Telekom Baskets Drama with a happy ending

Bonn · The Bonn Baskets won a dramatic game against Ludwigsburg 90:86. Ryan suffered a bruised pelvis and had to be substituted.

What a game! In a dramatic four-parter, the Telekom Baskets Bonn defended their sixth place in the Bundesleague with a 90:86 victory (18:10, 25:23, 20:31, 27:22) against seventh place Ludwigsburg. The decider came 9.5 seconds from the end when the outstanding Baskets top scorer Ken Horton (24 points, 4 three-pointers, 10 rebounds) put the ball in the net.

At the Telekom Dome the intensity on the field was of play-off standard from the jump ball. Both sides tried to put a lot of pressure on the ball and their opponents and to profit from disturbing the rhythm of the other team. What followed was a clash that had the 4860 spectators jumping in their seats.

“That was a very good performance by my team in the first half, above all in defence. After the break we could not sustain the level, but in the end we found a way to win the game,” declared Baskets coach Predrag Krunic. “We were somewhat passive and did not concentrate in the first half,” said Ludwigsburg coach John Patrick. “It hurts that we lost.”

The Baskets led 15:6 after five minutes after Ken Horton scored five points in a row and Julian Gamble’s lay up. Ryan Thompson made it 20:10 for the Bonners shortly after the start of the second quarter before Toni DiLeo scored the first three pointer of the game (23:14).

The guests started to play better and Bonn let a few chances go. Kelvin Martin’s three-pointer brought the guests to within three points (22:25). Then Bonn took control of the game again and dominated play to make it 45:33. But Ludwigsburg were not giving up. Cliff Hammonds with eight points in a row, Brad Loesing, Jack Cooley and DJ Kennedy gave the guests a 14-0 run making it 47:49.

The Schwabisch team started the final quarter at 64:63. They now had momentum on their side. But a three pointer from Mayo brought Bonn in front again (67:66). It was hard to increase the intensity of the game, but both sides went up a gear. Thompson suffered a bruised pelvis and was later substituted. It was a come-hell-or-high-water fight and at 85:85 still had not been decided a minute or so before the end.

This was not a game for those with weak nerves. Kennedy converted a free throw to put Ludwigsburg in the lead, Bartolo countered with a tip-in to make it 87:86. The guests could not close off the next attack before Horton made sure of the decider. (Orig. text: Gerhard Mertens)

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