Uni-Riesen Leipzig

Jordan Faison (Coming From A Winning Environment In College My Rookie Season Was A Different Kind Of Adversity

Jordan Faison is a 22 year old 201cm forward from Lake Forest, California that recently completed his rookie in Germany playing for the UNI-Riesen Leipzig averaging 20,8ppg, 9,2rpg and 1,7apg. He played at Cal Poly Pomona (NCAA2) from 2012-2016 playing a total of 107 NCAA games. As a senior he played 30 games averaging 16.9ppg, 7.4rpg, 1.8apg, 1.5bpg, FGP: 56.9%, 3PT: 22.5%, FT: 65.4%. He spoke to German Hoops after his rookie season in Germany.

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber interviewing Jordan Faison in Frankfurt after he finished with 25 points and 10 rebounds in 73-67 win against the Fraport Skyliners Juniors

Thanks Jordan for talking to German Hoops. Congrats on the 73-72 win against Nordlingen. Was this a victory you couldn´t really enjoy simply because the club was unable to stay in the Pro B on account of Rhondorf beating Lich?

No we for sure were able to enjoy it because we know that if it wasn’t for the league taking away 2 points we would be able to stay in the league regardless. But mistakes happen and you can only learn from them, but overall we were very excited about this win!

What kind of experience was it for you playing in the playdowns and playing 6 games where the team was under immense pressure to win? How did these last 6 games shape you as a player?

It was great because the competition level was high every game. You had teams fighting for their lives and it brought the best out of everybody. I think for me it definitely it was a different experience that taught me a lot, and that I will grow from.

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Julian Scott (Leaving Ehingen Left A Sour Taste In My Mouth And I Want Redemption)

Julian Scott is a 26 year old 203cm forward from Sacramento, California that just completed his third professional season playing in four countries with Germany, France, Luexemburg and in Iraq. His last team was Residence Walferdange (Luxembourg-Total League) where he averaged 17,0ppg and 8,2rpg. Last season he played for the Uni Riesen Leipzig playing 23 games: Score-5(20.4ppg), Reb-2(10.5rpg), 1.7apg, 1.4spg, FGP: 50.3%, 3PT: 17.9%, FT: 66.7%. He picked up Eurobasket.com All-German 2.Bundesliga Pro B Forward of the Year -16, Eurobasket.com All-German 2.Bundesliga Pro B 1st Team -16, and Eurobasket.com German 2.Bundesliga Pro B All-Imports Team -16. As a rookie, he played for TSV Quakenbrueck (Germany-2.Regionalliga) playing 16 games averaging 29.7ppg. He started his basketball career at Yuba junior college and then played two years at S.Utah (NCAA). He finished at Adams St. (NCAA2) playing 27 games: 10.8ppg, 4.0rpg, FGP: 58.5%, 3PT: 50.0%, FT: 70.2%. He spoke to German Hoops about his third professional season.

Julian thanks for talking to German Hoops. Where are you at the moment and are you already in summer mode?

Hey Miles I’m currently finishing up playing in Luxembourg. Looking forward to head back to the states and have some family time definitely.

After playing your first two professional seasons in Germany for TSV Quackenbruck and the Uni-Riesen Leipzig, you had a whirlwind third season playing in four countries. Are you relived that this season is finally over?

Yes definitely this past year was unbelievable. Would never want to go through something like that again. But on the positive side it made me tougher and I didn’t let it break me.

After being cut in pre season by German Pro A team Ehingen, you went to France to play for Gries/Oberhoffen BC (France-NM1) playing 3 games averaging 7.3ppg, 6.7rpg. How tough was it starting over after your short stay in Ehingen? You didn´t stay long in France either. What was the reason for your short stay there?

It wasn’t that tough when it came to playing for a different club. The hardest part for me was being cut due to not fitting in their system not that I wasnt good enough to do really well in that league that was probably the toughest part for me by far. When I went to France I was there to tryout against another player who had played in the same league a year prior and they decided to go with someone who had experience in that league over someone who was new to it. So a short stay but I made the most of what they gave me.

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The Uni Riesen Leipzig Led By Cardell Mcfarland Live Another Day Escaping Rhondorf 85-73

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Miles Schmidt-Scheuber interviewing Uni Riesen Leipzig guard and leader Cardell Mcfarland after he dropped 20 points and led a fourth quarter charge beating the Dragons Rhondorf 85-73

If one was given a special helicopter ride as a 50^th birthday present from your spouse and you could roam above the quant town of French Lick, Indiana and the tiny town of Rhondorf in Germany and have a nice birds eye view of the territory, one would come to the conclusion that there isn´t much difference between the two. Population wise, French lick boasts 1,941 persons, while Rhondorf has 2,327 people making their home there while from a nature standpoint, there is a lot of greenery to enjoy. The two biggest differences between the two places is that French Lick has no major body of water while Rhondorf sits on the scenic and famous Rhein river that displays historic castles and many boats while French Lick has for many oldschool basketball fans the best basketball player that ever graced the planet with Larry Bird who grew up there and still has a residence there. After the last bitter loss in Nordlingen in the Pro B playdowns where the Dragons Rhondorf shot a miserable 30% from the parking lot and got the big goose egg of 0/16 from outside from their top players Canadian Mike Lucier, American Will Trawick and German Viktor Frankl- Maus, one could of asked manager Boris Kaminski just how good his connections were in the NBA and if threr was any spare change to book the Bird man for some extra shooting practice last week leading up to the game against the Uni-Riesen Leipzig. The Uni-Riesen Leipzig entered the game having a 2-1 record against the Dragons Rhondorf this season, but had lost the game in Rhondorf earlier in the season. Rhondorf had a four point lead over Leipzig in the Playdowns in the fight to stay in the Pro B and with a victory could have booked their Pro B ticket for next season, but instead have to wait another week and play a do or die game in Lich to see their fate as they fell to the Uni-Riesen Leipzig 85-73. The score definitely didn´t tell the whole story as the Dragons Rhondorf dominated the boards with 15 offensive rebounds and forced their opponent to 24 turnovers and had 8 extra possessions, but that all didn´t matter as they were unable to produce when it counted most in crunch-time. “We really had our destiny in our own hands. We rebounded very well and defended very well also, but we couldn´t take care of the little things. Down by four points, we didn´t execute the game plan and a few of their scores and stops of us suddenly had us down by nine points. We fought really hard, but we were missing experience and a few missed lay ups and turnovers cost us the game”, stressed Viktor Frankl-Maus. After the win, Uni-Riesen Leipzig guard Cardell Mcfarland was very relaxed as if his furious fourth quarter outburst had been the most normal thing and he found the right words in victory. “This was a big game for both teams and we knew that they were a very strong team at home. We came out very focused. Our defense was key for getting the win. Our zone at the end really hurt them. We gave up too many turnovers and offensive rebounds, but in the end all that mattered was the win”, added ex Nordlingen guard Cardell Mcfarland. The game also displayed some BBL faces as Telekom Baskets Bonn players ex Giessen 46er Yorman Polas and ex Fraport Skyliner Johannes Richter took in the game on their free Staurday night. After the game, Richter Joked about the opportunity of having had a Larry Bird flown in for extra shooting practice. “I actually rather would have had Dirk Nowitzki´s shooting coach Holger Geschwindner. It was a very physical and hard fought game. Rhondorf had to win this game. I would have had liked to have seen Valentin Blass play more as he is very good on the pick and roll”, stated ex Bamberg center Johannes Richter.

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Terence Billups (Uni-Riesen Leipzig) Less Minutes Keeps Me More Humbled And Motivated

Terence Billups is a 198cm forward from Jeffersonville, Indiana that is playing his fourth professional season and third in Germany. After tearing up the Regionaliga with Cottbus and Rendsburg, and now is playing a level up in the Pro B with the UNI-Riesen Leipzig. He started his basketball career with Western Dakota Tech (JUCO) and then moved to Indiana SE (NAIA) in 2012 playing 20 games averaging 9.9ppg, 3.4rpg, 1.2bpg, FGP: 58.6%, 3PT: 46.0%, FT: 85.7%. In 2013 he started his professional basketball career with West Michigan Lake Hawks (ABA). In the 2014-2015 season he came to Germany to BBC White Devils Cottbus (Germany-Regionalliga) playing 22 games Score-3(24.8ppg), 8.2rpg, 2.8apg, 1.6spg, Blocks-2(2.0bpg), FGP: 54.2%, 3PT: 38.8%, FT: 76.3%.In the 2015-2016 season he played for Basketball Club Rendsburg (Germany-Regionalliga) playing 26 games averaging 18.9ppg, 6.3rpg, 2.4apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 50.7%, 3PT: 27.2%, FT: 67.3%. He spoke to German Hoops about the playdowns and the Uni-Riesen Leipzig season.

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

It’s always a pleasure! I didn’t set any new years resolution. I always want to continuously better myself and I don’t think I need a new years resolution to do this. However, I normally stay faithful to the plans I set for myself throughout the year.

You lost the last regular season game against the Licher Basket Baeren in a wild game that went back and forth. You were down by 9 in the fourth and took it into OT with a Cardell McFarland three pointer. Their Germans Kraushaar and Horstmann got the best of you scoring the last 6 points. Is the revenge factor going to be extra big against them in the playdowns?

I wouldn’t say its revenge. They didn’t give up as a team shouldn’t do. We allowed them nearly 100pts going into overtime. We just need to do better like I know we can. Now we are fighting to stay in the league and I think that when we play Licher, we need to be consistent in our game plan and execute on both ends of the floor. If we do this like I’ve seen us in the past, then we will come on top every time.

In the Pro B it´s either playoffs or playdowns and the Uni-Riesen Leipzig was close at making the playoffs, but lost their last two games not to get there. How disappointing were getting these last two loses after beating the two best teams PS Karlsruhe and Weissenhorn before that?

You would think that we would have gained a lot of confidence after beating the top two teams back to back. But in order to keep the win streak going, you have to be consistent play by play on both ends of the floor for 40 minutes. It was disappointing to see my team mess up on assignments throughout the game in which resulted in the loses in the last two games.

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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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Cardell McFarland (Uni-Riesen Leipzig) I’ve Never Disrespected The Game Just Sitting Out Because I’m Faking An Injury

Cardell McFarland is a 29 year old 182cm point guard from Evansville, Indiana that is playing his fifth professional season and recently signed with the Uni-Riesen Leipzig. He started the season with the DBL Sharks Sheffield (United Kingdom-BBL) playing 11 games and averaging 10.3ppg, 3.0rpg, 3.0apg, 2FGP: 56.5%, 3FGP: 40.0%. Last season he played with the Bristol Academy Flyers (United Kingdom-BBL): 24 games: 17.6ppg, 3.8rpg, Assists-5(4.8apg), FGP: 51.5%, 3PT: 32.4%, FT: 66.7%. He started his basketball career at Missouri State and then played his last two seasons for Ky Wesleyan (NCAA2). As a rookie he played for CS Farul Constanta (Romania-Division A): 7 games: 12.4ppg, 3.3rpg, 2.6apg, FGP: 50.0%, 3PT: 38.1%, FT: 88.5%. In the 2013-2014 season he played for the Giants Noerdlingen (Germany-ProB), playing 18 games: Score-2(23.8ppg), 3.1rpg, Assists-2(5.6apg), 1.3spg, FGP: 65.3%, 3PT: 37.8%, FT: 72.5%. In the 2014-2015 season he remained in Germany playing for the Hebeisen White Wings Hanau (Germany-Pro B) playing 20 games averaging 18.9ppg, 3.2rpg, Assists-3(5.5apg), 1.5spg, FGP: 58.8%, 3PT: 36.4%, FT: 71.2% He spoke to German Hoops about basketball and his new team Uni-Riesen Leipzig.

Cardell thanks for talking to German Hoops. Welcome back to Germany. How does it feel to be back in a country where you dominated with your game on the floor?

No worries, Miles its always a pleasure speaking with you. It really feels great to be back in Germany. I’m familiar with the leagues here and I love the culture and country. It will be an easy adjustment. I’m not to worried about the past success I’ve had here. I’m looking forward to the challenge of making an even bigger impact.

Your first stay was in a village in Nordlingen, your second stay was a big town Hanau and now your in a real city of Leipzig. Does it feel more like home in Evansville where you can find a Mcdonalds?

I’ve learned you can find a McDonald’s anywhere no matter where you go. I plan on trying my best to stay away from the fast food. McDonald’s in Europe is great other Americans will understand what I’m saying. Evansville is actually pretty small city compared to here. Leipzig is a beautiful city especially in the summer time. Really nice parks and lakes. Has a good football team which is currently tied for 1st in the league so it also has a good sports vibe here. East Germany is different from the last two areas I previously played in Germany but I like new experiences. I’ll adventure out more and get to know the city in my time here.

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Terrence Billups(Uni-Riesen Leipzig) We Have To Prove That We Can Defend With Teams

Terence Billups is a 198cm forward from Jeffersonville, Indiana that is playing his fourth professional season and third in Germany. After tearing up the Regionaliga with Cottbus and Rendsburg, he now will attempt the next step in the pro B with the UNI-Riesen Leipzig. He started his basketball career with Western Dakota Tech (JUCO) and then moved to Indiana SE (NAIA) in 2012 playing 20 games averaging 9.9ppg, 3.4rpg, 1.2bpg, FGP: 58.6%, 3PT: 46.0%, FT: 85.7%. In 2013 he started his professional basketball career with West Michigan Lake Hawks (ABA). In the 2014-2015 season he came to Germany to BBC White Devils Cottbus (Germany-Regionalliga) playing 22 games Score-3(24.8ppg), 8.2rpg, 2.8apg, 1.6spg, Blocks-2(2.0bpg), FGP: 54.2%, 3PT: 38.8%, FT: 76.3%.In the 2015-2016 season he played for Basketball Club Rendsburg (Germany-Regionalliga) playing 26 games averaging 18.9ppg, 6.3rpg, 2.4apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 50.7%, 3PT: 27.2%, FT: 67.3%. He spoke to German Hoops after the big 73-67 win on the road against the Fraport Skyliners Juniors.

Congrats on the big 73-67 win on the road in Frankfurt. Describe the ride back home to Leipzig. Was their some serious celebration going on or was it more relaxed knowing it was only one game and the team needs many more wins?

It was a relaxed ride back. We are happy we won this game for sure, but this isn’t the time to have a celebration. We still have a long way to go.

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Jordan Faison Leads The Uni-Riesen Leipzig On 23-0 Run Smothering The Fraport Skyliners Juniors To 73-67 Victory

Players come and go in the basketball world and teams change personal from season to season as frequently as Paris Hilton changes her outfits on any given day depending on the occasion. Despite all the changes going on sometimes two players do meet again despite the unending possibilities of moving to another country or other leagues within the country and that is exactly what happened as the Fraport Skyliners Juniors squared off in a regular season clash with the Uni-Riesen Leipzig and suddenly German/Israeli Guy Aud found himself facing off against German Tim Oldenburg again. It was a little more than five years ago in the 2011-2012 season as both were rookies in the Pro B as Aud was in Germany for the first time after many years balling in Israel while Oldenburg was a young gun starting his basketball career in Frankfurt. Aud played with the Licher Basket Baeren and helped defeat the Fraport Skyliners Juniors 64-50 as back then a little known Danilo Barthel who now plays for FC Bayern Munich was just getting started with his stellar five year career with the Fraport Skyliners and there were also other guys like Larry Wright, Falko Thelig or Fabian Franke that one or the another will still remember. In that game in Frankfurt, both werern´t real factors as they combined for 18 minutes and three points as Aud hit from downtown. In the return game in Lich, Aud also won a nail bitter 78-76 as he steered home eight points. In the last five years, Oldenburg has stayed faithful to Frankfurt while Aud has had his traveling expense at full throttle having played in Paderborn, Chemnitz, Dresden and Israel. Five years later, the two players met again, but if you were to ask them if they remembered that first encounter five years ago or if they even knew the other played in that game, the answer probably would have been negative. “I couldn´t remember playing Tim Oldenburg, but I knew the name. I remember the Lich games against Frankfurt and remember hurting my shoulder here 5 years ago. It is always fun and competitive playing these games and I am 3-0 now against Frankfurt”, stressed ex Lich guard Guy Aud. “I can´t remember games so far back. For me it´s hard remembering the last game. I try to remember the last game as good as I can. What I can remember was winning the cup with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2010 over Braunschweig in the U-18 competition that had Dennis Schroeder and Daniel Theis”, smiled Tim Oldenburg.

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Jordan Faison(UNI-Riesen Leipzig) You Don’t Have To Make The Assist Pass All The Time But That Hockey Assist Pass Is Just As Important

Jordan Faison is a 22 year old 201cm forward from Lake Forest, California that is a rookie in Germany playing for the UNI-Riesen Leipzig. He played at Cal Poly Pomona (NCAA2) from 2012-2016 playing a total of 107 NCAA games. As a senior he played 30 games averaging 16.9ppg, 7.4rpg, 1.8apg, 1.5bpg, FGP: 56.9%, 3PT: 22.5%, FT: 65.4%. He spoke to German Hoops about his rookie season recently.

Jordan congrats on the big 71-68 victory against the Dragons Rhondorf. How good did it feel finally helping the club win it´s first game of the season?

It felt great! We were so hungry to get this first win, and it’s exactly what we needed to get the ball rolling on this season.

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Brandon Shingles(I’ve Made A Career Out Of Being A Well-Rounded Player)

Brandon Shingles is a 28 year old 190cm guard from Albany, Georgia that currently is at home waiting by the phone for a job. Last season he played for the UNI-Riesen Leipzig playing 23 games averaging 14.3ppg, 6.0rpg, 4.9apg, 2.0spg, FGP: 62.1%, 3PT: 18.2%, FT: 67.2% He started his basketball career at Morehead St. (NCAA) and as a senior played 32 games: 4.8ppg, 2.2rpg, 4.8apg, 1.5spg. In 2010 he started his professional basketball career at Aschersleben Tigers BC (Germany-2.Regionalliga) playing 15 games: 14.5ppg. He led the team to the Regionaliga 2 title. In the 2011-2012 season he played for Guildford Heat (United Kingdom-BBL) playing 6 games: 7.5ppg, 4.8rpg, 2.8apg, FGP: 57.1%, FT: 31.3%; left in Nov.’11, then moved to BBC Febro Eagles Magdeburg (Germany-Regionalliga) playing 7 games: 16.1ppg, 7.1 rpg, 3.9apg, 2.0spg, FGP: 61.8%, FT: 63.0%. He then played for KB Drita Gjilan (Kosovo-SuperLeague) and three years ago for GBP Badajoz (Spain-EBA) playing 15 games: 15.5ppg, 8.3rpg, 3.6apg, 2.3spg, 2FGP: 60.8%, 3PT: 6.3%, FT: 57.3%. He spoke to German Hoops about basketball.

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

Summer was good with a lot of training and traveling. I also coached AAU in the summer. I’m currently an assistant coach at Taylor county high school.

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