Frankfurt Skyliners

An Early Rickey Paulding Shooting Clinic And Big Third Quarter Spark The EWE Baskets Oldenburg Past the Fraport Skyliners 72-63

 

If there are two things that Beko BBL fans and opponents can remember most about Florida native Julius Jenkins who is starting his eighth season in the Beko BBL and second with the EWE Baskets Oldenburg is his explosiveness and unlimited range of shooting which has dominated the league since years and can be compared to the shooting of Kyle Korver in the last years in the NBA. The other is his extremely noticeable rasta braids which was like an institution since he entered the league with Alba Berlin in 2006. The only thing missing at times on the court after hitting a three to win a game was that slick Milli Vanilli dance which would have fit perfectly to his extra ordinary appearance on the court. For some it may have been a shock this preseason when the EWE Baskets Oldenburg released first photos of Julius Jenkins with shaven hair where one could actually notice his ears which really stood out. Some may have wondered if Oldenburg had picked up a new player. Jenkins now was making competition with Mr Oldenburg Rickey Paulding who has been sporting that type of look for years after having more hair at the start of his Oldenburg tenure. After winning titles in Berlin and Bamberg and getting so close with Oldenburg last season reaching the final, the 2008 finals MVP might have wanted to make a change as some kind of good luck charm. It definitely took some getting used to watching Jenkins run up and down the court with less hair, but he was still his old self dropping shots as if there was no tomorrow. His teammate Ricky Paulding stole him the limelight with his crazy shooting clinic in the first half helping 2009 Beko BBl champion EWE Baskets Oldenburg to the comfortable 72-63 win against the Fraport Skyliners. Jenkins might not have had  a 20 point game, but came from the bench with five points support and help under the boards with five rebounds and two assists. His new look is something to still get used to even if he is still the same player on the court. “He had told me last summer that he would cut his hair. I didn´t believe it until he sent me a picture. It was weird at first with his new look and change, but no matter what he looks like, you know what you get from him. When he gets hot, he is hard to stop”, commented Ex Purdue guard Chris Kramer. His teammate Italian Andrea Crosariol saw fotos of him before and had the perfect comparisons For Jenkins. “He looked like Bob Marley before, but now looks like the brother of Paulding”, smiled Crosariol. “We are used to his look now. He is always Julius. We are used to it”, stated 2004 Detroit Pistons draft pick. One guy who can always tell it like it is Fraport Skyliner Jacob Burtschi who sees advantages to the new Jenkins. “He looks younger and more clean cut. He is just a stud”,a dded Jacob Burtschi.

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Medi Bayreuth Survive The Brick Battle As Brian Qvale Leads The Charge Past The Fraport Skyliners 74-67

The last time the Fraport Skyliners played an official game, FC Bayern Munich still wasn´t crowned Champions League winner they weren´t fretful at all of the chances of Borussia Dortmund to upset them, tennis ace Andy Murray was probably still having numerous Wimbeldon dreams of winning and Lebron James was pulling an Eddie Murphy from Beverly Hills Cop babling “lalalala I cant hear you” to any doubters about him ever being able to repeat as NBA champion which he did. All these events occurred after April 27th the last official game of the Fraport Skyliners in the 2012-2013 season as they had to win on the last game day to stay in the league and did putting the Neckar Riesen Ludwigsburg in their place with a huge home victory. Fans now had to wait more than five months to get the ball bouncing again and the Fraport Skyliners didn´t have an easy place to start the new 2013-2014 season as they had to play at medi bayreuth one of the nastiest and loudest arenas in the Beko BBL. Since Bayreuth has returned to the Beko BBL, Frankfurt has a 1-2 record in the Oberfrankenhalle and even lost three years ago with a monster game by 2011 MVP Dashaum Wood who proclaimed the arena one of the loudest that he has played in Europe. The Fraport Skyliners opened the new season in Bayreuth losing a tough defensive battle that was dominated by bricks in the first half from both teams as neither could hit the ocean and as always a very loud crowd that made life difficult for the Fraport Skyliners. “It was an ugly first half for both teams. There are days where shots fall and days where they don´t. Nobody could any shots into the ocean and both teams were standing on the beach”, smiled ex Bamberg forward Beckham Wyrick. One of the match winners of the game was Brian Qvale who was gleaming after the game when asked about the home crowd. “I like the home crowd fans. It was a great atmosphere and they helped us the whole game. I am looking forward to playing all home games this season”, added Brian Qvale. “Even though it was an ugly game, our fans were always behind us. WE defended very hard and we don´t care if the game is pretty or ugly, but that in the end we get a win”, stressed medi Bayreuth guard Simon Schmitz.

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Shooting And Candy Are Always Sweet For Ted Scott

There are certain special athletes in Pro Sports that make a fan stand up straight in their seats in an instance erasing any more interest from their cell phone interactive play with friends when they step on the floor or field. For instance when a Tom Brady has one minute to play and has to lead his team up the field for a come from behind win as he has done 37 times in his career and can dazzle fans with his lightening quick crisp passes, a Lionel Messi who usually looks as interested on the field as a satisfied Lion who can´t eat anymore steaks for a midday snack at the zoo, but can change a game at the blink of an eye with his quick reflections, speed and touch with the ball, or Boston Red Sox Slugger David Ortiz who is known as Big Papi and reminds one of former Red Sox slugger George the bopper Scott with his menacing body structure who has exceeded the 400 home run mark and was given a plaque in 2005 being named the greatest slugger in Boston Red Sox history for having the knack of making the big hit in key situations helping his team survive and get another big victory. Then again there are other athletes that may not have the overall massive high profile in sports society as these legends, but can gain that instant interest from fans when they step on the court. Ex Skyliner Ted Scott was a fairly unknown basketball player in the Beko BBL until he stepped on the court in Trier in 2012 and got those first Trier fans to cringe in their seats as he unleashed  his first jumper finding nothing but net and then making a lay in giving the Fraport Skyliners the 11-9 lead in the first quarter. For the few Skyliner fans that made the trip to Trier it was a pleasant surprise to see his quick production while for Trier fans seeing this explosion could have had some uttering the famous movie words great scott. The movie quote Great Scott is best known from the classic Back to the future movies where the mad professor Christopher Lloyd utters the words when there is a distress moment. The first entrance by Ted Scott had to have had people notice, but when he came on the floor in the second quarter showing that not only ex Bamberg guard Brian Roberts or ex ratiopharm Ulm guard Isiah Swann can score in bunches and hit two consecutive jumpers propelling the Fraport Skyliners on their best run of the game, the phrase great scot would have been perfect if the famous great scott phrase from Christopher Lloyd would have been played in the arena over the loud speaker. The only thing missing was TBB Trier mascot Aggi getting into a fight with the real Aggi to supply some commotion away from the brilliant play of Scott.

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Zach Peacock Unleashes The Ultimate Mad Baller Keeping The Fraport Skyliners In The Beko BBL With77-72 Victory Against Ludwigsburg

There are situations that are never easy, but at times when times arent easy one may rather be in an uneasy position like seeing Lebron James go 0/12 from downtown out of the view of a diehard fan, being caught in an annoying traffic jam on the highway on the way to an event or walking through a park and getting some nasty and unexpected droppings from above from a passing pigeon. However one of the most unwanted circumstances for a professional athlete is an unpleasant do or die situation. A do or die game is an experience for a player that involves a desperate effort to succeed or face dire consequences. The last time the Frankfurt Skyliners were involved in a do or die game Fraport Skyliner big man Johannes Voigtmann was learning his craft at German sport handball as he hadn´t even started to play basketball yet, guard Dwayne Wade was two months away from his first NBA title with the Miami Heat, Adele was still an unknown swan on the music scene getting ready to spread her wings and adore the public with breathtaking music and Germany was getting ready for their soccer world cup in their own country. Frankfurt had been in some do or die games like back in 2010 in game five of the finals losing in Bamberg or 2011 game five of the semi finals losing at home to Alba Berlin, but never as threatening like in 2006 where they had to beat the EWE Baskets Oldeneburg which they did 70-58. In that game, American Kavossy Franklin led the team with 22 points and captain Pascal Roller steered 18 points to the victory and staying in the league. The club has done great things since then reaching the playoffs four times, reaching the 2010 Beko BBL finals, having an MVP player with Dashaun Wood or future NBA player with Jon Leuer and developing the Germans this season, but all those things were only memories and their whole beko BBL existence could have beeen washed out after their 40 minute performance against the Neckar Riesen Ludwigsburg. The Fraport Skyliners knew what awaited them, a hard fought battle like 10 battle of Wurzburg´s in one against the Schwaben team, but they were able to keep their nerves and composure betaing them 77-72.The players playing in the game had been in dor or die games before so this was nothing new. “I had been in a few do or die games to get into the playoffs, but nothing like this game. I wasn´t nervous at all and loved the atmosphere. Celebrating after the win with the fans felt like we had won the championship”, stressed Fraport Skyliner forward Laquan Prowell. After the loss Neckar Riesen guard Wayne Bernard had  along face after losing his third do or die game in his career. “I had lost these type of games with MBC and Giessen, but I didn´t think about the importance of the game as I go into each game the same way always trying to play with much energy”, added Wayne Bernard. Skyliner Devin Gibson was all smiles after the win as his record in do or die games improved as it took him about 10 seconds to remember his status in these type of games. “I am 7-3 in do or die games now. Whenever the fans are really loud, we step it up even more. We have the best fans in the league. I was as confident as could be going in. We weren´t going to take this loss”, expressed Devin Gibson.

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The Do Or Die Menu For The Fraport Skyliners Is Heart, Effort And Execution

The Frankfurt Skyliners have been an organization that have been used to winning since they entered the Beko BBL in 1999. Except for a weak phase between 2005-2007 where the team struggled to win games the way Spanish soccer teams did this week in the Champions league against German teams, Frankfurt was always in the playoffs and won the cup in 2000 and championship in 2004. However the last two seasons have been untypical for a club that was mostly successful as the last two years had high and lows and no playoffs. Last season, the Fraport Skyliners had a miserable first half, but bounced back in the second half of the season finding their rhythm and beating most of the top teams only to go home for the summer unsatisfied missing the playoffs on the last game in a do or die loss in Bonn. This season Frankfurt had a similar first half like last season, but had difficulty following up their strong second half this season. Injuries and some players that didn´t work out and had to go helped for the inconsistency. The arrival of ex LTi Giessen 46er Americans Ryan Brooks and Laquan Prowell were more of a help than the departed Americans Ted Scott and Dion Dowell, but because too many loses in the second half of the season had been as fat as a turkey on Thanksgiving day, the season for the Fraport Skyliners comes down to a do or die game on Saturday against the Neckar Riesen Ludwigsburg. If Frankfurt hadn´t celebrated big wins over top teams Berlin and Bamberg in March, then the team could already have booked dates with PRO A teams like Cuxhaven, Crailsheim and Heidelberg next season.

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The EWE Baskets Oldenburg Posses Basketball Lady Luck Twice In Season Sweep Of Fraport Skyliners 65-63

The Fraport Skyliners have played amazing basketball the last six weeks getting big wins at home against Alba Berlin and Bamberg freeing themselves from the lower standings and from risk of going down, but one thing that remains this season is their inability to win in crunch time against the EWE Baskets Oldenburg as they were swept in the season  series losing in Frankfurt 65-63. Back in December it was a botched inbounds pass between Quantez Robertson and Devin Gibson that led to a Chris Kramer layup and win and yesterday the Fraport Skyliners were seeking revenge, but lost at the end as Robertson missed two free throws to push the ball into overtime. Basketball lady luck seemed to secretly be wearing the yellow and white of Oldenburg and not the blue and white of Frankfurt this season. “Both games were battles. In Oldenburg, I got that steal and we got the win. Today we were up in the fourth and they made a run. It came down to one possession. I am very happy we got the win. On the road the air is so small, they played very hard and made us work for everything, but we had a little more luck at the end. “We had basketball lady luck on our side. Experience helped us win this game on the road. I am surprised Tez missed those two free throws”, stated ex Telekom Baskets Bonn forward Ronald Burrell. Skyliner guard Ryan Brooks missed the first game in Oldenburg, because he was still a member of the Giessen 46ers, but he knew how painful it was losing these two games like that. “These two games could change a season. If we would have had these two wins, we would be sitting somewhere else now”, expressed Ryan Brooks.

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The Miles Basketball Minute: A Mad Baller In The Body Of Zachory Peacock (Fraport Skyliners)

From 2007-2011, basketball life in Frankfurt was thrilling as the Frankfurt Skyliners reached the playoffs four consecutive seasons including a quarterfinal, two semi finals and a final where they were one possession away from a possible German title as they lost a heartbreaking fifth game in Bamberg. However the last two seasons, being a follower of the Frankfurt Skyliners has become increasingly delicate as not only has the club been out of the playoffs, but have been in danger of moving down due to their poor play. Last season, the team was in 17th place in December and thank a miraculous turn in play in the second half of the season almost made the playoffs losing  a must win game in Bonn on the last game day finishing in ninth place. This season, the fortunes of the 2004 Beko BBL team hasn´t been any better as they had a slow start and in February 2013 were as low as 17th place. It was unknown, if the team could ever pull themselves out of the dank cellar, but as of late, the team has rebounded winning six of their last seven games and now are breathing  a bit better at 14th place.

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Can The Fraport Skyliners Win In Their Debut In The New ratiopharm Arena?

It is no secret that in the Beko BBL, you have a distinct array of different sizes of arena´s to the overwhelming NBA like palace of the O2 World arena in Berlin to middle class type arena´s like the Stechert arena in Bamberg, Volkswagon Halle in Braunschweig, Telekom Dome in Bonn or the Fraport arena which at times is as quiet as a quiet corner on the Ammer lake in Bavaria and then again bedlam in crunch time in a close battle against the Brose Baskets Bamberg. Then again there are very tiny places to play that can´t really be called arena´s, but as Duesseldorf Giants poo bah Murat Didin likes to say gyms like the Ost Halle in Giessen, Artland arena or the now defunct Kuhberg halle which was the old stomping ground of ratiopharm Ulm. Since December 2011, the team no longer plays there having moved into the new more modern ratiopharm Ulm arena that holds 6000 patrons. The Kuhberg Halle was a tiny like gym that always came to life when they played. The ratiopharm Ulm fans were often seen as the sixth man, because they were so close to the floor and at times on account of the noise level seemed like they were hanging on the backs of the opponent because they seemed so close. In the Kuhberg arena, the Frankfurt Skyliners often had to put up with the feistiness of the smallest/biggets center of all times in the Beko BBL Jeff Gibbs, the nonstop aggressiveness on offense and defense of German national player Per Guenther or the three point bombs from 2006 NCAA champion Lee Humphrey who probably could have scored from the Ulm minster on any day. Last season, the club played early in the season in Ulm and still played in the Kuhberg Halle and had to wait more than a year to get their crack at playing in the new arena. This weekend Muli Katzurin and his gang will try to upset the 2012 Beko BBL finalist in the first ever game in the ratiopharm Ulm Arena.

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Dennis Schroeder Buries The Fraport Skyliners In The Second Quarter Leading The New Yorker Phantoms Braunschweig To A 73-66 Victory

One thing that is always very interesting and exciting to observe is how a very young German player develops over the years after showing enormous potential at a very young age. In the last years there have been numerous talented players that have gone a healthy route in their development. Who could forget the daring comparison of Stephan Baeck of Tibor Pleiss to Dirk Nowitzki many years ago. Since then the 215cm lanky giant has gone an interesting direction having started with Rhein Energy Cologne  where he already played ULEB Cup with 18 years of age. He then went to Bamberg where he won 6 titles, was drafted by the New Jersey Nets and now plays for Caja Laboral Vitoria (Spain-ACB) battling his way to 15 minutes playing time. Another promising German is Robin Benzing who first got some publicity playing for TV Langen and was able to practice with the Frankfurt Skyliners. Instead of playing for Frankfurt, he opted to go to ratiopharm Ulm where he continued to develop under Mike Taylor and was the top german scorer in the 2010-2011 season. Before even playing a single Beko BBL game, he made big strides at the 2009 European championships playing  6 games: 5.5ppg, 1.7rpg, FGP: 53.3%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 91.7%. He moved to German tradional team FC Bayern Munich where last season, he seemed a bit lost in a huge rotation, but this season since the arrival of Svetislav Pesic has been reborn and playing superb basketball being a main factor in both wins against Frankfurt. This season a player that has made the biggest strides so far is 19 year old Dennis Schroeder of the New Yorker Phantoms Braunschweig. Already last season, one could see the unending potential that was stuck in the 181cm point guard. This season he has leaped as it seems over the Swiss alps in his development and now instead of being a young talented bench player has become one of the most reliable players and is currently their leading scorer and is the best point guard behind German national players Per Guenter, Heiko Schaffartzik and Anton Gavel. His rise is simply amazing as he quickly replaced the experienced Miah Davis in the starting rotation. He had some strong games at the start with 16 points against TBB Trier and BBC Bayreuth, but since registering eight points in a 80-85 loss against Tuebingen on November 17th, he has scored in double figures in 10 of 11 games.In this span, he has averaged 15ppg and nearly 4,0apg. He recently scored 20 points in 29 minutes against the Brose Baskets Bamberg while shooting 7/10 from the field. He is making very wise decisions on the court while playing hard defense. When you see his play, he looks like an NCAA top kid ready to fly to the NBA. “Schroeder is getting playing time and getting important experience. As a result of his good play, NBA scouts are looking at him. The question is how well his social competence is in his development as a player. Frank Menz helped to discipline him and how to behave on and off the court. The club has much confidence in him. He plays very boldly and could be a factor for the German national team soon. He needs to keep defense as important as offense, but he is developing in a good way”, stressed basketball expert Steven Clauss. Schroeder who started many games this season as was top scorer in many as well came from the bench for the second straight game against the Fraport Skyliners, but put his stamp on the game in the second quarter scoring 13 points in six minutes turning a close game into a Sunday stroll in downtown Braunschweig leading the Phantoms to a 73-66 win as well as getting any more NBA scout doubters 100% on his side as scouts from the Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers were present. After the game a defeated Quantez Robertson gave an emotionless comment about the 19 year German wunderkind. “Schroeder was a huge spark off the bench. His confidence and good shooting were impressive and they were able to keep the lead and win”, stressed Quantez Robertson. It seems also that no young German player in the Beko BBL has developed as quickly as he has in the last three months. “ I think that Dennis was already playing like this when I came at the start of the season. He does great things in practice and it shows in games. He is a leader at his position and always so competitive”, commented 2012 Olypmic competitor Eric Boateng. “Schroeder hurt us today the same way he did in the game when I was with Giessen. He attacked the high pick and role and has a real advantage against the big man. He reads the defense so well, stays low and knows how to draw contact. He has so much confidence when taking shots and his penetration opens it up”, expressed Ryan Brooks. Even young German Johannes Voigtmann of the Fraport Skyliners was in awe of his talent. “Schroeder has been top scorer in many games and just leads the team and his coolness on the court is amazing and when he drives to the hoop, he is always aggressive. He is solid on defense and with his long arms makes it very hard for guards”, added Johannes Voigtman.

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Robin Benzing Burns The Fraport Skyliners Again Leading FC Bayern Munich To The 79-72 Win

There are numerous exciting aspects that happen during basketball games like a crushing Larry Gordon dunk, a twisting cross over from Demond Mallett or a sweet catch and pop jumper from the Bremerhaven polar bear cage by Jacob Burtschi, but one thing that can´t ever be avoided is when ex teammates jostle again on the court.  Back in the 2007-2008 season, it was the last time Alba Berlin won the German championship, Robin Benzing was a 18 year old kid with huge potential playing for TV Langen and dreaming of the Beko BBL and Quantez Robertson(Auburn) was still tangling with friend MarK Dorris(Marshall) on the play ground courts during the summer and displaying their dunking talent. In the 2007-2008 season, also showed two Americans Dawan Robinson(Fraport Skyliners) and Jared Homan(FC Bayern Munich) pursuing the same goal with ASCO Slask Wroclaw (Poland-DBE) trying to win as many games and at the same time develop their game more as they had been playing as professionals only a few years. Robinson had a very solid season for the Polish squad playing  ULEB Cup: 12 games: 13.1ppg, 2.1rpg, 2.8apg, 1.8spg, 2FGP: 51.5%, 3FGP: 31.8%, FT: 78.3%; Polish League: 34 games: 11.6ppg, 3.2rpg, 2.6apg, 1.6spg, 2FGP: 45.6%, 3PT: 27.1%, FT: 73.9%. His teammate Jared Homan also had a solid season playing  Polish League: 28 games: 12.1ppg, 6.5rpg, 1.1apg, Blocks-2(1.1bpg), 2FGP: 45.8%, FT: 62.0%; ULEB Cup: 12 games: 11.0ppg, 6.3rpg, 1.0spg, 1.3bpg, 2FGP: 47.2%, 3FGP: 0%, FT: 45.7%. Both guys were key figures for their team and five years later they duel in a span of a little more than one month for a second time. Both players got further experience in the last years playing in countries like Italy, Croatia, Greece and in the D-league. In the first encounter in Frankfurt, FC Bayern was able to defeat the Fraport Skyliners 73-59 as Frankfurt played a solid game, but the Bavarian team was simply a class better. Homan finished with nine points and grabbed four rebounds while Dwan Robinson had six points and two assists. It was the second meeting between the two Americans and Robinson was highly motivated and sought revenge, but he lost for the second time to his ex teammate Jared Homan 79-72 registering 12 points, to rebounds and two assists while Homan produced 16 points and five rebounds. Ex LTi Giessen 46er Jeffrey Bonds who played five games earlier in the season for the Hessen club who is practicing with FC Bayern Munich looking for a new team enjoyed the game and could relate to ex teammates squaring off again. “ When two ex teammates like Robinson and Homan play against each other it is always very competitive and each guy always wants the upperhand. Both guys have mutual respect, but you always wants to win. Homan now has bragging rights”, smiled Jeffery Bonds.

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