Medi Bayreuth loses to MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg by 74:79

Unlike in the first game two days previously, the Heroes Of Tomorrow were alert and built up the pressure on the visitors from Ludwigsburg from the tip-off. Whereas it was Ludwigsburg who scored far better from beyond the arc in game 1, Bayreuth was in accurate shooting form from downtown this time: Seven out of its twelve attempts hit their mark and 21 of its 25 points in the first period were from outside, as the home side established a ten-point lead by the end of the quarter.

The visitors began the second period with a run of seven points without reply to reduce the deficit to 22:25. It was not until the 14th minute that the Heroes Of Tomorrow added to the score through De’Mon Brooks, who stamped his mark on the game in the first half. The power forward continued to dominate, following up a three-point play with the next bucket from downtown (32:24 in the 16th minute). However, things went much better for MHP RIESEN after a timeout, as it caught up in the space of less than 90 seconds, with Dwayne Evans equalizing with a three-point play (34:34 in the 17th minute). It was thanks to Gabe York that the momentum did not change hands: He drained another three and played a big part in ensuring his side went in at half-time with a narrow 41:40 lead.

It was again Ludwigsburg who did all the scoring to begin with in the second half, this time with a run of eight points without reply. With his team trailing 41:48, Head Coach Raoul Korner called an early timeout, after which York once again added an important three, Medi’s first points after 4 minutes and 10 seconds of play. The visitors now had the game under control, also thanks to the fact that rough play by them was not called in favor of the Heroes of Tomorrow on a number of occasions. MHP RIESEN was 55:44 ahead after 26 minutes when the crowd found its voice again and fired on the team of Raoul Korner again. Assem Marei first scored, then Gabe York again from beyond the arc to reduce the gap to just 51:55 in the 27th minute. After a timeout by the visitors, Steve Wachalski and John Cox added threes to put their side back in front (58:57 in the 30th minute). Yet Ludwigsburg also scored again and, after a three-point play by Thomas Walkup, took a 60:58 lead with it into the final period.

Both teams displayed strong defending in the final ten minutes, although Ludwigsburg was often only able to block stops by committing fouls. As a result, MHP RIESEN had five team fouls after just four-and-a-half minutes, when De’Mon Brooks made it 65:63 with a free throw. That was also the last time the Heroes Of Tomorrow would lead. Adika Peter-McNeilly, who had been undistinguished in the series up to then, drained an important three, then Jeremy Senglin added the next to make it 69:65 for the visitors in the 36th minute. Yet Medi struck back and tied the scores through Gabe York. However, Dwayne Evans made the next three-point play for the visitors in the 37th minute. Whatever Medi Bayreuth tried after that, Ludwigsburg had the answer and an outstanding Adam Waleskowski, whose third three of the evening with 25 seconds left made it 77:72 and sealed victory.