Beko BBL playoffs and Nolte as team captain of the Fraport Skyliners who doesn´t always play much, but is so important with his fulltime captain role on and off the court. Coming into the game, Nolte led the head to head duel against his ex coach 6-5 after losing the season series last season. After working together for so long, it is always nice when both can compete and see each other at games. “I am always happy to see Marius. We have a great friendship, but on the court he is a pain in the behind. He is so good at drawing fouls and that is why he has been in the league for so long. He may not be the best basketball player, but he is one of the hardest working in the league”, stressed Bremerhaven head coach Doug Spradley. After the game the head to head series was tied 6-6 after the  nail bitting 74-68 Bremerhaven win, but both had a smile on their face even if Spradley was rubbing it in a bit to Nolte. “I would have liked to have won today and I was very motivated. It is always nice to talk to him after being my coach for so long. I learned so much from him and we have a great friendship”, added Marius Nolte.

Both teams came into the game wanting to prove something as the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were still seeking their first home win of the season, but coming off a huge 114 point slaughter in Giessen while the Fraport Skyliners were looking to win their second road game of the season and snap their two game losing streak. After the horrible second half in Trier where the Fraport Skyliners totally fell apart, they came to Bremerhaven motivated and gave a great team effort, but usually it takes 40 minutes to win a game and not 35 minutes as the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven rallied in the last two minutes to escape the Frankfurt lead and win it with a 8-0 run. “This was a very bitter loss. We were up by so many points and then giving up the lead hurt. This was similar to the Trier game. We need to learn to keep the lead until the end. For the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven, they never gave up even with the good Skyliner start. They stayed calm and in the last minutes buckled down on defense and made the big plays to secure the win. “This was a real dog fight. Both teams really wanted to win this game. We prepared well all week, but in the end it just felt like we wanted it more”, stressed shooting guard Stefan Jackson. One could see it on the faces of the dejected Skyliners after the siren sounded that they had given up a golden opportunity to win on the road. “I think that with the 68-66 lead at the end, we could of closed it out, but we were unable to execute well”, stressed Quantez Robertson.

Long before the jump ball was tossed to jump start the game, one could see a long chat with ex teammates Devin Gibson and Jacob Burtschi at the center court, new Skyliner Ted Scott playing water boy again carrying some team equipment to the bench and a marching band that got fans into the spirit for some Sunday afternoon basketball. The Fraport Skyliners had Devin Gibson back after his injury and Germans Konstantin Klein and Danilo Barthel were well rested after not playing in the PRO B game Saturday night in Lich. The Fraport Skyliners jumped out on a good start leading 5-2 as Zach Peacock scored from the wing and German Danilo Barthel connected on a high rainbow. Canadian Scott Morrison had memories of his hot start last week in Giessen and was doing his thing again on the court scoring with a dunk and lay in giving Bremerhaven the 6-5 advantage. However the Fraport Skyliners ahd found their rhythm very early on offense as Johnathan Jones was doing a steady job at the helm as point guard leading the Fraport Skyliners on a 11-4 run to lead 16-10. Jones had his best phase of the game scoring on a pull up jumper and doing a heads up play fooling Bremerhaven on the press and stealing in inbound pass and making the lay up. American Ted Scott did what he did in his debut in Trier scoring in bunches as he hit a three pointer and then made an incredible penetration on Jackson making a hesitation step and then spinning by the American and hitting a runner. Peacock scored twice closing out the first quarter as the Fraport Skyliners led 20-15. The Fraport Skyliners found a solid rhythm on offense and defense and Ted Scott and Zach Peacock were hot. Frankfurt had problems giving up offensive rebounds. The Fraport Skyliners were shooting 50% from the field and 50% from outside while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were shooting 29% from the field and 0% form outside. Frankfurt had the rebound edge 13-8, but six turnovers while Bremerhaven had four turnovers.

The Fraport Skyliners kept their healthy lead in the second quarter extending it to 29-19 with a 9-4 run. Ted Scott scored seven unanswered points in this span with two catch and pop jumpers and a lay up in transition. Jones found Peacock open down low with a no look pass. Bremerhaven stayed in the game, but as German national player  Philipp Zwiener cut the lead to six, it was Skyliner American Dion Dowell who found some of that shooting spunk form the Artland game drilling home two consecutive three pointers and Frankfurt was up 36-27. However the Fraport Skyliners were unable to hold the big lead as the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven closed out the second quarter with an 8-2 run to cut the once comfortable lead to a slim 38-35 Frankfurt advantage. Bremerhaven did a good thing trying to take advantage of the mismatches but also in this run had some misfortune as they hit some difficult buckets in more one on one situations. Zwiener made a hard shovel lay in, Keith Waleskowski made a fade away from the wing, Stanley Burrell a tough fade away from the wing and Waleskowski scored again inside. “We never got down when they had lead. We always know that we can come back, because we have the needed fire power. We have a balanced team in scoring and defended well containing their guards and wing players”, stressed Stefan Jackson. The Fraport Skyliners were shooting 47% from the field and 50% from the three point line while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were shooting 41% from the field and 17% from the three point line. Frankfurt had the 20-18 rebound edge, but nine turnovers while Bremerhaven had six turnovers.

The Third quarter remained a dog fight and very close as the Fraport Skyliners gave up the lead only once and they never led by more than four points. The Fraport Skyliners continued to have massive problems on the boards in this quarter giving up five offensive rebounds. Peacock continued to be a menace on offense executing at  a high rate making a running hook shot and a fade away shot from the wing as Frankfurt led 42-40. Ex Skyliner Jacob Burtschi then came cruising down the court on the fast break and everyone knew in the arena that he wanted to be on the nightly highlight reel with a dunk as he plowed into the lane and ex teammate Danilo Barthel was about to stand in the way let him pass, but the Oklahoma native hit a clunker popping out the dunk. Burtschi quickly apologized to his teammates about giving up two sure points and made up for it on the next offensive set nailing a three pointer and giving Bremerhaven their second lead of the game after the early 6-5 lead in the first quarter. Frankfurt then went on a mini 5-0 run as Quantez Robertson dropped a pull up jumper and Devin Gibson a three pointer for the 47-43 advantage. The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven retaliated with a 4-0 run as Zwiener and Jackson hit knotting the score at 47-47. Robertson continued to display the hot hand hitting a three pointer and Dion Dowells cored inside for the 52-51 Frankfurt lead after three quarter. “We hit some big shots to stay with them and did a good job on the offensive boards”, expressed Stefan Jackson. “We showed  a lot of energy on defense and rotated better and got off on our offensive transition”, added Jacob Burtschi. The Fraport Skyliners were shooting 45% from the field and 39% from the parking lot while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were shooting 38% from the field and 29% from the parking lot. Bremerhaven had regained the 32-27 rebound edge back and had nine turnovers while Frankfurt had 12 turnovers.

The fourth quarter was the harsh story of three runs that the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven won 2-1. After three solid quarter where the Fraport Skyliners contained the lead, they showed some minor whiplash from their second half in Trier as they allowed the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven to regain the lead and control of the game with a 11-0 run to lead 62-52. The Fraport Skyliners were coughing up the ball in the worst way as well as getting offensive fouls while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were executing their offense on a constant rate. Burrell started the run with another one of his patent one on one plays making an off balance shot as the shot clocker buzzer sounded. Very quiet Justin Stommes erupted with a three point bomb, Burtschi scored on the penetration and Waleskowski got a no look pass from Alex Harris with the easy bucket inside. Just when you might have figured that the Fraport Skyliners may have a second TBB Trier, they buckled down and shocked the arena with an amazing 14-2 run to fetch back their lead 66-64. The Fraport Skyliners got a lot of production from many different players. Gibson started the run with an amazing unbelievable spin move in the lane falling to his left and somehow making the shot high off the glass. Robertson continued to hit timely shots making a three pointer and a Peacock jumper. Frankfurt also got free throws from Gibson, Nolte and Scott.  Stanley Burrell then read the defense well snuck inside for the easy lay up as their was no help defense as the game was deadlocked 66-66. With  a minute remaining it was Ted Scott hitting a huge jumper giving the Fraport Skyliners their last lead of the game 68-66. Bremerhaven then would respond by going on a 8-0 run as ex Skyliner Jacob Burtschi made six free throws freezing his ex team 74-68. After Burtschi tied the score 68-68, Frankfurt had the chance to take the lead, but peacocok got a turnover traveling call. “My traveling call was a game changer”, stressed Zach Peacock. The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven then at the wink of an eye took apart the Frankfurt defense with one swipe as Burrell found a cutting Morrison in the lane who slammed the ball home for the 70-68 lead. With less than a minute to go, Devin Gibson went for a tough penetration finishing with his left hand, but missed. Burtschi prompt got fouled and with a stern cold look sunk both free throws as if he was making that killer move on Park street on the Monopoly board. Frankfurt then had one more possession where they tried to cut the lead down, but Peacock missed a three pointer. “That last play was for me or Dowell. The defense bit on two players leaving me open. I had the shot, but missed”, added Zach Peacocok. It was Mr glue guy Jacob Burtschi that secured the rebound and got to the line again for points five and six in the run. “Burtschi made the shots, took charging calls and was just all around the ball tonight”, added Quantez Robertson.  “I have played against Burtschi the last three years and he played well. He always makes the plays. I have a lot of respect for him”, commented Zach Peacock. It was an exciting fourth quarter with the better end for Bremerhaven. “We played good defense down the stretch. Scott made some big shots, but I was in his face  a lot and I knew that he wouldn´t be able to sustain that all game long. Burtschi was our glue guy that always makes the tough plays and did the little things needed to help us get win”, stressed Stefan Jackson. “We didn´t play good one on one defense and rebound well at the end”, added Quantez Robertson.

The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were led by Jacob Burtschi with 16 points, 12 rebounds and three steals. Stanley Burrel produced 14 points and seven assists. Philipp Zwiener and Scott Morrison chipped in with 11 points a piece. The Fraport Skyliners were led by Ted Scott with 17 points and Zach Peacock contributed 14 points. With a 1-4 record and at the bottom of the standings, the Fraport Skyliners still have very much to improve. They were outrebounded 41-34, but a vast improvement to Trier. “We improved our rebounding. One could see that we had a fighting mentality when going for the rebounds”, stressed Konstantin Klein. Frankfurt had problems inside giving up 30 points in the paint and stil turned over the ball too much with 18. However they have one trait form last season that they will continue to need while improving their other parts of their game. “Our best strength today is that we never gave up”, warned Quantez Robertson. The next opponent for the Fraport Skyliners are the Telekom Baskets Bonn on October 27^.

Jermaine Dixon is a 25 year old 191cm guard from Baltimore, Maryland that is playing his first season in Germany for USC Heidelberg. He is a physical, athletic guard who can go from A to Z very quickly. As a lefthander, he is a natural scorer who can penetrate and attack the basket. Dixon is also extremely coachable and loves to compete. He played at Pittsburg(NCAA) with players like Gary Mcghee, Gilbert Brown and Dejuain Blair. In his senior year, he played  25 games averaging 10.6ppg, 4.0rpg, 2.2apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 38.5%, 3PT: 20.9%, FT: 70.4%. He turned professional in 2010 and played for Bosna ASA BH Telecom Sarajevo (Bosnia-D1, starting five): EuroChallenge Qualifying Round: 2 games: 9.5ppg, 7.0rpg, 4.0apg, 2.5spg, in Oct.’10 moved to Hamamatsu-Higashi Mikawa Phoenix (Japan-BJ League, starting five): 31 games: 12.2ppg, 3.2rpg, 4.3apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 49.6%, 3PT: 26.9%, FT: 71.9%; in Feb.’11 signed at Akita Northern Happinets (Japan-BJ League, starting five): 1 game: 20pts, 9reb, 2steals, left shortly. Last season he played for Hamamatsu-Higashi Mikawa Phoenix (Japan-BJ League, starting five): 51 games: 18.2ppg, 4.9rpg, Assists-3(5.5apg), 1.8spg, FGP: 44.2%, 3PT: 26.0%, FT: 70.1%. He spoke to German Hoops  about basketball.

Welcome to Heidelberg Jermaine. It is quite late in the off season, but you still found a job. Why do you think did it take so long for you to find a team?

It took me some time to find a team because my agent was looking for the right situation. It’s hard coming from Asia to Europe because everyone don’t respect Asian leagues.

You had a workout with Beko BBL team BBC Bayreuth last year and this season the Neckar Riesen Ludwigsburg were interested. Are you disappointed that you didn´t land in the Beko BBL?

I am not disappointed about not landing in BBL this season because I am sure it will happen soon. I never had a workout with any BBL teams last season.

What were the main reasons for deciding to come to USC Heidelberg?
Main reason for coming to USC is because I want to help the team get to BBL league and I also wanted to play in Germany. They showed they wanted me and I want to help them reach goal of making the BBL.

What do you know about the German basketball leagues? Do you have any friends playing in Germany?

I don’t know a lot about the German leagues but I did have a close friend play in BBL last season named Ricky Harris. Also my teammate from college is out here in Germany Gary McGhee.

You are a player that can get from A-Z very quickly. Is your quickness your biggest strength?

I do believe quickness is one of my biggest strength on the court because it allows me to get where I want to go and put a lot of pressure on defense. Also I think defense is a big part of my game also, I can turn defense into offense very quick.

What is a strength in your game that doesn´t get noticed right away?

The part of my game that people don’t notice is my passing. I am a very good passer because I can always find the open guy and I am willing to get my teammates open looks.

You played at Pittsburg(NCAA). Were you surprised that the team never won a title considering the talent that you had?

At Pitt I was surprised we never won a title. We came very close my junior year losing in the elite 8 game. We had a very good team and knew we had a true shot a winning the whole thing.

What was the most amazing thing that you saw Dejuan Blair do on the court?

Dejuan did so many great things it’s hard to point out one. Well one time he dove out of bouncs for a loose ball on the defensive end. We pushed the ball down court and he still getting up. I end up missing the lay up and out of no where Dejuan coming through the air catching the ball off the rim and dunking it.

Gary Mcghee is playing for BBC Bayreuth. Does he have the talent to play in the NBA down the road?

Yes I think Gary has the talent to play in the NBA because he is a great one on one defender, he can rebound the basketball at a high level and you can’t teach the size and strength that he has. I think soon he will be on a NBA roster.

Was it very tough living in the shadow of your brother Juan Dixon?

I love the challenge of living in my brothers shadow because people expect so much out of you and when that happens I am at my best as a basketball player. I love a great challenge.

What was the most amazing thing that you saw your brother do on the court?

The best thing I ever saw him do was win a national championship, it don’t get no better then that.

Who was the best player that you had to match up against in the NCAA that is in the NBA now?

The best player I played against in college that is in the NBA would have to be Wesley Johnson. He is 6’9 and I had to play him because I was the team best defender. I made it tough on him and he still was able to score when he needed too.

You played last season in Japan. How were you able to improve your game in this time?

I improved from Japan with getting my jump shot better and playing against big time players from my home city. When you play against great talent it help make your game better.

How was your summer? What was the coolist experience that you had on and off the court at home?

My summer was good. I spent as much of summer with my son as I could. I was focused on working out getting better as a player so I didn’t have much time to enjoy it but I will enjoy it more next summer.

Who would win in their prime the Dream team or Team USA 2012?

That would be a great game between Dream Team and Team USA 2012 but if everyone is in their prime I have to go with Dream Team because they were too big and they had Michael Jordan.

What was the last DVD movie that you saw?

The last DVD movie I saw was Taken.

Thanks Jermaine for the chat.

Not only the two slow starts by the Fraport Skyliners and Eisbaeren Bremerhaven this season was on the minds off fans, but also the meeting between ex players Jacob Burtschi and Zach Peacocok with their respective teams was a topic of discussion coming into the showdown between the Skyliners and Bremerhaven in the Eisbaeren cage. However one link that involves two basketball minds stayed in the backround and seems to slip the minds of many is the fact that Bremerhaven head coach Doug Spadley and Skyliner captain Marius Nolte had a positive working relationship in Paderborn between 2001-2009. Spradley coached the gregarious Nolte in 223 total games and 103 Beko BBL games. The  most fond memories of both will probably be the 50 game winning streak they had in the second Bundesliga and moving up to the first division in 2006 as well as forcing 8 time Beko BBL champion Alba Berlin to five games in the 2009 playoffs. Nolte left Paderborn in 2009 for Frankfurt and Spradley for Bremerhaven. Both have very important roles as Spradley is trying to lead his team back to the Beko BBL playoffs and Nolte as team captain of the Fraport Skyliners who doesn´t always play much, but is so important with his fulltime captain role on and off the court. Coming into the game, Nolte led the head to head duel against his ex coach 6-5 after losing the season series last season. After working together for so long, it is always nice when both can compete and see each other at games. “I am always happy to see Marius. We have a great friendship, but on the court he is a pain in the behind. He is so good at drawing fouls and that is why he has been in the league for so long. He may not be the best basketball player, but he is one of the hardest working in the league”, stressed Bremerhaven head coach Doug Spradley. After the game the head to head series was tied 6-6 after the  nail bitting 74-68 Bremerhaven win, but both had a smile on their face even if Spradley was rubbing it in a bit to Nolte. “I would have liked to have won today and I was very motivated. It is always nice to talk to him after being my coach for so long. I learned so much from him and we have a great friendship”, added Marius Nolte.

Both teams came into the game wanting to prove something as the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were still seeking their first home win of the season, but coming off a huge 114 point slaughter in Giessen while the Fraport Skyliners were looking to win their second road game of the season and snap their two game losing streak. After the horrible second half in Trier where the Fraport Skyliners totally fell apart, they came to Bremerhaven motivated and gave a great team effort, but usually it takes 40 minutes to win a game and not 35 minutes as the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven rallied in the last two minutes to escape the Frankfurt lead and win it with a 8-0 run. “This was a very bitter loss. We were up by so many points and then giving up the lead hurt. This was similar to the Trier game. We need to learn to keep the lead until the end. For the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven, they never gave up even with the good Skyliner start. They stayed calm and in the last minutes buckled down on defense and made the big plays to secure the win. “This was a real dog fight. Both teams really wanted to win this game. We prepared well all week, but in the end it just felt like we wanted it more”, stressed shooting guard Stefan Jackson. One could see it on the faces of the dejected Skyliners after the siren sounded that they had given up a golden opportunity to win on the road. “I think that with the 68-66 lead at the end, we could of closed it out, but we were unable to execute well”, stressed Quantez Robertson.

Long before the jump ball was tossed to jump start the game, one could see a long chat with ex teammates Devin Gibson and Jacob Burtschi at the center court, new Skyliner Ted Scott playing water boy again carrying some team equipment to the bench and a marching band that got fans into the spirit for some Sunday afternoon basketball. The Fraport Skyliners had Devin Gibson back after his injury and Germans Konstantin Klein and Danilo Barthel were well rested after not playing in the PRO B game Saturday night in Lich. The Fraport Skyliners jumped out on a good start leading 5-2 as Zach Peacock scored from the wing and German Danilo Barthel connected on a high rainbow. Canadian Scott Morrison had memories of his hot start last week in Giessen and was doing his thing again on the court scoring with a dunk and lay in giving Bremerhaven the 6-5 advantage. However the Fraport Skyliners ahd found their rhythm very early on offense as Johnathan Jones was doing a steady job at the helm as point guard leading the Fraport Skyliners on a 11-4 run to lead 16-10. Jones had his best phase of the game scoring on a pull up jumper and doing a heads up play fooling Bremerhaven on the press and stealing in inbound pass and making the lay up. American Ted Scott did what he did in his debut in Trier scoring in bunches as he hit a three pointer and then made an incredible penetration on Jackson making a hesitation step and then spinning by the American and hitting a runner. Peacock scored twice closing out the first quarter as the Fraport Skyliners led 20-15. The Fraport Skyliners found a solid rhythm on offense and defense and Ted Scott and Zach Peacock were hot. Frankfurt had problems giving up offensive rebounds. The Fraport Skyliners were shooting 50% from the field and 50% from outside while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were shooting 29% from the field and 0% form outside. Frankfurt had the rebound edge 13-8, but six turnovers while Bremerhaven had four turnovers.

The Fraport Skyliners kept their healthy lead in the second quarter extending it to 29-19 with a 9-4 run. Ted Scott scored seven unanswered points in this span with two catch and pop jumpers and a lay up in transition. Jones found Peacock open down low with a no look pass. Bremerhaven stayed in the game, but as German national player  Philipp Zwiener cut the lead to six, it was Skyliner American Dion Dowell who found some of that shooting spunk form the Artland game drilling home two consecutive three pointers and Frankfurt was up 36-27. However the Fraport Skyliners were unable to hold the big lead as the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven closed out the second quarter with an 8-2 run to cut the once comfortable lead to a slim 38-35 Frankfurt advantage. Bremerhaven did a good thing trying to take advantage of the mismatches but also in this run had some misfortune as they hit some difficult buckets in more one on one situations. Zwiener made a hard shovel lay in, Keith Waleskowski made a fade away from the wing, Stanley Burrell a tough fade away from the wing and Waleskowski scored again inside. “We never got down when they had lead. We always know that we can come back, because we have the needed fire power. We have a balanced team in scoring and defended well containing their guards and wing players”, stressed Stefan Jackson. The Fraport Skyliners were shooting 47% from the field and 50% from the three point line while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were shooting 41% from the field and 17% from the three point line. Frankfurt had the 20-18 rebound edge, but nine turnovers while Bremerhaven had six turnovers.

The Third quarter remained a dog fight and very close as the Fraport Skyliners gave up the lead only once and they never led by more than four points. The Fraport Skyliners continued to have massive problems on the boards in this quarter giving up five offensive rebounds. Peacock continued to be a menace on offense executing at  a high rate making a running hook shot and a fade away shot from the wing as Frankfurt led 42-40. Ex Skyliner Jacob Burtschi then came cruising down the court on the fast break and everyone knew in the arena that he wanted to be on the nightly highlight reel with a dunk as he plowed into the lane and ex teammate Danilo Barthel was about to stand in the way let him pass, but the Oklahoma native hit a clunker popping out the dunk. Burtschi quickly apologized to his teammates about giving up two sure points and made up for it on the next offensive set nailing a three pointer and giving Bremerhaven their second lead of the game after the early 6-5 lead in the first quarter. Frankfurt then went on a mini 5-0 run as Quantez Robertson dropped a pull up jumper and Devin Gibson a three pointer for the 47-43 advantage. The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven retaliated with a 4-0 run as Zwiener and Jackson hit knotting the score at 47-47. Robertson continued to display the hot hand hitting a three pointer and Dion Dowells cored inside for the 52-51 Frankfurt lead after three quarter. “We hit some big shots to stay with them and did a good job on the offensive boards”, expressed Stefan Jackson. “We showed  a lot of energy on defense and rotated better and got off on our offensive transition”, added Jacob Burtschi. The Fraport Skyliners were shooting 45% from the field and 39% from the parking lot while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were shooting 38% from the field and 29% from the parking lot. Bremerhaven had regained the 32-27 rebound edge back and had nine turnovers while Frankfurt had 12 turnovers.

The fourth quarter was the harsh story of three runs that the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven won 2-1. After three solid quarter where the Fraport Skyliners contained the lead, they showed some minor whiplash from their second half in Trier as they allowed the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven to regain the lead and control of the game with a 11-0 run to lead 62-52. The Fraport Skyliners were coughing up the ball in the worst way as well as getting offensive fouls while the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were executing their offense on a constant rate. Burrell started the run with another one of his patent one on one plays making an off balance shot as the shot clocker buzzer sounded. Very quiet Justin Stommes erupted with a three point bomb, Burtschi scored on the penetration and Waleskowski got a no look pass from Alex Harris with the easy bucket inside. Just when you might have figured that the Fraport Skyliners may have a second TBB Trier, they buckled down and shocked the arena with an amazing 14-2 run to fetch back their lead 66-64. The Fraport Skyliners got a lot of production from many different players. Gibson started the run with an amazing unbelievable spin move in the lane falling to his left and somehow making the shot high off the glass. Robertson continued to hit timely shots making a three pointer and a Peacock jumper. Frankfurt also got free throws from Gibson, Nolte and Scott.  Stanley Burrell then read the defense well snuck inside for the easy lay up as their was no help defense as the game was deadlocked 66-66. With  a minute remaining it was Ted Scott hitting a huge jumper giving the Fraport Skyliners their last lead of the game 68-66. Bremerhaven then would respond by going on a 8-0 run as ex Skyliner Jacob Burtschi made six free throws freezing his ex team 74-68. After Burtschi tied the score 68-68, Frankfurt had the chance to take the lead, but peacocok got a turnover traveling call. “My traveling call was a game changer”, stressed Zach Peacock. The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven then at the wink of an eye took apart the Frankfurt defense with one swipe as Burrell found a cutting Morrison in the lane who slammed the ball home for the 70-68 lead. With less than a minute to go, Devin Gibson went for a tough penetration finishing with his left hand, but missed. Burtschi prompt got fouled and with a stern cold look sunk both free throws as if he was making that killer move on Park street on the Monopoly board. Frankfurt then had one more possession where they tried to cut the lead down, but Peacock missed a three pointer. “That last play was for me or Dowell. The defense bit on two players leaving me open. I had the shot, but missed”, added Zach Peacocok. It was Mr glue guy Jacob Burtschi that secured the rebound and got to the line again for points five and six in the run. “Burtschi made the shots, took charging calls and was just all around the ball tonight”, added Quantez Robertson.  “I have played against Burtschi the last three years and he played well. He always makes the plays. I have a lot of respect for him”, commented Zach Peacock. It was an exciting fourth quarter with the better end for Bremerhaven. “We played good defense down the stretch. Scott made some big shots, but I was in his face  a lot and I knew that he wouldn´t be able to sustain that all game long. Burtschi was our glue guy that always makes the tough plays and did the little things needed to help us get win”, stressed Stefan Jackson. “We didn´t play good one on one defense and rebound well at the end”, added Quantez Robertson.

The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven were led by Jacob Burtschi with 16 points, 12 rebounds and three steals. Stanley Burrel produced 14 points and seven assists. Philipp Zwiener and Scott Morrison chipped in with 11 points a piece. The Fraport Skyliners were led by Ted Scott with 17 points and Zach Peacock contributed 14 points. With a 1-4 record and at the bottom of the standings, the Fraport Skyliners still have very much to improve. They were outrebounded 41-34, but a vast improvement to Trier. “We improved our rebounding. One could see that we had a fighting mentality when going for the rebounds”, stressed Konstantin Klein. Frankfurt had problems inside giving up 30 points in the paint and stil turned over the ball too much with 18. However they have one trait form last season that they will continue to need while improving their other parts of their game. “Our best strength today is that we never gave up”, warned Quantez Robertson. The next opponent for the Fraport Skyliners are the Telekom Baskets Bonn on October 27^.

Joe Trapani is a 24 year old 203cm forward from Madison, Connecticut that is playing his first season for Beko BBL team BBC Bayreuth. He started his NCAA career at Vermont (NCAA) in 2006 an dplayed 26 games: 11.4ppg, 4.4rpg, FGP: 44.0%, 3Pts: 40.0%, FT: 68.4%. He then completed his NCAA career at Boston College playing there form 2008-2011. In his senior year he played 34 games: 14.8ppg, 7.0rpg, 1.8apg, FGP: 42.5%, 3PT: 35.7%, FT: 70.7%. In 2011, he turned professional playing at the e Portsmouth Invitational Tournament (Pre-NBA Draft): 3 games: 14.3ppg, 5.0rpg, 2.7apg, 1.0spg. He then came to Europe to play for  Novipiu Casale Monferrato (Italy-SerieA, starting five): 3 games: 5.3ppg, 1.7rpg, left in Oct.’11, in Nov.’11 try-out at Scavolini Siviglia Pesaro (Italy-SerieA, starting five), then moved to MarcoPoloShop.it Forli (Italy-Lega2): 12 games: 9.4ppg, 5.1rpg, FGP: 44.0%, 3PT: 21.7%, FT: 78.0%; in Mar.’12 signed at Maine Red Claws (D-League): 6 games: 3.2ppg, 3.7rpg. He spoke to German Hoops about basketball this past summer.

Welcome to Germany Joe. You played in Italy last season. What is your first impression of Germany and what has been something that you have learned about Germany that you didn´t know before?

Germany seems like a beautiful place with a lot of nice architecture

You played for three Italian teams last season and a D-league team. How much of a whirlwind season was that for you as a rookie. When looking back how advantageous was having an experience like that as a rookie?
I went through a lot of transition last season and it was tough to overcome, but it has made me a more mentally tough competitor and has made me appreciate what I have here in Germany

BBC Bayreuth head coach Marco Van Den Berg has put together a very interesting squad in a very competitive Beko BBL. BBC Bayreuth will have a very potent front court with Gary Mcghee, Jason Cain and yourself. What will be your role?

Anything to help the team win games, score, rebound, play aggressive defense.

Scouting on your game has said that you are more of a sf than a pf. However you still had very good rebounding stats. Scouting also says you are less a banger and more of a perimeter man. Will you have any surprises ready for the first game concerning your playing style?

I feel that if your not getting better every day than your getting worse, I am always trying to improve in every facet of the game.

What is a strength in your game that doesn´t get noticed right away?

My athleticism in transition

Gary Mcghee is a very spectacular player. What has been the most amazing thing that you have seen him do on the court so far in pre season?

Dunking on someone

You have an Italian passport. Have you had any thoughts about possibly playing for the Italian national team if you were asked?

No I haven´t
You played at Boston College from 2008-2011. What wa sthe most importnat thing that head coach Al Skinner taught you that has prepared you for a professional basketball season?

Pace myself its a long season

How excited are you about playing against Tyrese Rice this season? What is your fondest memory of him at BC on and off the

court?

Its going to be cool playing against him, my fondest memory is when we beat Duke at home and the fans rushed the court.

Your ex teammate Reggie Jackson from Boston College could apply for the Italian passport. He plays for the Oklahoma Thunder in the NBA. What play on the court still lies in your memory concerning Joe Trapani and Reggie Jackson?

We had a lot of good plays together nothing stands out

Who was the toughest player that you battled against on the court in the NCAA that might be in the NBA or Europe now?

Tyler Hansborough

Who would win in their prime the Dream team or Team USA 2012?

If I had to guess then I would say the Dream team

What was the last DVD movie that you saw?

Corialanus

Thanks Joe fort he chat.

Seth Doliboa is a 32 year old 203 cm power forward that is playing his third season for Benfica Lisabon in Portugal where he was champion twice. He grew up in Ohio and went to Wright State. In his junior year, he played 28 games averaging 22.3ppg, 7.5rpg, 1.3apg. In his senior year, he played 28 games averaging 15.0ppg, 7.4rpg, 1.0apg. He started his professional basketball career with the Roanoke Dazzle playing in the NBDL league and then in the D-League, playing 47 games averaging 10.0ppg, 3.9rpg, 1.7apg, FGP: 43%, 3PT: 33%, FT: 78.1%. In 2009-2010, he played in Portugal for Sport Lisboa Benfica playing  26 games and averaging 17.6ppg, 7.7rpg, 1.2apg, FGP: 59.9%, 3PT: 38.7%, FT: 72.8%. He won the Portugal league championship and was the 2009 Allstar MVP award. In 2010-2011, he played for the  Deutsche Bank Skyliners Frankfurt (Germany-1.Bundesliga): 47 games: 10.3ppg, 6.0rpg, 1.2apg, FGP: 52.5%, 3PT: 35.7%, FT: 74.3%. In 2011-2012, he played for Olin Edirne Basketball (Turkey-TBL): 35 games: 9.5ppg, 5.5rpg, 1.3apg, FGP: 49.0%, 3PT: 29.3%, FT: 74.3%. Last season, he played for  Sport Lisboa Benfica (Portugal-LPB): 31 games: 13.5ppg, 6.5rpg, 1.3apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 51.7%, 3PT-2(43.9%), FT: 80.6%. He spoke to German Hoops about basketball and about new Skyliner Ted Scott.

You are now your third season away from the Frankfurt Skyliners. Has the time gone quickly and what has been the biggest thrill on and off the court for you?

Wow, third season away already. Time has gone fast. The biggest thrill on the court was winning another championship here in Portugal. The biggest thrill off the court also came last season with the arrival of my son.

You are now 2/2 in Portugal with Benfica Lisabon having won two league titles in 2009 and 2012. How good are the chances of the club getting a third title this season?

It s never easy to win a championship in any country. I don t want to say what the chances are this season, but we definitely plan to defend our title.
You shot very well from outside last season at 43,9% second best in the league. Did you work even harder on your shot last year?

I pride myself in always working as hard as I can on my game. I try not to watch percentages too much or put too much importance on them.

The Fraport Skyliners have picked up your ex teammate Ted Scott. If you could compare him to a player that you played with in Germany who would it be?
I can t think of any player I would compare him to. You will see that the combination of his athleticism and shooting ability is very rare.
He is a natural scorer, but what other qualities does he have that will really help the Skyliners?

Ted is a great guy to have on your team. He always has good spirits and is always ready to make the big play.

What is your fondest memory of him on the court last season helping the team get a victory?

We went to game 5 last season for the finals on the road. It was a very close and intense game all the way through. Ted hit several big jump shots to quiet the crowd. Nothing like a quietting the gym on the road.

What is the most amazing thing that you saw him do in a practice?

Don t let Ted s size fool you. I saw him dunk on several people last year in practice. I don t want to say any names. Marius better be careful.

Both you and Ted Scott come from Ohio. What special Ohio quality does he have that players not from Ohio can have?
I don t know if it s due to Ohio or not, but he has great basketball instincts.

If you have a sprint duel with Dashaun Wood who was your teammate at Wright State from baseline to baseline and you have a some feet on him starting from the free throw line can you still win?

I think I should be allowed to start at half court.

What was the last DVD movie that you saw?

We watched Apocalypto last night after my son went down because it was on.

Thanks Seth for the chat.

There are so many things to watch during a basketball game like the switching defenses, the various set plays a team possesses, how players play away from the ball, or boxing out underneath the hoop. Then again there are less important things to observe on the court like how often a player might yawn during the course of a game, how silly mascots can be on the sidelines, which cheerleader moves the best or which two players would win that smiling contest. Sometimes that smiling moment arises when two players joust and then make up flashing their whities. In the last years, the Beko BBL has been blessed with smiling basketball champions like a Michael Hakim Jordan, Titus Ivory or Immanuel Mcelroy. All three could have a career after basketball posing for Colgate tooth paste commercials. Another player that has that tender gregarious smile is Canadian Jermaine Bucknor of TBB Trier. Bucknor played his first four professional seasons in France, but in the last two years graced the basketball floors in the Beko BBL with the Deutsche Bank Skyliners and last season with the s.Oliver Baskets Wurzburg. Last season, he was unable to play against Frankfurt with Wurzburg, but with Trier he got that chance to play against his former team. It is always pleasant to play their ex team and Bucknor was as focused as Peyton Manning will be when he faces against his ex team Indianapolis Colts or Tim Tebow is when he will play against his former team Denver Broncos. “I like seeing my ex players. I think its great seeing them play against and is one of the great sides of sports that binds people. You have a better understanding with some than with others. When I returned back to Ludwigsburg last season, I was happy to see that guys were happy to see me. It shows me that I did a good job there with them and they respected me”, stressed basketball expert Steven Clauss. Bucknor was all smiles after the siren sounded being the spark plug from the bench steering 13 points, but gets sad when the Fraport Skyliners lose also. “It was great playing against Frankfurt again. It was great playing against Tez and Marius Nolte again. I really enjoyed my time in Frankfurt. I always want to win, but it hurts when I see other teams beat Frankfurt. My wife and I always cheer for Frankfurt. I am a spark plug and am one of the older guys in Trier so I have to be a leader”, stressed TBB Trier forward Jermaine Bucknor. “It was nice seeing Bucknor. It was a lot different than playing against him in practice. He gave them good minutes off the bench and was aggressive on offense and defense”, added Fraport Skyliner Quantez Robertson.

One player that gave the Fraport Skyliners fits all day long and mismatch problems was 206cm forward Brian Harper who is listed at 83 kilos, but seemed more like he had roamed the desert of Sudan for some weeks without food. Harper reminded one of a slim Malick Badiane, but despite his slender stature, he played like a well nourished beast. A food speciality in Trier in Kappes Reedisch which is a type of German dish Sauerkraut with mashed potatoes and Kassler meat. Harper may have looked like his body needed energy, but it didn´t as he produced 16 points and hauled down 10 rebounds often making Danilo Barthel and Dion Dowell look in their rear view window for their jock strap as his first step was like a lightening bolt.  “I have always been thin and I can eat what I want. I use my strength to my advantage with my length and athletic ability. I played very aggressive today”, stressed Paine(NCAA2) alumnist Brian Harper.  “I kid him all the time about how skinny he is and that he should go to the weight room. He is a great player that is very effective on the court and knows how to use his body to his advantage. Those are the skinniest legs that I have ever seen”, added TBB Trier forward Nate Linhart.  “I knew that he would be aggressive. He is a stretch four player that likes to attack”, commented Fraport Skyliner guard Johnathan Jones.

The Fraport Skyliners played a solid first half battling against the constant pressure and intensity by TBB Trier being behind only 35-34, but fell completely apart in the second half like a beautiful snow sculputure when a mid February day in Chicago reaches 60 degrees. TBB Trier outscored the Fraport Skyliners in the second half  43-25 leading by as many as 23 points. The Fraport Skyliners came out sluggish in the third quarter, while TBB Trier put up the energy lever 3 gears and the Fraport Skyliners simply had no cure against their offensive fire power and defensive brutality. “We let it go in the third quarter. We simply played out of system. They hit tough shots. I don´t think it was so much them, but more us as we got out of our system. We gave up too many offensive rebounds losing many of the 50/50 balls. They showed that they are a very good defensive team. They got us out of rhythm and never let us regain it. This was the first team that I have seen double team as much in the German league”, stressed Skyliner guard Devin Gibson. It was the first home victory of the season for TBB Trier and they displayed something on offense and defense that each team is striving to have each game. “This was a great team effort. We have proven in the early going that a different guy can lead us each game. That will make us very dangerous. Our defense also did  a great job. I think that we are a better defensive team this season. We can cover more ground and be more aggressive because we are so long and quick”, warned Nate Linhart.

Before TBB Trier and the Fraport Skyliners commenced the jump ball there was so much interesting things to observe during the warmups. The Fraport Skyliner German three amigos of Danilo Barthel, Johannes Vogtmann and Konstantin Klein were seen taking in the atmosphere in the Trier arena seats, New Skyliner Ted Scott was seen doing his role as water boy carrying Skyliner supplies into the arena from the team bus. Ted Scott and Larry Wright also seemed a bit miffed at the score board seeing strange basketball names as the arena still had the New Yorker Phantoms Braunschweig roster up. Basketball expert Steven Clauss had a long chat with TBB Trier head coah Henrik Rodl´s dad Helmut. Vogtmann and Barthel later had a very brief chat with TBB Trier German Mathis Monninghoff and Bucknor had a chat with his ex teammates Skyliner captain Marius Nolte and Quantez Robertson. 3,100 people wanted to see the game as the Fraport Skyliners were without American Devin Gibson and Konstantin Klein while TBB Trier had to play without DRagan Dojcin. The Fraport Skyliners got on the board first as Larry Wright hit his first shot, but that was quickly forgotten as TBB Trier raced out on a 5-0 run as Andreas Seiferth made a nice move past Zach Peacock finishing with his left hand and American Jarrett Howell nailed a three pointer. Peacock tied the scorer with a spot up jumper for the 5-5 tie, but then it was Harper who gave the Fraport Skyliners an introduction to his amazing first step as he blew into the lane making a layup. Barry Stewart then connected on a catch and pop jumper as TBB Trier led 9-6. Skyliner head coach Muli Katzurin then inserted new player Ted Scott who was tops corer in Poland in 2010-2011 avergaing 25 points per game and last season won the league title in Portugal with Benefica Lisabon and ex Skyliner Seth Doliboa. He didn´ t hesitate long nailing his first shot and showing a real shooters stroke tying the game at 9-9. “He was a tough player and talented shooter. You could tell right away that he is a scorer”, stressed Brian Harper. Scott then scored inside for Frankfurt lead 11-9. TBB Trier then went on a 5-0 run as Harper scored again using his lightning speed and Bastian Doreth hit a jumper for the 16-11 lead. Frankfurt rebounded with a Wright three pointer and dunk by Peacock at the buzzer as TBB Trier led slightly 18-16. TBB Trier could have been up by six points if Harper hadn´t missed four free throws. “TBB Trier played very dynamic and found success with the penetration while the Fraport Skyliners went inside and finished from outside”, stressed basketball expert Steven Clauss.  TBB Trier was shooting 78% from the field and 67% from outside while the Fraport Skyliners were shooting 43% from the field and 43% from outside. TBB Trier had the slight rebound edge 7-6, but five turnovers and Frankfurt three turnovers.

The  second quarter remained very tight. Mathis Monninghof started the scoring with a lay in, but Skyliner Zach Peacock went on a 4-0 run to knot the score at 20-20 with two free throws and a reverse layup where he easily went by Vitalis Chicoko and he got no help on the baseline. The Fraport Skyliners then had their shining moment going on a 9-2 run to lead 29-22 as new Skyliner Ted Scott scored eight unanswered points as he proved he can score in bunches as he hit back to back three pointers and a pull up jumper at the free throw line.  Despite this burts of Skyliner energy, it seemed like TBB Trier head coach Henrik Rodl had the right touch all day long inserting the right players at the right time to counter the Skyliner run. He brought in ex Skyliner Jermaine Bucknor that led his team on a 6-0 run as TBB Trier trailed only 29-28. Bucknor made a nifty double pump fingertip role lay in and got to the free throw line twice. Linhart also scored inside with his left hand. Jones then had the hot end in the latter half of the second quarter dropping a bomb from the corner and  scoring inside as Frankfurt led 34-31. However Frankfurt couldn´t hold TBB Trier as they closed out the quarter with a mini 4-0 run as Bucknor hit a mid distance jumper and Harper made a tip in at the buzzer as TBB Trier led 35-34 at halftime. “Both teams were shooting very well. Frankfurt did  agood job limiting TBB Trier to one offensive rebound, but at the same time had too many turnovers with 10. Frankfurt got a needed boost from Scott and were getting points from outside while Trier was inside”, added basketball expert Steven Clauss. TBB Trier was shooting 59% from the field and 33% from the three point line while the Fraport Skyliners were shooting 50% from the field and 46% from the three point line. The Fraport Skyliners had the 15-10 rebound advantage, but 10 turnovers while TBB Trier had six turnovers.

The third quarter was the turning point of the game as TBB Trier completely took apart the Fraport Skyliners as TBB Trier head coach Henrik Rodl found the right words, while the Skyliner players weren´t able to take his formula and make dividends on the court. TBB Trier quickly sped out on a 8-0 run leading 43-36. TBB Trier scored four times inside as the Fraport Skyliners were a liability down low. Stewart scored first with no help defense around and then it was Harper twice inside as Dowell couldn´t give any defensive resistance. Seiferth then scored inside. Scott then made his finest hoop of game making a spin move on the wing and finishing with a floater as Frankfurt trailed 43-36. TBB Trier continued to keep up the pressure closing out the third quarter on a 17-6 run to lead more than comfortably 60-42 after three quarters. TBB Trier continued to demonstrate that many could score in bunches. Stewart nailed a catch and pop shot that was more than contested and then scored inside with ease. Bucknor nailed a three pointer and also finished inside.  Stewart seemed to have a great touch as he nailed another contested three pointer and Chicoko scored inside on a second chance. “This was the quarter of Trier as they limited Frankfurt too only eight points. Frankfurt let up six offensive rebounds. The young guns were doing a good job off the bench for TBB Trier. Bucknor was the sparkplug for TBB Trier”, stressed Steven Clauss. “We wanted to come out with more energy and put our foot on the gas. We made the extra pass on offense and on defense had good rotations on post players and closed out their shooters”, added Brian Harper. TBB Trier was shooting 53% from the field and 42% from the parking lot while the Fraport Skyliners were shooting 40% from the field and 38% from the parking lot. TBB Trier regained the rebound battle 26-21 and had only seven turnovers while Frankfurt had only 15.

It didn´t get any better for the Fraport Skyliners in the fourth quarter as TBB Trier was able to extend their lead to 23 points. The nicest play of the game was also the first score of the fourth quarter as Bastian Doreth fed Vitalis Chicoko for a perfect ally-op dunk. Muli Katzurin then inserted Johannes Voigtmann as he made his Beko BBL debut. He made a beautiful pass form the low post finding Jones for an open three pointer, but Frankfurt still trailed 63-45. Monnighoff then nailed  a three pointer and chicoko scored inside with his left hand as TBB Trier led 69-46. The Fraport Skyliners were fighting, but everything was working for TBB Trier in the second half as all they could do was looking on helplessly. The Fraport Skyliners then made a mini comeback that seemed unnoticed as time was running out Frankfurt cut the TBB Trier lead from 69-46 to 71-56. Scott hit a three pointer, Jones a three pointer, Peacock dunked getting a no look pass from Scott and Wright scored inside. But that was all that the Fraport Skyliners had left in their gas tank as TBB Trier closed out the game with a 7-3 run. Howell who ahd been pretty quiet made a nice studder step moved to his right and made an off balance shot and Seiferth dunked as Harper gave him the perfect no look feed. Barthel closed out the game with a high rainbow shot. “We did a good job containing their three point shooters. Coach had told us that Frankfurt was one of the most dangerous three point shooting teams. We also contained Peacock making every basket difficult”, stressed Nate Linhart. “We played good defense in the first half, but in the second half we couldn´t handle their pressure. If one man got beat, we needed to rotate which we didn´t do”; stressed Johnathan Jones.

TBB Trier was led by Brian Harper with 16 points and ten rebounds. Jermaine Bucknor produced 13 points. Barry Stewart added 10 points. The Fraport Skyliners were led by Ted Scott with 20 points. Zach peacock added 14 points and five rebounds. Johnathan Jones contributed 11 points. Despite the loss, Scott had a lot of energy after the game and is ure that he will help the Fraport Skyliners. “I try to get each guy involved. I am the raw raw guy trying o keep all on the same page. I can get vocal during games. Teams can´t really get enough of it. We just have to stay together and bring more energy and bring it for a full game. We will be ready in the next game”, warned Ted Scott.  TBB Trier shot 52% from the field and 39% from outside while the Fraport Skyliners shot only 38% from the field and 36% from outside. The Fraport Skyliners did win the rebound fight 34-32, but still got hammered inside losing the points in the paint battle 42-16 and had 19 turnovers. “We didn´t crash the boards as a team. We did a good job in the first half. WE lost many 50/50 balls. It is important that we capitalize on that since we aren´t that big”, warned Johnathan Jones. The Fraport Skyliners next play the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven October 21^st at 17:00.