Brose Baskets Bamberg

Marcus Slaughter (Brose Baskets Bamberg): The Old Players Want To Create History And The New Players Want To Become Part Of History

Marcus Slaughter is a 26 year old 203cm forward from Riverside California. He played at San Diego State from 2003-2006. In his senior year, he played 30 games averaging 16.5ppg, 11.0rpg, 1.9apg, 1.2spg, 1.0bpg, FGP: 49%, FT: 76.2%. He started his professional basketball career in Turkey for Pinar Karsiyaka SK Izmir playing 29 games averaging 13.3ppg, Reb-3(10.2rpg), 1.3apg, 2.3spg, 2FGP: 51.6%, 3PT: 12.5%, FT: 67.2%. In 2007-2008, he was with the Miami Heat in preseason and then played in Israel and France for Hapoel Migdal Jerusalem, Israeli League: 8.0ppg, 6.4rpg, ULEB Cup: 5 games: 5.6ppg, 4.8rpg, 1.8apg, waived in Dec.’07, in Jan.’08 signed at BCM Gravelines Dunkerque Grand Littoral 15 games: 9.5ppg, 7.2rpg, 1.4apg, 1.3spg, 2FGP-3(63.2%), FT: 58.9%. in 2008-2009, he started with the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven(8 games: 18.8ppg, 10.0rpg, 1.3apg, 2.6spg, 1.3bpg, FGP: 59.8%, 3PT: 60.0%) before moving to France to Le Havre playing 21 games: 16.0ppg, Reb-1(9.5rpg), 1.6apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 58.8%, 3PT: 40.0%, FT: 65.4%; Eurocup: 6 games: 12.2ppg, 8.7rpg, 1.0apg, 1.5spg, 1.8bpg. In 2009-2010, he played for Sluc Nancy Basket Pro (France-ProA): EuroCup: 6 games: 8.5ppg, 9.0rpg, 2.8spg, 2.0bpg, FGP: 50.0%, FT: 76.7%; French League: 29 games: 12.5ppg, 7.0rpg, 1.4apg, 1.5spg, Blocks-5(1.4bpg), FGP: 64.5%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 69.1%. Last season, he played for Blancos de Rueda Valladolid (Spain-ACB, starting five): 34 games: 9.9ppg, 6.0rpg, 1.4spg, 1.0bpg, FGP: 65.0%, FT: 67.5%. He is back in the Beko BBL with the Brose Baskets Bamberg.  He spoke to German Hoops about basketball.

What was your impression of  Adnan Hodzic of The Walter Tigers Tuebingen when you played him?

He is a strong player with a lot of energy. A guy that plays with the crowd. He has a lot of talent that can shoot inside and out. He will get better with age. It seems like playing comes easy to him.

Brose Baskets Bamberg coach Chris Fleming has the tough job of keeping the old players motivated for the triple, but I am sure that the new players with Jenkins, Tucker and yourself will be very motivated.

I don’t think that coach will have a hard time motivating anyone. We play to win. We have been practicing hard and the new players bring a lot of excitement and we know what is in front of us. The old players want to create history and the new players want to become part of history. Everyone is highly motivated to win.

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A Conversation With Marcus Slaughter(Brose Baskets Bamberg)

Marcus Slaughter is a 26 year old 203cm forward from Riverside California. He played at San Diego State from 2003-2006. In his senior year, he played 30 games averaging 16.5ppg, 11.0rpg, 1.9apg, 1.2spg, 1.0bpg, FGP: 49%, FT: 76.2%. He started his professional basketball career in Turkey for Pinar Karsiyaka SK Izmir playing 29 games averaging 13.3ppg, Reb-3(10.2rpg), 1.3apg, 2.3spg, 2FGP: 51.6%, 3PT: 12.5%, FT: 67.2%. In 2007-2008, he was with the Miami Heat in preseason and then played in Israel and France for Hapoel Migdal Jerusalem, Israeli League: 8.0ppg, 6.4rpg, ULEB Cup: 5 games: 5.6ppg, 4.8rpg, 1.8apg, waived in Dec.’07, in Jan.’08 signed at BCM Gravelines Dunkerque Grand Littoral 15 games: 9.5ppg, 7.2rpg, 1.4apg, 1.3spg, 2FGP-3(63.2%), FT: 58.9%. in 2008-2009, he started with the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven(8 games: 18.8ppg, 10.0rpg, 1.3apg, 2.6spg, 1.3bpg, FGP: 59.8%, 3PT: 60.0%) before moving to France to Le Havre playing 21 games: 16.0ppg, Reb-1(9.5rpg), 1.6apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 58.8%, 3PT: 40.0%, FT: 65.4%; Eurocup: 6 games: 12.2ppg, 8.7rpg, 1.0apg, 1.5spg, 1.8bpg. In 2009-2010, he played for Sluc Nancy Basket Pro (France-ProA): EuroCup: 6 games: 8.5ppg, 9.0rpg, 2.8spg, 2.0bpg, FGP: 50.0%, FT: 76.7%; French League: 29 games: 12.5ppg, 7.0rpg, 1.4apg, 1.5spg, Blocks-5(1.4bpg), FGP: 64.5%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 69.1%. Last season, he played for Blancos de Rueda Valladolid (Spain-ACB, starting five): 34 games: 9.9ppg, 6.0rpg, 1.4spg, 1.0bpg, FGP: 65.0%, FT: 67.5%. He is back in the Beko BBL with the Brose Baskets Bamberg. He spoke To German Hoops about basketball.

How was your summer been? Have you been able to do some things this summer that you haven´t been able to do the last years?

My summer was great spending time with family and friends.

Congrats on your new job with the Brose Baskets Bamberg. You are back in Germany in the Beko BBL.

It was a no brainer to sign with Bamberg.

What do you think was the main reason why this club signed you?

The coach told me they were looking to go far in the Euroleague and it would be my first time so I was excited about coming to Bamberg.

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Brose Baskets Bamberg Win The 2011 Beko BBL Championship

Brose Baskets Bamberg – Alba Berlin 72-65 (29:30)

For the third consecutive time the BBL finals saw a game 5 – and for the third consecutive time the hosts could take advantage of the home-court advantage. After trailing for most of the second half Bamberg played their best basketball when it all came down to the last few minutes.

Congratulations to the Brose Baskets Bamberg and coach Fleming who formed a group of great individual talent to a team that set standards in playing with enthusiasm, discipline and unselfishness.

Alba Berlin finished the season in second place. But after a season full of ups and downs, the departure of former head-coach Luka Pavicevic and the integration of two new playmakers in February Alba can be proud of winning decisive games 5 (in the quarterfinals against Oldenburg, in the semis against Frankfurt) and giving Bamberg a really tough game 5 in the finals.

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Alba Berlin Forces Game 5 With A Huge 87-67 Win Over Bamberg

Did Bamberg’s team want to celebrate the championship on their home court?

Or what exactly happened to the most dominant team of the Beko BBL in game 4 of the finals?

With a win coach Fleming’s team could have won the BBL championship. But with their backs to the wall Alba Berlin handed Bamberg their biggest loss of the season (87-67) and showed that you just cannot count out the team from the capitol city.

After a nice start Bamberg was in front with 12-21. But it took only a few minutes for Alba to go on a 16-2 run and take the lead. The momentum had changed with Alba’s nice zone defense and Bamberg’s inability to find a way to score on a regular basis. On the other side of the court Berlin found good ways to create mismatches against Bamberg’s zone as they moved the ball very well. Often wing players like Casey Jacobsen ended up defending in the paint and Alba took advantage with their big men.

A prime example for Berlin’s strength today was the Bamberg’s last possession in the first half. Brian Roberts tried to go hard to the basket but Alba responded with a nice defensive rotation that made Julius Jenkins block the lay-up. Then with some seconds left Alba passed the ball nicely to Bryce Taylor, who faked a shot and then made a buzzer three pointer right on time. At the half Alba led by 7 (44-37).

At the beginning of the second half Tadija Dragicevic replaced Derrick Allen and had some nice scenes offensively. Alba constantly led by 4-8 points at this stage of the gameand even if Bamberg managed to have some successful situations offensively, the team simply forgot to box out defensively.

It really felt like Alba Berlin could easily grab offensive rebounds whenever they missed a shot. German national player Yassin Idbihi did a great job getting 4 of the team’s 11 offensive boards. It is often said that good rebounding is a question of dedication.

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We Got Ourselves A Series! Alba Evens The Series With A Comeback Win

Before the game started the most interesting question probably was how Bamberg could compensate the loss of starting point guard John Goldsberry.  In game one the 29-year old american had a very unfortunate collision with Berlin’s Bryce Taylor and suffered a pulled ligament in his right ankle. Goldsberry may not have the flashiest numbers (4.3 points, 4.0 assists in 23 minutes per game), but he is probably the most important player in coach Fleming’s system.

After the first five minutes of game 2 no one really seemed to be missing Goldsberry as Bamberg started off brilliantly and took a commanding 2:18 lead. In front of 12.000 spectators in Berlin’s O2 World it looked like a really bad blow-out was in the making. Alba Berlin showed more than just once this post season that now and then the team falls apart and takes something like a 4-5 minute time-out while they are not getting anything done defensively and offensively. One may call it fortunate that this time they started the game with a bad run, because there was a lot of time left to get back into the game. And Alba is probably the only team in the Beko BBL to be able to overcome such a huge deficit against Bamberg.

Late in the first quarter Alba mainly tried to get close to the basket and get some easy points. This resulted in fouls and free throws for Katzurin’s team. But still Bamberg finished the first quarter with a huge 14:28 lead.

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Bamberg Wins Beko BBL Finals Opener Over Berlin

For almost three quarters game 1 of this year’s Beko BBL final was very competitive and close. Both teams showed that they are the best in the country this season and deserve to be in the finals.

But late in the third quarter Bamberg was able to step up defensively and turn a 52:53 into a 74:60.

It was their 25th consecutive home game victory in the BBL this season.

Bamberg was led by Kyle Hines (15 p/6 r/ 4 bl.), Casey Jacobsen (15) and Brian Roberts (14).

Derrick Allen was Alba’s best scorer with 13 points, but his +/- stats looked poor with -17! Bryce Taylor had a double-double scoring 10 points and grabbing 12 rebounds.Offensively Berlin certainly missed some production by Julius Jenkins and Immanuel McElroy. Combined they made just 3 points (compared to the usual 24 point average)and shot 1/6 from the field.

While McElroy looks tired and is probably injury plagued, Jenkins just needs to step up his game.

Even though Bamberg won game one the game ended rather unfortunately for the franconian team. In the last few seconds of the game John Goldsberry went to the ground and looked injured. It is still not clear if he is healthy enough to play the next games.

Brose Baskets Bamberg – Alba Berlin 90-76

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2011 beko BBL Final Brose Baskets Bamberg-Alba Berlin 3-2

Revenge and long term absence that Alba Berlin is currently suffering can be a very dangerous and uncomfortable experience for any opponent in the beko BBL as Oldenburg and The Deutsche Bank Skyliners recently had to witness in the last weeks, but now they will take this increased stress of the past into the Brose Baskets Bamberg series in the 2011 beko BBl final. Alba Berlin hasn´t been in the beko BBl final since 2008, which might not seem like a long time to a neutral bystander, but for CEO Marco Baldi, it probably seems like an eternity and as horrible as Harry Potter fans seeing the end of the story becoming a reality, George Bush haters not getting the total satisfaction of the ex President getting hit by an errand foul ball at a Texas Rangers-Chicago White Sox game or ex Skyliner coach Murat Didin having to witness and come to terms with being seen by some as a Danny Devito doppelganger. On top of not tasting champagne in three years, the team not only lost the season series to Bamberg, but were drilled on the side of their heads in Bamberg being humiliated 103-52 and the only thing missing was the team departing the arena with bags over their heads. With FC Bayern Munich entering the beko BBL stage next season and ready to rumble with the top teams and Brose Baskets Bamberg being the top team at the moment, Alba Berlin doesn´t want to slide further away from the top and will be as motivated to seek revenge as Dirk Nowitzki had for the game one loss to the Miami Heat taking crunch time in game two into his own hands and scoring the last seven Mavericks points to win game two 95-93, Big Loser contestants in the American TV show impressing new drill sergeant ex tennis goddess Anna Kurnikowa or Paris Hilton trying to upend her party girl image each day with worthy causes. The Brose Baskets Bamberg host Alba Berlin in game one Sunday as both teams enter the finals with long five game series, but Alba Berlin possibly having more momentum coming in having won all three games in Frankfurt and remembering the big 103-52 loss. “Alba Berlin showed that they played with a lot of confidence on the road. They might of had a long series against Frankfurt, but I don´t think they are tired, because they have a long bench. They aren´t tired yet and will have momentum going in. That 51 point loss will still be in their heads. I believe that Alba Berlin will come out with a lot of energy”, stressed Artland Dragon guard Bryan Bailey. The Brose Baskets Bamberg only lost two games all season and had a huge advantage over most of the other 17 BEKO BBL teams in that they have kept a core of their team. This season Bamberg has kept many teams off guard with not just one style of play. “We can play a multitude of different styles. We have players on our roster that can do everything. The style we play depends on our opponent and style of game they play. We will always be able to tailor our game to match the opponent”, added Bamberg forward Kyle Hines.

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2011 beko BBL Semi Final Preview Brose Baskets Bamberg-Artland Dragons 3—–1

It was more than 6 weeks ago at the Top 4 in Bamberg where 3 time beko BBl champion Brose Baskets Bamberg had arrived to the competition cruising  through the season like an unstoppable Dwight Howard mowing everybody down in his path in the zone as if he had found some extra Popeye spinach to add extra strength  were rudely challenged on back to back days by the Artland Dragons and New Yorker Phantoms Braunschweig as if the name Brose Baskets Bamberg supplied as much trepidation  as the Gloria Giants Duesseldorf, a Michael Jordan on the baseball field or Leslie Nielson directing a dramatic  picture as both teams gave the Bavarian team 2 good run for the money games. Bamberg will meet The Artland Dragons in a best of 5 series as Quackenbruck slipped by The New Yorker Phantoms Braunschweig winning the last two games 3-2 in games. Bamberg needed 45 minutes in the semi final cup game and Tyrese Rice fouled out early to reach the cup final 6 weeks ago. “Well you play each team twice in the regular season. The playoffs are much different. I think it comes down to match ups”, warned ex Tuebingen guard Steven Wright.  Chris Fleming had an extra amount of time to prepare for both teams for not another do or die cup game, but rather for a five game series. “I dont think the time off will effect Bamberg as they have some veteran guys that will keep the team going in the right direction”, stressed Gloria Giants guard Steven Wright. The Artland Dragons might of lost all three games this season to Bamberg, but only by a combined total of 8 points in the regular season and in OT in the cup final and with their confidence rising like a Barack Obama for a second term at President after eliminating Bin Ladin are as scared of Casey Jacobsen and company as the Dallas Mavericks were of the Los Angeles Lakers, Dashaun Wood of ever not being able to strut into the lane at any given moment of any game, or Hollywood actor Sylvester Stallone is from not returning as Rocky again. Bamberg will have to continue to play their focused and consistent game as Artland will seek revenge for all three loses as there will b eno gifts given in this series. “Its the playoffs the games will be different. I think Bamberg will be better prepared than at the Top 4. All the teams are playing well as of right now. Bamberg has got to continue what they have been doing the whole season. Playing great defense, moving and shooting the ball well”, warned ex Braunschweig guard Steven Wright.

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Brose Baskets Bamberg-Eisbaeren Bremerhaven 2011 Playoff preview 3-0

The cities Munich and Bamberg in size are about as similar as Hollywood actress Emma Thompson and Diva Paris Hilton have in their acting ability, but when it comes to basketball this season, both clubs dominated their respective leagues losing only two games. the only difference is that The Brose Baskets Bamberg are playing for their fourth beko BBL league championship and FC Bayern Munich are still dreaming of their first. However this duel could become reality in the next years, but first Bamberg has to overcome their first hurdle in the quarterfinals of the playoffs against The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven. The Brose Baskets Bamberg dominated the league this season winning convincingly most of the time and with a straight ahead urgency to mow down the competition the same way Mike Tyson did his opponents back in the day, that one may have wondered that each member of the team had been promised some incredible wish by manager mastermind Wolfgang Heyder or might have taken a chapter out of the BG Goettingen secret by creating their own bat cave under the Stechert arena where the team could plot and continue to get better keeping their development a mystery. Bamberg was as dominant this season the way Skyliner MVP Dashaun Wood takes apart defenses, the way Boston Celtic Rajon Rondo can be when he wants to especially in game 3 against The New York Knicks or the way Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowizki played at the 2005 European championships almost guiding Germany to a gold medal with his scoring from all over the court. The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven on the other hand come into the playoffs in compariosn to Bamberg a full 180 degrees as they ended the season in seventh place having to win their last game in Ulm. The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven want to improve their bitter semi final game 5 loss to the Deutsche Bank Skyliners  last season, but can they beat the Los Angeles Lakers of the beko BBL Bamberg in a five game playoff series? Some the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven have that Frankfurt loss in the back of their minds and will want to do it right this time around. Bremerhaven will have Upset engraved in their minds and will have to be as alert against Bamberg like a young and naive sea gull landing on a strange looking white piece of ice that is really a polar bear ready to stomp on its prey, the way ex NBA player Jason Williams was when he made beautiful crossover against Gary Payton or Kemba Walker possibly having to have to hire a personal assistant to answer all the calls from NBA general managers. Last season the top four teams were ousted in the quarterfinals as upsets were a normal procedure like putting on sun block in the summer time in Dubai, but would anyone bet their home sweet home on the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven against Bamberg?

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