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The Isaiah Swope Buzzer Beater And 60 Centimeter Difference Between Wemby And I Was Almost The Perfect Basketball Day For Me

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Foto: Dmitrij Zibart | ZIBART.DE

You can´t be in 2 places at the same time so sometimes one has to make sacrifices. I don´t like to miss games in general, but with my mother having a big birthday in January, it was a no brainer to go back home to Boston to celebrate. I also was lucky to have a nice 4 game Celtics homestand within 6 days so I also was able to meet players and get autographs and selfies something that has stayed with me since my childhood. But at the same time, my stay in the States would hinder my basketball coverage in Germany and unfortunately I missed seeing a monumental game with the Skyliners-Niners which was decided on a ridiculous buzzer beater by walking bucket Isaiah Swope (178-PG-2003, college: St.Louis). As I was on my way to see the San Antonio Spurs depart their hotel for their game against the Celtics, I was following the game online. It was crunch-time and was as exciting as ever and I just knew it would be an amazing finish. I for some reason had this feeling that Isaiah Swope would do it again. In the pervious 2 wins, he had been the hero scoring 11 points in a row in crunch-time beating Jena in Jordan esc manner and had the game winner in Heidelberg and yes he would do it again. I was so happy that he won the game for the Skyliners again, but at the same time sad that I hadn´t witnessed it live. I took a few moments to really enjoy the win from across the pond and soon after wrote him a message congratulating and asking him for an interview the day after while already having some questions popping in my mind. Then it was time to go on my Victor Wembanyama mission. As usual only a few Spurs signed which is the norm these days as it´s out of the hotel in a direct line to the bus. I got a few selfies and enjoyed the outrageous outfits as Keldon Johnson sported a slick cow boy hat and Jeremy Sochan´s hair color of the month was pink/red. But that was all a sidenote as everyone there were tehre for the generational talent Victor Wembanyama or Wemby as all call him. Even a guy from France was there with a jersey. Wemby finally came out almost last and came over and just stood in front of the circa 15 fans just posing for pics. He gave a few selfie´s and then it was my turn. I tried and tried and the dam 60 centimeters difference gave me a selfie with the side of my head and eye, but at least one can recognize Wemby´s smile. I may not have a 100% selfie, but at least it´s original and a different kind of selfie. “Man that´s crazy that you got a selfie. He is so tall. I can imagine it was tough taking that selfie”, laughed Isaiah Swope. The Isaiah Swope buzzer beater and 60 centimeter difference between Wemby and I was almost the perfect basketball day for me.

Victor Wembanyama leaving for Celtics game

It´s shortly after 10:00 am on Sunday in USA when I reach Isaiah Swope in Germany. It is the day after his amazing feat and he doesn´t feel any different after making that incredible shot and giving the Skyliners their first victory in 2026. “I honestly don´t try to praise myself too much. I always try to balance it. I wake up the same and go to sleep the same. I try to be as consistent as possible”, stressed Isaiah Swope. The Skyliners had been up and down the last weeks and had lost in Rostock last weekend and wanted to start a new winning streak, but had to deal with feisty team Niners Chemnitz who had come into the game having won 5 of 6 games. “We came into the game wanting to build off the last 2 quarters and put that into 4 quarters against Chemnitz. We knew that it wouldn´t be an easy game. They were a good team with good veteran players”, stated Isaiah Swope. The good news going in was that Jaedon LeDee was back on board after having been out 2 months. Did his presence give the team much added confidence “!Of course it did. He is so important, but it isn´t just his numbers, but he does so much more and that gives the whole team added confidence”, added Isaiah Swope. The first quarter began as a back and forth battle as no team could get away. Jaedon Ledee got on track quickly with a basket and big dunk. “This start after being out so long wasn´t a surprise. We see him do this in each practice and game. It was normal to see. I was so happy to see him on the floor again since I know how hard he works”, commented Isaiah Swope. Ex Regionalliga player Kevin Yebo was instrumental in the last minutes helping Chemnitz have the 28-22 advantage after 10 minutes. He was tough for the whole 40 minutes finishing with 25 points. “Him being a veteran and knowing the league helped them a lot. His size made it a real tough cover for us”, said Isaiah Swope. The game continued to be a real back and forth grind in the second quarter, but the Skyliners came out on top leading 49-45 at the break. Will Christmas´s energy was infectious in that quarter. “His energy was infectious the whole game. His ability to finish was huge and he just impacted the game at both ends the whole game. His presence is important for me, but as a rookie, I look up to everyone if it´s a guy in his second, third or 11th year. It´s all still so new to me. I still have a lot to learn”, warned Isaiah Swope. The game remained even in the third quarter as Frankfurt led 71-68 after 30 minutes, but continued to have difficulty stopping the drive. “The difference was communication. Where we had better communication the more stops we had while when we had failed communication the more baskets we gave up. They simply had skilled guys that capitalized off our mistakes”, expressed Isaiah Swope.

2023 World champion Klaus Perwas had the perfect words for his squad going into the fourth quarter. “Coach Klaus told us that he wanted us to go inside more, communicate better on defense and just stay together, because nothing would be easy”, stressed Isaiah Swope. In crunch time the game was still a dog fight and with 2,37 left, the momentum, instincts and practice was back with Isaiah Swope as he just continued to do his thing hitting a mid distance. Did he feel any different than usual? Of course not. “I felt like I always did. I just did what I have always practiced and it worked for me”, said Isaiah Swope. The game was dead locked at 86-86 with 3 seconds to go. Frankfurt called time out. I mean everyone in that 5000 arena knew Swope would get the ball. Was there a possible different option or was he the 100% option? “The plan was for me to get the ball. I was 100% the main option”, said Isaiah Swope. Frankfurt had possession on the left side and the Niners coverage was super tough on the inbounds play. Swope was tightly covered by Corey Davis and German Kostja Mushidi came over to help. Somehow he got free got the ball, dribbled went left and then did a side step in best Shai manner and let it fly. How did the release feel? “I was trying to get open and find a way to shoot it. Honestly I don´t really remember too much how I felt. All I remember is that the shot looked on target. It wasn´t my most comfortable shot in the game, but I thought it had a chance to go in. But I wasn´t looking to bank it in. The basketball God wanted it to go in that way”, said Isaiah Swope. After he dropped the massive buzzer beater, he just jogged slowly into the back court as if it had been another regular day at the office. “I never ever get flaired in high stress moments. I was just calm and laughed when it went in. My team came over and were screaming and yelling”, stated Isaiah Swope. Was it as usual a combination of momentum, Instincts and practice or more of one than the others? “I think that it is always a combination of all. It stays the same for me. That is how big shots are made. Obviously the back board added a little luck for me”, laughed Isaiah Swope. The team had 2 big strengths going to the free throw line and having the 12-3 transition baskets advantage or was there another strength as well? “I would just say the way we stuck together was most important yesterday. We were coming off a loss and they were a tough team to beat. We were still trying to find our rhythm and LeDee was back again. We just found a way to win”, stressed Isaiah Swope. The Skyliners next battle Trier on the road who are back in the easyCredit BBL after 10 years in the Pro A. Will fans see another wild clash there as they did against Chemnitz? “I´m not sure. Our goal is always to win. How we win, we will see when the buzzer sounds”, stressed Isaiah Swope. It is shortly before 6.00 Pm in Germany as his day is winding down. His buzzer beater will be talked about for years. His ambitious and effective play in crunch-time will make every new Skyliner game a delight to follow. Swope´s ability to hit magical shots is becoming scary, but hey for Skyliner fans, they just hope the winning continues and any added Swope masterpiece shots is something that will simply add spice to the great game that everyone loves.

A Little Bit Of Sports Sleep Electrolytes And Having That Delusional Confidence Helped Boost Felix Kloman(AS Soleuvre Belvaux ) To Score 50 Points

Scoring 50 points or more in a pro basketball game no matter at what level is no simple feat. It is even rarer when it happens twice within a week. Scoring 40 plus points is also rare but it happens every week, but 50 points is simply another dimension. It happened twice in the second division in Luxemburg in only a short period of time. On October 4th, American Cobie Barnes erupted for 51 points in a win and only 4 days later it was another American with Felix Kloman (196-G, college: Babson) who exploded for 50 points also in a win. It is only normal that achieving a feat like that is very special.

“I feel good! Big credit to those U18 guys, they play hard and are all going to be great players. I am excited for another chance at 2 points in a big matchup tomorrow”, said Felix Kloman.

The 196cm guard played 3 seasons at Brown University (NCAA) and played 50 NCAA games and never averaged more than 5,0ppg in the NCAA. He decided to move down to the NCAA 3 and played with Babson and showed that he can not only be a consistent scorer, but a very versatile player as he averaged 17.7ppg, 3.8rpg, 2.5apg, 1.4spg, 1.1bpg, FGP: 45.6%, 3PT: 40.1%, FT: 83.1%. He did score 20 plus points on several occasions at Babson, but his 50 points overseas was definitely a career high for him. Did the 50 points in a way shock him or was it something you feel you were always capable of?

“It did not shock me. Not to sound arrogant, but I have put in the work so to see the results come is what you hope for”, said Felix Kloman.

Sometimes guys will have certain rituals that they do before games. Having a certain pre game meal also belongs to some players rituals before a game. Did he have a special breakfast on Wednesday and feel different going into the game or was it just a normal game day for him?

“Yes I actually powered up with some Sports Sleep electrolytes right before the game which gave me the extra boost I needed to perform. Check them out on instagram @getsportsleep”, said Flex Kloman.

It is always interesting to find out how rapidly a player knew from the start of the gun that he would have a good game. Back in the day when a guy like Larry Bird hit his first 5-6 shots in a row, you simply knew that he would probably score 30-40 points. But with other players like Felix Kloman, he is simply in the zone and not thinking about in what direction his scoring game may go in.

“To be honest I didn’t. I try to take the game one play at a time and if the points end up stacking up they stack up”, added Felix Kloman.

Sometimes when a player is close to 50 points, the question is always did he know he was close and knew even when he it the magical mark? Not all arenas overseas will have the names of the players and their points listed on the score board in the arena,

“I knew my point total because it says so on the scoreboard but I think my coach and teammates were more focused on getting the win as we didn’t pull away until late.”, stated Flex Kloman.

When you see 20-25 team assists at the end of 40 minutes, then you know that team basketball was cherished by that team. However when your team AS Soleuvre Belvaux (Luxembourg-Nationale 2) only had 7 team assists, you know that Kloman had to settle a lot of business with isolation play.

“Probably a lot of isolation but I will give love to my point guard Gille Weis who gets me the ball in spots where I can isolate and score”, warned Felix Kloman.

He shot 14/21. Was picking your spots on this day easier than on other days?

“I wouldn’t say so. I think some days you’re just on and Wednesday was definitely one of those days. Hopefully I don’t go like 0/15 tomorrow as a repercussion for my great shooting night”, smiled Flex Kloman. Thank God for him he didn´t put up the goose egg in the next game, but actually had another great scoring game

How valuable was it having Christian Parker being aggressive and opening up space for you? He had a great game with 25 points.

“It’s easy to score when playing with a big fella like Christian. It’s been a great start to the year for us and the club and we are both hoping to build on it. Shoutout all my fellow D3 hoopers”, warned Felix Kloman

His scoring increased every game in Luxemburg from 18, 33 and 50 points. Does one aim higher and go for 60 in the next game or are you grounded enough to know that that feat was very rare and special?

“I don’t think I’ll be going for 50 every game, but I have the utmost confidence in my scoring ability and there is no doubt in my mind I am capable of one upping that performance. I think as a scorer you have to be a bit delusionaly confident. I definitely am grateful for the fact we got a win on wednesday as well”, said Felix Kloman.

There are so many players overseas that came from lower college levels like JUCO, NAIA and NCAA 3 that are grinding daily to get better and to continue to climb the ladder season by season. How much hope does a game give you for your grind and hope of continuing to move up the basketball ladder overseas?

“I have always believed in myself and that I have what it takes to succeed overseas, so it is definitely an awesome feeling to see some of that work pay off. Now is no time to be satisfied however, as there is a lot of work yet to do. Still important to celebrate the small wins though on your journey for sure”, stressed Felix Kloman.

Usually after an incredible performance like that, you will see info about it on social media. You can simply never get bored of watching that crushing dunk or the 10th three pointer in a game. Was his phone flooded with congratulatory messages after the feat?

“Not too many hahaha but I am super grateful for my friends and family that did show love and the fact that I can feel their support from overseas”, stated Felix Kloman.

A big tradition in basketball Germany after a player makes the 100 points is to get the team donuts. How was it after his 50 points? Did he do something special for his teammates?

“I didn’t do anything special, I just went home and threw on Game of Thrones. I still can’t believe how bad that last season was. If anything I am just excited to get back out on the court and keep proving that I can make an impact”, warned Felix Kloman.

Did he have a special bucket from the game. Perhaps that deep three or a dunk or an off balance shot?

Free throws because it is a focus of mine to get to the line”, stressed Felix Kloman.

Scoring 50 points is something very special to do, but he didn´t do it again or top it 3 days later. This time he produced 32 points which is still incredible, but for him just another day at the office as he is averaging 33/6/2/2 stats through 4 games. But the most important thing was that he got the dub. AS Soleuvre Belvaux (Luxembourg-Nationale 2) is currently 4-0 and have big aspirations to move up. Felix Kloman will surely continue to score 30 plus points a lot and possibly even score 50 + points again, but for him that is just extra icing on the cake. He knows exactly what he wants to accomplish in the long run come next spring 2026.