Chris Iles (Citybasket Recklinghausen) I Am Always Hard On Myself Feeling Like I Can Always Do More For The Team

Chris Iles is a 27 year old 180 cm guard that is playing his second professional season and first with  Citybasket Recklinghausen (Germany-ProB. Last season as a rookie he played with BBC White Devils Cottbus (Germany-Regionalliga) playing 24 games: 23.8ppg, 5.8rpg, 4.6apg, 2.5spg, FGP: 45.3%, 3PT: 35.0%, FT: 78.3%He played two years at Nicholls St. (NCAA) playing a total of 61 NCAA games and in his second season played 30 games averaging 8.5ppg, 1.7rpg, 3.6apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 37.1%, 3PT: 36.1%, FT: 77.8%. He finished his college career at Xavier (LA) (NAIA). He spoke to German Hoops after the tough 77-66 loss to RSV Stahnsdorf.

Chris a tough 77-66 loss to RSV Stahnsorf which was the eighth loss in a row. Have you ever experienced a losing streak like this as a player in your career?

Hi Miles, thanks again for reaching out to me for the interview. No, this losing streak is one of the toughest things I have had to endure in my playing career. In college, I was always on a winning team.

City Basket Recklingshausen were down at halftime 35-29. How happy were you with the play at the mid way juncture of the game with a team that had lost the last seven games?

Although we were still in good shape to pull it out, I felt we missed a lot of easily shots and had some ill-advised turnovers.

Stahnsdorf went on a game changing 16-0 run in the fourth to decide the game. What disappointed you most in this run about the club and what it couldn´t get accomplished on the court?

What disappointed me most was our inability to bounce back from a small run that turned into a big run for the opponent. We didn’t get the key stops we needed.

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Eric Palm (Bakken Bears) Giessen Was A Great Home For Me For Two Seasons

Eric Palm is a 29 year old 185cm guard from Illinois that recently signed with Danish club Bakken Bears after having started the season with BK Iskra Svit (Slovakia-SBL) playing 6 games: 22.5ppg, 2.8rpg, 4.7apg, 1.8spg, 2FGP: 52.9%, 3FGP: 35.0%, FT: 95.1%, left in Nov.’16, later that month moved to KB Bashkimi Prizren (Kosovo-SuperLeague, starting five): Balkan League: 5 games: 22.6ppg, 4.0rpg, 4.0apg, 2FGP: 62.1%, 3FGP: 46.2%, FT: 88.5%; Kosovan SuperLeague: 5 games: 12.8ppg, 2.2rpg, 3.2apg, 1.4spg, 2FGP: 52.6%, 3FGP: 50.0%,He started his basketball career at McKendree (NAIA) in 2005 where he played until 2009 and as a senior played 35 games: 20.6ppg, 2.6rpg, 2.5apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 41.6%, 3Pts: 38.3%, FT: 85.2%. He started his professional basketball career in 2010 with Thor AK (Iceland-D1) where he played until 2012 and in the 2011-2012 season played  11 games: 26.1ppg, 4.6rpg, 3.7apg, 2.2spg, FGP: 51.7%, 3PT: 25.9%, FT: 84.5%. In 2012-2013 he played for IR Reykjavik (Iceland-Dominos League) playing 22 games: Score-3(26.5ppg), 4.3rpg, 3.3apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 45.5%, 3PT: 41.0%, FT-1(93.9%). In the 2013-2014 season he played for BV Chemnitz 99 (Germany-ProA) playing 30 games: 15.8ppg, 2.4rpg, 2.0apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 48.2%, 3PT: 39.8%, FT: 84.1%. He played the last two seasons with the Giessen 46ers helping the team move back up to the BBL in 2015 and last season played  22 games: 7.9ppg, 1.4apg, FGP: 43.8%, 3PT: 42.4%, FT: 83.3%. German Hoops interviewed him over the years when he played in Giessen and sat down with him again before playing the  Fraport Skyliners in the Champions League.

Eric Welcome back to Germany. After two seasons of just moving around in Germany with the Giessen 46ers, this season you have been on the rapid move playing in Slovakia and Kosovo and now have moved to Denmark to Bakken. Do you feel like a basketball globetrotter this year?

 It’s definitely been a very long year for me this year moving around so much and getting to know new teammates and staffs around Europe. However I’m happy to have settled in Denmark with the Bakken Bears.

What has been the best example this season that you have seen basketball being purely a basketball business?

I would have to say when I arrived in Denmark. They have been a class act since day 1, taking care of my needs and preparing me for the team stuff over the holidays. Each staff member reached out to me to welcome me and some had meetings gave to face to talk with me about the season. Felt like home as soon as I arrived.

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Devaughn Akoon-Purcell (Bakken Bears) We Have To Show The Fraport Skyliners That We Didn´t Beat Them By Mistake The Last Time

Devaughn Akoon Purcell is a 23 year old 196cm forward from Orlando, Florida playing his rookie season with the Bakken Bears (Denmark-Ligaen). He started his basketball career at Eastern Oklahoma State College before moving to Illinois St. (NCAA) in 2014 where he played 28 games: 12.8ppg, 5.6rpg, 1.3apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 46.8%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 77.1%. In his senior year he played 31 games: 14.2ppg, 5.1rpg, 1.9apg, FGP: 47.7%, 3PT: 26.0%, FT: 71.2%. He spoke to German Hoops before the Champions League game.

Devaughn thanks for talking to German Hoops. Christmas and the new year have passed and we are in 2017. How did you come to experience your first holiday season overseas in Denmark?

Christmas in Denmark was a little different than what I’m use to because I wasn’t with my actual family. But my girlfriend from home came to visit me so it was good not being all alone for Christmas.

On what childhood memories do you even think about today that you had when you were a kid in Orlando?

Honestly too many memories to just pick out one specific one. To pick something I will never forget will have to be winning a national championship as well as our state championship my senior year at West Oaks Academy with the record of 39-1.

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Trent Weaver (FC Schalke) I Need To Work On playing More To My Strengths On A Nightly Basis

Trent Weaver is a 22 year old 203cm forward from Columbus, Ohio that is playing his rookie season in Europe in Germany with FC Schalke. He got an early taste of being  a professional this year as he played for the Columbus Condors (CBA). Before turning professional he played for Ohio Dominican (NCAA2) from 2012-2016 playing  atotal of 98 games. As a senior he played 28 games: 15.5ppg, 9.5rpg, 1.2apg, FGP: 52.4%, 3PT: 36.4%, FT: 72.5%. He spoke to German Hoops after the 86-77 win against the VFL Astrostars Bochum.

Trent congrats on the 86-77 win against the VFL AstroStars Bochum. How good does it feel coming into 2017 with a big win?

Thank you Miles. Coming into a new year, you always want to set the tone for the remainder of the season. The win against Bochum was a big one for us to gain momentum towards the Playoffs.

After a slow start in the first quarter, FC Schalke picked it up in the second quarter scoring 25 points. What adjustments did you make on the offensive end to be able to score easier?

As a team, we cleaned up a lot of the little errors that we were making defensively. Our defensive stops then lead to our offensive success.

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AJ English Supplies Magic Hands Again Powering The Fraport Skyliners Past The Giessen 46ers 65-61

Playing against the big 3 B´s of Bamberg, Berlin and Bayern Munich are the season highlights not only for the Fraport Skyliners, but for every other club in the easyCredit BBL, but battling the Giessen 46ers in the Hessen Derby each season would easily come in as a close fourth as the  most anticipated games each season. The two cities Frankfurt and Giessen are only 65 kilometers apart and both clubs possess special fans that get extra motivated for the two season duels each season. Giessen fans won´t forget the last game in Giessen as almost two months ago, the Giessen 46ers finally won in their living room against the Fraport Skyliners again something they hadn´t done since 14 years dating back to 2002. The last time Giessen was able to depart the court in Giessen with a win, current Giessen Americans Dwayne Evans and Justin Sears weren´t even in high school yet. In the memorable victory on November 19th, the Giessen 46ers gave their best defensive performance of the season as they held the Fraport Skyliners too only 52 points while they were led by Canadian national player Thomas Scrubb who steered home 21 points, five rebounds, four assists and five steals to the historic win. This coming summer his brother Philip might carefully kid him that that loss might not have happened had he not been injured, but then again the Scrubb brother mentality never centers about them, but moreover what the team can do or not. The Fraport Skyliners entered the contest with a two game winning streak having celebrated big wins on the road in Jena and Tuebingen including an amazing buzzer beater by ex Iona(NCAA) guard AJ English while the Giessen 46ers came into the game having last suffered a tough 87-83 road loss in Vechta. Once again fans had to wait again for the professional head to head battle debut of the Scrubb brothers, but that didn´t damper the breathtaking Hessen derby atmosphere as 5,002 fans were in the loud Fraport arena witnessing a classic game that the Fraport Skyliners were able to grind out in Crunch time 65-61 getting their third win in a row in the BBL.

After the victory, the Fraport Skyliners practiced their first Humba ceremony which is to get on the floor and get up and dance around something hat the team practices on occasion after a home win. American Kwame Vaughn who has gained professional experience in countries like Italy, France, Belgium and Israel and learned the basketball game at Cal State Fullerton the same school that produced explosive ex BBL player Bobby Brown looked a bit confused and perturbed after the Humba victory dance had been completed. “The Humba was new for me. I had never seen something like that before. I think having a dance like that is engaging for the fans. You can see something like that in the NCAA, but it depends on the school. We did a good job in this game staying the course, fighting hard, executing which allowed us to come out with a win”, stressed Fraport Skyliner guard Kwame Vaughn. Giessen 46er Thomas Scrubb couldn´t repeat his strong effort from the first game against Frankfurt and scored only 9 points this time around and was disappointed by the team effort, but enchanted by the breathtaking atmosphere in the Fraport arena. “Our offense wasn´t great. We didn´t get in a flow on offense and our shots weren´t falling and we didn´t get out on transition. Our defense was ok, but we made a few mistakes and they capitalized on them which cost us the game. The atmosphere was great and one could feel the passion of the fans. I really felt the intensity in the arena and it felt good coming down at the end”, added Canadian national player Thomas Scrubb. “The atmosphere was great. I wish it could be like that in every game. I am thankful that I could be a part of it, but most important was that we got the win”, explained ex Iona(NCAA) guard AJ English.

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Aaron Nelson Leads The Dragons Rhondorf Past The Uni-Riesen Leipzig 86-76

In the past years the Dragons Rohndorf have had some very tight games in the Pro B against the Giants Nordlingen and Hebeisen White Wings Hanau, but in two contests, the Dragons lost by one point in two exciting and tight affairs and in both games American Cardell Mcfarland was instruemental for leading his teams past the Dragons Rhondorf. Back in the 2013-2014 season, Mcfarland who was playing his second professional season after playing in Romania was tearing up the German pro B that led him to being second in scoring and assists after the season. Against Rhondorf, Mcfarland steered the Giants Nordlingen past Rhondorf 73-72 as the American hammered home 26 points and in the 2014-2015 season, the last time Mcfarland visited the Dragon Dome, he helped lead Hanau to a 65-64 victory as he had 13 points. Last season Mcfarland played in England for Bristol and started this season with the Sheffield Sharks on a short term contract and moved to the Uni-Riesen Leipzig with the hope of being their season savior. “I feel like I’m just the missing piece of the team. My main goal is to lead another team in Germany into the playoffs. Show my leader ship abilities no matter what situation I’m in I can win. Obviously if we win I will be a huge part of that and individually success will come. I also want help the younger guys on the team reach they full potential and hopefully the get better from me being around”, stressed Cardell Mcfarland. Mcfarland was back in Rhondorf a little more than two years after helping Hanau beat Rhondorf and was looking to up his career record against Rhondorf to 3-1 while the Dragons Rhondorf were looking to take their momentum from the big 87-63 win against FC Bayern Munich and continue to defend with a passion and play with character and start of 2017 with a bang and did winning their second game in a row holding off the Uni-Riesen Leipzig 86-76 who lost their second game in a row. Mcfarland was unable to find to his old lethal scoring ways in the Pro B finishing with 10 points and two assists and shot 40% from the field, but teammate Terrence Billups isn´t worried about the American breaking out and finding back to his old habits. “We had a seven man rotation which was tough, but we didn´t come to terms with their zone defense. Mcfarland is good for us. He is smart, experienced and controlled. He brings the toughness and game IQ that we need. It was only his first game with us, he will do just fine”, warned Terrence Billups. The team mentality of the Dragons Rhondorf seems to be on a healthy way again and the club showed against the Uni-Riesen Leipzig that when they play together on both ends of the court, they are able to beat anyone in the Pro B. The Dragons Rhondorf as usual had a big production day from Aaron “the big dawg” Nelson, but also got quality games from Michael Lucier and Viktor-Frankl-Maus as well as solid minutes from Patrick Reus and Anton Geretzki. “We played hard and focused. In the past games where we were struggling, we were thinking too much, but tonight we played hard, had fun and made the right decisions. We knew that Mcfarland is a good player and that he could change the game. We stayed focused on him for 40 minutes and didn´t give him anything easy”, stated Canadian Michael Lucier.

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Skyler Bowlin (Gießen 46ers) We Feel Like We Still Have A Lot To Prove In The Second Half Of The Season

Skyler Bowlin is a 27 year old 190cm guard from Paragould, Arkansas playing his sixth professional season and first with the Gießen 46ers.  Last season he played for the Sodertalje Kings (Sweden-Basketligan) playing FIBA Europe Cup: 12 games: 10.8ppg, 2.3rpg, 4.9apg, 1.7spg, FGP: 50.0%, 3PT: 39.3%, FT: 58.8%; Swedish Basketligan: 42 games: 14.5ppg, 3.0rpg, 4.3apg, Steals-5(1.6spg), FGP: 51.5%, 3PT: 40.6%, FT: 78.3% He played with Horsens IC (Denmark-Ligaen) from 2012-2015 winning the league title and cup. As a rookie he played for BG Topstar Leitershofen/Stadtbergen (Germany-Pro A) playing 28 games: 12.4ppg, 2.6rpg, 3.3apg, Steals-2(2.0spg), FGP: 48.5%, 3PT: 34.7%, FT: 80.5% and then played with Ringwood Hawks (Australia-ABA): 18 games: 18.3ppg, 4.9rpg, 3.7apg, 2.8spg, 2FGP: 44.1%, 3PT: 31.8%, FT: 80.5%. He started his basketball career with Missouri So. (NCAA2) in 2007 until 2011 playing  atotal of 118 games and as a senior played 31 games: 18.1ppg, 3.2rpg, 5.7apg, 2.4spg, FGP: 44.2%, 3PT: 36.7%, FT: 82.7%. He spoke to German Hoops before the game against the Fraport Skyliners.

Skyler thanks for talking to German Hoops. The Christmas season has come and gone and in the past you have seen it in places like Austria, Denmark and Sweden. What did you really enjoy from this years Christmas time in Germany?

Theres not much like Christmas in Germany. The Christmas Markets are of course always a lot of fun to go and visit so that was probably the best part about Christmas here.

You are playing your first season with the Giessen 46ers and currently the club is currently in eighth place with a record of 8-8. What is your summary of the team season so far?

I think if you would have asked a lot of people before the season if they thought we would be in the playoff hunt halfway through the season they would have thought you were crazy. However, as a team we know that we are very dangerous when we play our style and can compete with anyone. We have had a lot of close games against top teams that we let slip away so we feel like we still have a lot to prove in the second half of the season.

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Jervon Pressley (Dresden Titans) You Are Only As Good As Your Last Performance

Jervon Pressley is a 21 year old 203cm forward from Charlotte, North Carolina that is playing his rookie season in Germany with the Dresden Titans. He started his basketball career in 2011 with Towson (NCAA) playing 31 games averaging 3.6ppg, 3.0rpg. In 2013 he moved to Hampton (NCAA) playing 21 games averaging 6.6ppg, 5.1rpg, 1.1bpg, FGP: 43.8%, FT: 56.9%. In his junior year he played 32 games averaging 6.1ppg, 4.8rpg, 1.4bpg, FGP: 44.3%, FT: 54.5%. As a senior he played 27 games averaging  6.6ppg, 5.8rpg, 1.7bpg, FGP: 46.7%, FT: 53.2%. He spoke to German Hoops about the first few months of his rookie season.

Jervon thanks for talking to German Hoops. Congrats on the big 75-61 win at home against the Hamburg Towers. How much of a release was it getting that 10 game losing streak monkey off your back?

It was a great release for the club and the long loyal supporting fans.

This was the best defensive performance of the season. Why do you feel did it take so long to defend consistently for 40 minutes?

I just feel as if everything is coming into play, we have a new coach and a new defensive philosophy, took time to adjust but everyone bought in so we could go into this break and new year with a win. “You are only as good as your last performance”.

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Thomas Scrubb (Gießen 46ers) Upholds The Low Key Manner And High Level Play In The Scrubb Family

Almost eight months ago a tall young man that looked like he could have just come from a long Caribbean trip or had fallen asleep under the tanning machine was in the Fraport arena and really stood out from the rest of the spectators as he was the tallest in his seating area. One might not have right away come to the notion that he was related to Fraport Skyliner Philipp Scrubb, but the Carlton University sweat shirt that he was wearing and his dark tint could have been the needed hint that these two people might be related. Six days after his rookie season had ended with Joensuun Kataja Basket (Finland-Korisliiga) where he had poured in 26 points in a loss to BC Nokia, The tall figure that was roaming the Fraport arena was in fact Thomas Scrubb the older brother of Philipp and was in Germany watching his brother play a game. After the Fraport Skyliners had easily disposed of the 2004 Fiba Europe Cup winner Mitteldeutscher BC 89-61 and Philip Scrubb had contributed four points and four assists, both brothers met after the game and had some brief small talk before the younger brother went to the fans to give the obligatory post game autographs. When one observes the two Canadian brothers who made watching basketball so much more enjoyable in the last five years at Carleton(CIS), Philip seems like he could moonlight as a ball boy at an NBA game getting balls for the players and being too shy to answer after getting asked a question or an altar boy who attends to supporting tasks at the altar such as fetching and carrying and ringing the altar bell and just standing by the side of the priest like a loyal dog does his master. Thomas on the other hand could easily moonlight as a fitness trainer as his seemingly perfect looking body would be destined for that job or as a model gracing the cover of Fitness magazine. Even if Philip could get lost in the shuffle of a group of basketball players walking down a hall and Thomas rather be asked what the easiest weight lift plan could be instead of what the correct and easiest method is too getting a rebound, once these two brothers slip on their jersey´s and lace up their sneakers and step on the basketball court, they are in their perfect world and everyone would experience that their passion and biggest strength is basketball. One thing that stands out with both players, is their low key demeanor that seems to be cemented inside them as firmly as a new laid down drive way. There is no cockiness or self adulation present in their characters and that reflects their play as they display pure unselfishness on the court. Last season Philip explained how their parents set them on the right path to how to deal with success the correct way. “If you do a good job on the court then you feel good internally”, explained Philip Scrubb.

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