BG Karlsruhe

Ricky Easterling (BG Karlsruhe) I Was Able To Put My Feelings And Ego To The Side For The Team

Ricky Easterling is a 33 year old 190cm guard from Baltimore that completed his 11th professional season in Germany and first with BG Karlsruhe(Pro B) averaging 14,4ppg, 3,5rpg and 2,5apg. Over the years, he made a name for himself in the German Regionalliga being crowned Mr Regionaliga as he averaged over 30 points three times with TV Saarlouis belonged to the  the top 3 players in the Pro B the last two seasons. Before moving to Saarlouis in 2007 he played at Bridgewater (NCAA3) and then as a rookie played with TSG Reutlingen (Germany-Oberliga and  Bergheim Bandits (Germany-Regionalliga). Last season with TV Saarlouis, he played 28 games: Score-1(23.1ppg), 4.0rpg, 4.4apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 51.1%, 3PT: 18.2%, FT: 81.2%. He spoke to German Hoops at the conclusion of the 2016-2017 pro B season.

 

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Miles Schmidt-Scheuber interviewing Ricky Easterling after he dropped 36 points With Saarlouis in a 90-80 losing cause against the fraport Skyliners Juniors

Ricky thanks for talking to German Hoops. Where are you at the moment and what basketball thing has occupied you mostly today?

Hello Miles! It is always a pleasure chatting with you. At the moment I am still in Germany. Our season is over so I am taking a short break from basketball. I want my body to recover from the long season. I recently linked up with my guy Chris Cummings and we made a work out plan that will start next week. He has helped me a lot with my game over the years and I am looking forward to training with him again.

Your season has ended after a tough three game series against Weissenhorn. Did the tough three game series against Oldenburg take it´s toll on the team mentally and physically?

I don’t think the Oldenburg series effected us at all in the Weissenhorn series. We had enough time to rest and scout Weissenhorn. We had our chances to win the series and we were not able to do it. It is simple as that in my opinion.

Do you feel as if the series against Weissenhorn was lost in game one? Had you won game one, you would have been on the best way to advancing.

Yes I think that is an accurate statement. Game 1 is the away game we should have won. We had it and gave it away at the end. If we would have won that game I think we still would have won at home and we would be advancing to the final 4.

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Ricky Easterling (BG Karlsruhe) I Came Here With Team Goals Not Personal Goals And Want To Play For The Championship

Ricky Easterling is a 33 year old 190cm guard from Baltimore that is playing his 11th professional season in Germany and first with BG Karlsruhe(Pro B). Over the years, he has been crowned Mr Regionaliga as he averaged over 30 points three times with TV Saarlouis belonged to the  the top 3 players in the Pro B the last two seasons. Before moving to Saarlouis in 2007 he played at Bridgewater (NCAA3) and then as a rookie played with TSG Reutlingen (Germany-Oberliga and  Bergheim Bandits (Germany-Regionalliga). Last season with TV Saarlouis, he played 28 games: Score-1(23.1ppg), 4.0rpg, 4.4apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 51.1%, 3PT: 18.2%, FT: 81.2%. He spoke to German Hoops before the start of the 2017 Pro B playoffs.

Rickey thanks for talking to German Hoops 2017 has come and we are already into 2017. Did you set any new years resolutions and if you did have to stayed faithful to them in the first two months?

I didn’t really have a new years resolution. I have the same mindset I did at the beginning of the season. Play my roll, be the good teammate and make a good run in the playoffs. Playoffs are here now so it is GO TIME!

How excited are you to be playing your first Pro B playoffs after having played the Playdowns two years in a row. With what kind of feelings are you going into these playoffs?

I am very excited to be a part of the playoffs for the first time. I feel my team has a good chance to make it deep into the playoffs. So I am going into the playoffs hungry and focused.

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Travis Thompson Unravels The Acrobatic Lay In Leading The Fraport Skyliners Juniors Past BG Karlsruhe 66-63

It really doesn´t matter in what gym Ricky Easterling has played in Germany the last 11 years, you can be as sure as Donald Trump thinks he is always correct that the Baltimore native of BG Karlsruhe has lit it up no matter what circumstances there were. In his six seasons in the Regionalliga with Saarlouis, the American had Michael Jordan consistent season scoring averages including averaging 32,3ppg and 34,5ppg in two seasons and averaged 29,0ppg each season. He needed absolute no kind of transition period when he moved up to the Pro B in 2014 with Saarlouis as he prompt led the league in scoring two years in a row and had a spectacular streak of scoring in double figures in 55 of 56 games as he dominated the Pro B like he did in the Regionalliga. This season the guy who´s middle name could be Mr mid distance as he is as lethal from anywhere form the mid distance the way Anthony Davis is in the paint doesn´t roam around on offense as freely as his days with Saarlouis mainly because BG Karlsruhe have many more viable scoring options. Currently his Pro B scoring in double figures streak is 70 out of 74 times and not only was he and BG Karlsruhe coming off a huge win against city rival PS Karlsruhe, but the American was returning back to a special stomping ground as in the last two seasons he shot out the lights connecting for 36 and 31 points and also had a massive game years before in the Regionalliga against Eintracht Frankfurt. This time however the Fraport Skyliners Juniors not only had Easterling under control limiting him to a hard to believe 6 points, but were fortunate to come out alive with a grind out 66-63 victory.

After the game the usual soft voice of Easterling sounded more like that of an elderly gentleman as the Baltimore native seemed a bit broken and was trying to reflect on his return back to an old stomping ground. “Frankfurt really had me under control tonight. I give a lot of credit to them as they really knew how to come off the screen and roll and slow me down. I am now 1-2 in the Pro B in this gym. It is not as good as I would like, but I am just thankful to get that opportunity to play here again. Stats are fine and dandy, but I am just happy to be able to play and get a win here and there”, smiled ex Saarlouis guard Ricky Easterling.

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Jeremy Black(BG Karlsruhe) We Hit Some Bumps In The Beginning But We Just Kept Working And Raised Our Intensity Level

 

Jeremy Black is a 30 year old 203cm forward from Tampa, Florida that is playing his sixth season for BG Karlsruhe. He played at Tampa (NCAA2) from 2004-2008 and in his senior year played 30 games: 18.7ppg, 11.0rpg, 1.6apg, 1.1bpg, 1.5spg, FG: 49.3%, 3Pts: 30.8%, FT: 72.1%. He turned professional in 2008 and since then has always played in Germany except two seasons ago where he played for AB Contern (Luxembourg-Total League) 4 games: 12.8ppg, 10.3rpg, 1.8apg, in Nov.’14 moved to BCKE Wallabies (Switzerland-LNB). He also played two seasons for Science City Jena. Last season with BG Karlsruhe he played 21 games averaging 11.4ppg, 8.3rpg, 1.3apg, FGP: 56.2%, 3PT: 17.6%, FT: 61.5%. He spoke to German Hoops after the big 72-67 win against the Giants Nordlingen.

 

 

Jeremy congrats on the huge 72-67 win against the Giants Nordlingen. After starting the season at 0-3, the club has a four game winning streak now. How confident were you throughout that painful losing streak that this team would turn it around eventually?

Thanks Miles, it was really frustrating to start the season on a three game losing streak; It took us a little longer to settle down on some issues within the team. We knew, we would hit some bumps in the beginning but we just kept working; we didn’t complain we just stayed in the gym and raised our intensity level.

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Ricky Easterling(BG Karlsruhe) This Season I Don’t Have To Score As Much So I Take Less Shots And Give Teammates More Of An Opportunity To Score

Ricky Easterling is a 32 year old 190cm guard from Baltimore that is playing his 11th professional season in Germany and first with BG Karlsruhe(Pro B). Over the years, he has been crowned Mr Regionaliga as he averaged over 30 points three times with TV Saarlouis belonged to the  the top 3 players in the Pro B the last two seasons. Before moving to Saarlouis in 2007 he played at Bridgewater (NCAA3) and then as a rookie played with TSG Reutlingen (Germany-Oberliga and  Bergheim Bandits (Germany-Regionalliga). Last season with TV Saarlouis, he played 28 games: Score-1(23.1ppg), 4.0rpg, 4.4apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 51.1%, 3PT: 18.2%, FT: 81.2%. He spoke to German Hoopsafter the 75-68 win against s.Oliver Wurzburg.

 

 

 

 

Congrats Ricky on the 75-68 victory against TG s.Oliver Wurzburg. At first look at the box score, I thought maybe you got injured since you scored only four points which was only the second time in three seasons that you didn´t score in double figures. But you are still 100% healthy?

 I have been sick this past week but that is no excuse for the game against Würzburg. I guess it was just not my day. Happens to the best of us sometimes.

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Marcus Smallwood (Your Individual Skills Will Always Be There But It’s Being Able To Infect Your Teammates With That Positive Energy Of How You Play)

Marcus Smallwood is a 34 year old 198cm forward that has played 10 professional seasons and last season with BG Karlsruhe where he played 24 games averaging 12.7ppg, Reb-5(9.6rpg), 1.0apg, FGP: 55.6%, 3PT: 31.0%, FT: 61.7%. He is from Elgin, Illinois and played at Northern Illinois from 2000-2004. He came to Europe for his rookie season and played for Ostromecko Astoria Bydgoszcz (Poland-EBL): 4 games: 9.5ppg, 9.0rpg: was released in and later that month signed at Pyrbasket Tampere (Finland-Sparliiga): 6 games: 13.5ppg, 10.8rpg, 1.2bpg, FGP: 59%, and also played shortly at Solna Vikings (Sweden-Basketligan): 3 games: 8.3ppg, 5.3rpg, 1.0bpg. The next season, he played in Finland for Forssan Koripojat (Finland-1st Division, starting five): 26 games: 19.7ppg, Reb-2(11.1rpg), 1.3apg, 1.0spg, Blocks-1(1.4bpg), 2FGP-3(64.1%), 3PT: 31.6%, FT: 56.2%. 2006: Elgin Racers (IBL). He had a very strong season in Finland, but surprisingly in the next few years played only briefly in the IBL for the Elgin Racers. He came back to Europe in 2008 and then played mostly in Germany for teams like Kaiserslautern, Cuxhaven, Kirchheim, Vechta, MBC and Speyer. He also played briefly in Kosovo and the Czech Republic. He spoke to German Hoops about his basketball future.

 

Marcus thanks for talking to German Hoops. Where are you at the moment and how was your summer?

Currently I’m in Germany and my summer was pretty enjoyable as I was able to go home to the states for a little over a month and visit family and friends.

You are currently unsigned and 34 years old. What kind of an off season transfer market did you experience?

I just took an approach to see what might be available that could be a good fit. So I guess my experience was typical of anyone that was seeking a team for this season.

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Jordan Talbert (PS Karlsruhe) Good Teams Know How To Maintain Composure And Weather The Storm And We Did That Against BG Karlsruhe

Jordan Talbert is a 25 year old 198cm forward from Little Rock, Arkansas that is playing his third professional season and first with the PS Karlsruhe Lions. He came to Germany as a rookie in 2014 and played with the Giants TSV 1861 Noerdlingen (Germany-Regionalliga) playing 26 games: 21.6ppg, 9.6rpg, 3.2apg, 2.0spg, Blocks-4(1.5bpg), FGP: 51.7%, 3PT: 28.9%, FT: 78.4%. He played his college career at Missouri SO(NCAA2) from 2010-2014 and as a senior played 31 games averaging 11.7ppg, 7.4rpg, 2.9apg, 1.1spg, 1.7bpg, FGP: 44.8%, 3PT: 37.0%, FT: 70.1%. Last season with Nordlingen he tore up the Pro B averaging 17.5ppg, Reb-1(11.0rpg), 2.4apg, 1.7spg, Blocks-5(1.5bpg), FGP: 48.5%, 3PT: 27.5%, FT: 73.4%. He spoke to German Hoops after winning the Karlsruhe derby against BG Karlsruhe 79-68.

 

 

 

 

Jordan thanks for talking to German HoopsCongrats on the 79-68 win against BG Karlsruhe in the big derby game. What did it feel like playing in your first Karlsruhe derby game?

The atmosphere was great. There was a huge build up to this game all week long. I’m glad it’s over now and we can really focus on the rest of the season and building chemistry within the team.

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It´s Another Normal Day At The Office For Aaron Nelson As He And The Dragons Rhondorf Destroy BG Karlsruhe 87-70

The last time that fans could depart the always loud Dragons Dome with a smile on their faces and still enough time to spare to get home and watch the ZDF Sportstudio to catch the football scores was Janaury 2nd, 2016 as Rhondorf had smacked around Rent4Office 83-65 which was only one of two wins in a season to forget as the club stunk up the Pro A and crawled back to the Pro B with their heads in bags as the embarrassment was difficult to hide. The last home game was a little more than six months ago where the Dragons lost a nail bitter to the RheinStars Cologne 78-76, but except for a tournament three weeks ago where they faced off against Pro B team AstroStars Bochum and BBL team Telekom Baskets Bonn, basketball had been missed in the Dragons Dome as the long summer seemed to drag on and on like a caterpillar does going through life. The 2016-2017 season finally started again as the Dragons Rhondorf hosted last season´s best regular season team BG Karlsruhe who totally underachieved in the playoffs getting spanked and got swept by the Dresden Titans. The club lost some serious fire power in Rouven Roessler and double double input with Marcus Smallwood and all-rounder Hayden Lescault, but kept American routine veteran Jeremy Black and added the top scorer Ricky Easterling of the Pro B the last two seasons. It was already evident that Rhondorf head coach Matthias Sonnenschein had done his homework in the off season as his trio of imports Aaron the beast Nelson, Canadian Mike Lucier and American William Trawick had found a healthy chemistry already in pre-season, something that was lacking last season with their American imports. It was the battle of the top Pro B team of last season BG Karlsruhe against ex Pro A team Dragons Rhondorf and the home team was able to finally win a home game again after waiting almost 9 months after their last win destroying BG Karlsruhe 87-70. After the game two thirds of the import trio of Aaron Nelson, Mike Lucier and Will Trawick were stretching as they combined for 54 of the team 87 points, but Canadian Mike Lucier quickly noted that the victory could be chalked up to a total team effort. “We played well together and you can see we have team chemistry. The secret to this early working team chemistry is that we have character guys that all get along and want to succeed. We all moved well off the ball, had strong cuts and guys got open and we hit our shots. We did a pretty good job on defense, but it could have been better. We played with good intensity and everyone knows when to switch and we communicated well”, added Dragons Rhondorf forward Mike Luicer. BG Karlsruhe had a tough time finding a healthy team rhythm and had to play catch up basketball all night long and just had no remedy how to slow down the Rhondorf offense. After the game, Baltimore native Ricky Easterling was reserved and low key about the loss, but knew that there is more to a season than just one game. “We came in here wanting to win, but faced a tough Rhondorf team. We were too hesitant on defense and had bad rotations and no communication. The season is long. We have to look at this game again and correct our mistakes”, stressed BG Karlsruhe guard Ricky Easterling. “It was a team effort and we played well at all times during our highs and lows. Our chemistry is working well and everyone knows their roles and how they work”, warned Dragons Rhondorf forward Aaron Nelson.

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Jeremy Black (BG Karlsruhe) At This Point In My Career I´m Still Improving And Striving To Get Better

Jeremy Black is a 30 year old 203cm forward from Tampa, Florida that is playing his sixth season for BG Karlsruhe. He played at Tampa (NCAA2) from 2004-2008 and in his senior year played 30 games: 18.7ppg, 11.0rpg, 1.6apg, 1.1bpg, 1.5spg, FG: 49.3%, 3Pts: 30.8%, FT: 72.1%. He turned professional in 2008 and since then has always played in Germany except two seasons ago where he played for AB Contern (Luxembourg-Total League) 4 games: 12.8ppg, 10.3rpg, 1.8apg, in Nov.’14 moved to BCKE Wallabies (Switzerland-LNB). He also played two seasons for Science City Jena. Last season with BG Karlsruhe he played 21 games averaging 11.4ppg, 8.3rpg, 1.3apg, FGP: 56.2%, 3PT: 17.6%, FT: 61.5%. He spoke to German Hoops before the season opener in Rhondorf against the Dragons.

 

 

 

Thanks Jeremy for talking to German Hoopos. You are playing your sixth season for BG Karlsruhe. What is missing most in Karlsruhe that could almost substitute it with Tampa as home?

Karlsruhe is my new home base. I can always go back home but what I miss most is my family and the food!

Except for a short stay in Luxemburg two seasons ago, you seem to always come back to Karlsruhe. What is most appealing about the organization and city that makes you want to return?

Yeah, Karlsruhe is and always will be special to me. I came here not expecting much but I got way more than I can bargain for. The city is awesome besides the never ending construction. The people who I’ve came in contact with while being here have been nothing short of amazing.

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Ricky Easterling (BG Karlsruhe) I Will Mentally Prepare Myself To Do More On The Defensive End For BG Karlsruhe

Ricky Easterling is a 32 year old 190cm guard from Baltimore that will play his 11th professional season in Germany and first with BG Karlsruhe(Pro B). Over the years, he has been crowned Mr Regionaliga as he averaged over 30 points three times with TV Saarlouis and belonged to the  the top 3 players in the Pro B the last two seasons. Before moving to Saarlouis in 2007 he played at Bridgewater (NCAA3) and then as a rookie played with TSG Reutlingen (Germany-Oberliga and  Bergheim Bandits (Germany-Regionalliga). Last season with TV Saarlouis, he played 28 games: Score-1(23.1ppg), 4.0rpg, 4.4apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 51.1%, 3PT: 18.2%, FT: 81.2%. He spoke to German Hoops about basketball.

 

Ricky thanks for talking to German Hoops. Where are you at the moment and how has your summer been?

At the moment I am in Great Barrington Massachusetts working coaching basketball at Kutcher Sports Academy. My summer is good so far. I enjoy working with the kids here and I also have the opportunity to work out and prepare for this coming season.

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