Update
Basketball sensation from Saxony
Niners Chemnitz are crowned Europe Cup champions
April 24, 2024, 8:25 p.m
The first title in the history of the Niners Chemnitz is a European one: in the second leg of the final, the basketball Bundesliga team dramatically asserted itself in Istanbul – and is the new title holder of the FIBA Europe Cup. For the Saxons it is the (temporary) climax of a rapid rise.
The Niners Chemnitz have gilded their dream season with triumph in the FIBA Europe Cup. An overtime defeat in the second leg against Turkish club Bahcesehir Istanbul was enough for the Bundesliga basketball team to win their first title in the club’s 25-year history. In Istanbul, the Chemnitz team initially lost their lead, but triumphed despite the 95:105 defeat. At the end of regular time, the Niners were behind 84:95 (38:55). They won the first leg 85:74.
And so after a total of 85 minutes of basketball, a single point made the difference in favor of the Saxons. Chemnitz, founded in 1999, secured Germany’s sixth European Cup title. The Central German BC (2004) and the Frankfurt Skyliners (2016) with current national coach Gordon Herbert also won the Europe Cup, Alba Berlin the Korac Cup (1995), the BG Göttingen the EuroChallenge (2010) and the Telekom Baskets Bonn the Champions League (2023).
In front of 13,500 fans in the sold-out Ülker Sports Arena, Kaza Kajami-Keane was the best scorer for the Chemnitz team with 26 points, who are in third place in the Bundesliga and have already secured their playoff ticket. In the meantime, successful coach Rodrigo Pastore’s team led the table. Recently, however, there were setbacks; the Niners lost the dress rehearsal for the final in Göttingen.
The opponent’s last attack doesn’t work
In the decisive game of the fourth highest European Cup behind the EuroLeague, the Champions League and the EuroCup, the people of Chemnitz were awake from the first moment. The lead from the first leg only “sharpenes the senses if you take the positives out of it. We have to channel that correctly and not overdo it,” managing director Steffen Herhold said before the game.
The Chemnitz team led 19:18 after the first quarter, but lost their rhythm in the second half. Bahcesehir, on the other hand, now hit his threes and went ahead with an 18:4 run to take the lead to 55:38 at the break. The guests had to accept 37 points in the second half. The 150 Chemnitz fans who traveled along had to be seriously worried about their team.
After the break, Chemnitz was better defensively with a zone defense. Kajami-Keane also turned up the attack. The playmaker scored 14 points in the third period and made it 67:67. The guests dominated the third quarter with 29:12. In the fourth round, the Niners had to let things slip further and further, with eight seconds before the end of the game the hosts took the lead with 95:84. Wesley van Beck missed the chance to win – the game went into extra time. There, Kajami-Keane finally became the match winner with two free throws. In the last attack of the game, Bahcesehir missed a three-pointer that would have won the title for the Turks.