Chemnitz misses match point
Alba Berlin forces all-or-nothing game
04.06.2024, 21:01
The basketball players from Alba Berlin averted the threatened end of the season in the semi-finals of the German championship and forced a fifth game. This means that the best-of-five series is 2:2 and the deciding game for a place in the final will take place on Thursday in Berlin.
Basketball Cup winner Bayern Munich must continue to wait for its opponent in the Bundesliga finals for the German championship. Former champion Alba Berlin successfully fended off the Saxon hosts’ first match point in the fourth playoff semi-final duel with European Cup winner Niners Chemnitz thanks to impressive morale and their second victory with 96:85 (43:51). The decision will therefore be made in the fifth and final game of the best-of-five series on Thursday (6:30 p.m.) in Berlin.
The final series begins on Saturday on the court of main round winners Munich. On the way to their sixth title, Bayern were the first team to qualify for the finals with a 3-0 win in the first semifinal series against the Würzburg Baskets. Defending champion Ratiopharm Ulm was defeated by Würzburg in the first playoff round.
After the second equalizer in the series, there was great optimism in the Albatrosses’ camp for the upcoming showdown: “We have always believed in ourselves and now of course believe even more in reaching the final because we have home advantage again,” said Berlin’s Icelandic guard Martin Hermannsson on the Dyn microphone after the game, which was snatched out of the fire. Sterling Brown stood out in Berlin’s team with 25 points and Hermannsson with 19 points. The most successful Niners shooters were Deandre Lansdowne with 19 points and Aher Uguak with 15 points.
48 hours after the third game at the same venue, the home team continued the run of their second win and took the lead in the early stages. However, Berlin was able to catch up again.
In the ensuing exchange of blows, the lead changed hands four times until shortly before halftime, before Niners coach Rodrigo Pastore’s team pulled away, even without center Kevin Yebo, who was suspended for assault in the third semi-final match, and at one point extended their lead to as many as twelve points. With their backs to the wall, the guests regained the lead after an impressive comeback and forced the deciding game against the dismayed hosts in their own stadium.