Munich

HEROES OF TOMORROW produce strong performance on the road at FC Bayern

Munich, 11-17-2019

medi Bayreuth played magnificently, yet still returned empty-handed from the Bavarian capital on the 8th game day of the easyCredit German Basketball League. The team of Head Coach Raoul Korner lost by 79:91 (40:42) to the reigning German champions in front of 5,505 spectators in the Audi Dome on Sunday afternoon.

Anyone who had feared that Bayern would vent its frustration on the HEROES OF TOMORROW after its recent and very clear defeat in the EuroLeague was disappointed. The favorites would certainly have liked to do that, as was pretty clear from the fact that Head Coach Dejan Radonjic on the sideline was hopping mad for almost the entire game, but medi Bayreuth did an extremely good job in resisting Munich’s star ensemble with a great fighting display.

Head Coach Raoul Korner’s team took his call to heart and played impudently and in the requisite carefree fashion against the unbeaten league leaders. Even without Andreas Seiferth, who was rested by way of precaution, medi very soon got into its stride and played magnificently against the hot favorites. In particular Reid Travis repeatedly showed his class in the duel with Bayern’s centers and notched up 15 of his final haul of 26 points by the break.

The game was decided by a short weak spell in the third period, in which medi Bayreuth allowed the title-holders to score 11 points without reply. Looking back at the run of play as a whole, the three minutes between the 25th and 28th ultimately made the difference. A brief dip in medi Bayreuth’s form with the scores tied at 52:52 in the 25th minute allowed Bayern to surge 63:52 in front by the 28th. Munich also had a small advantage below the boards, as demonstrated by the fact that it won the rebounding duel by 35:26.

Although medi Bayreuth only conceded four turnovers in the entire encounter, Bayern more than made up for that with its better shooting percentages in all departments. Bayern’s excellent bench naturally played a role in the end. Star center Greg Monroe did not have a good day against Reid Travis, but Mathias Lessort and Leon Radosevic were able to come on and stamp their mark on the game, as did the Italian player Diego Flaccadori in helping to build his side’s plays.

Raoul Korner, Head Coach of medi Bayreuth, commented: “I’m disappointed because I think we had a very good chance today to beat a Bayern team that didn’t have its best lineup or was in top form. It wasn’t enough in the end – we would have had to play to our limit to win, and we didn’t do that. We had to improvise a bit in defense, which robbed Bayern of a bit of its pace. But we never had the boost of energy you need to launch a decisive run and so put Bayern’s backs to the wall. That’s why I’m disappointed. At the end of the day, Munich’s quality tipped the scales.”

The HEROES OF TOMORROW once more have no time to recover, as they now face a crucial game in the FIBA Europe Cup this Wednesday. To be as good as certain of advancing to the next round, the team of Head Coach Raoul Korner must win at Sigal Prishtina. The tip-off in the Palace of Youth and Sports in Kosovo is at 8 p.m.