TAYLORHOOPS.COM ULM UPDATE
ULM STUMBLES IN NURNBERG
RCE Falke Nurnberg jumped to an early lead and never looked back as ratiopharm Ulm fell in disappointing fashion to the Falcons 91-75 Friday night at Berliner Platz in Nurnberg. Both teams entered the evening unbeaten, but it was Nurnberg and not the favored Ulm who played with more energy, intensity and togetherness to earn the win. Only Nurnberg's starting five scored, but it was enough to capture first place in this important early season showdown.
The first possessions set the tone for both teams. Winning the tip off, Nurnberg advanced and attacked Ulm's D. With the shot clock running down, Greek wing Sortirius Gioulekas faced up Ulm's Emeka Erege on the left wing --- Gioulekas ripped through dribbled one power dribble left and drilled a three pointer in Ulm's top defender's face. On the other end of the floor Maksym Shtein drew a foul working middle in the post. Stepping to the line, Shtein clanked his first free throw before sinking his second --- for Ulm, an ominous foreshadowing of inconsistent things to come. Attacking Ulm's press, Nurnberg entered into the halfcourt, moved the ball and found Julius Jenkins on the right wing where he popped a three. After an empty possession, Nurnberg point guard Marcel Tenter took his turn --- crisp ball movement from Nurnberg combined with poor containment and slow rotation added up negatively for Ulm. Tenter sent a three from the top of the key straight to the bottom of the net. Before Ulm could blink, they were down 9-1. A quick Ulm timeout tried to settle the troops.
Unfortunately, the onslaught continued. Fundamental defensive mistakes plagued Ulm's early play including inability to stop the basketball in transition or contain the ballhandler one on one. Mix in miscommunications defending ballscreens and results equal easy baskets for an opponent. The focused and determined Nurnberg team capitalized. Julius Jenkins pushed the ball coast to coast and Marcel Tenter consistently got a step on Ulm defenders. Unable to execute their defensive game plan, Ulm struggled to stop the 37 year old point guard from penetrating. Compounding the defensive problems, Ulm's offensive attack sputtered with too much one on one play and without a team concept. Trailing 22-6, Ulm had dug a hole and was hip deep in a wave of Nurnberg momentum. A second timeout and several substitutions helped corral the wild ride.
The only positives of the early action for Ulm were the teams excellent job of rebounding on both ends and their hard work getting Nurnberg players in foul trouble. Maksym Shtein, Niki Arinze, Florian Mobius and Peter Heizer all drew fouls on Falke big men with strong plays in the paint. Soon Nurnberg center Karim Aw, Falke power forward Cory Jenkins a backup big man Thomas Rissman all were saddled with two fouls. After the fouls added up, Ulm's points did too. Slowly trimming the deficit, Ulm began to get defensive stops and hit some shots. By the end of the first quarter Ulm had worked their way back into the game trailing only 24-18.
Ulm's Maksym Shtein sinks a first half three.
Ulm continued their run. Maksym Shtien played extremely well inside scoring and drawing fouls. Subs also helped spark the run. Christian Grosse drilled a three from the left corner and a three from the right wing. Florian Mobius hit a baseline jump shot before drilling a second J over foul limited Cory Jenkins on a wing isolation. Kenny Price sank a three from the right wing. Soon, Shtein took a pass just left of the lane and pivoted to the middle of the paint. Bumped inside, Shtein fell backward to the floor flat on his back. Hearing the referee's whistle before he hit the ground, Max flung the ball toward the backboard --- Ulm fans went wild with excitement as Max's amazing shot banked in for two off the glass. Ulm had clawed back; dug out of the hole. Down two, it was a new game.
Nurnberg called for time.
Ulm forward Florian Mobius follows through hitting a second quarter J over Nurnbergs's Cory Jenkins. Flo played well finishing with 8 pts and 7 boards.
28-26 for Nurnberg; roughly seven minutes remaining in the second quarter.
Out of the timeout, Nurnberg switched to a simple 2-3 zone. To Ulm, it seemed as complex as a mysterious maze. Poor transition defense allowed Gioulekas two easy layups and Julius Jenkins a wide open breakaway dunk that electrified the already excited Nurnberg fans rubbing out any ratiopharm Ulm run. Ulm's team defense had let the down allowing a 10-0 outburst. After two minutes game time Nurnberg reopened their lead to 36-26. At this time, Ulm failed to find a rhythm and Nurnberg broke the game open. Despite trying several combinations and a variety of lineups, the Falke momentum mounted. Perhaps the constant subbing from Mike T snuffed any flow for his players. Still, there was no spark to be found. By halftime, Nurnberg had surged to a commanding 50-34 advantage.
At the half, Ulm knew they had dug a hole, worked their way back and let themselves down again by allowing the late run. Early on in the first quarter and later in the first half, Ulm struggled to contain the basketball one on one allowing drives into the paint breaking down their defense. The teams rotations were slow and late and helpside such as hedging on screens or stepping in to stop the ball was executed poorly. The team discussed their flaws in transition defense and their mistakes defending ballscreens. With renewed focus on their defensive fundamentals, the team hoped to make a run to open the second half.
Marcel Tenter (14) breaks down the D, a main reason for Ulm's struggles.
Unfortunately, it was the other way around. Immediately, Marcel Tenter penetrated into the paint and pitched to a shooter. The next Nurnberg possession, after just going over the game plan in the lockerroom, Ulm players defended Tenter's ballscreen incorrectly --- the mental mistake ended up as another easy basket from Tenter's penetration. Finally, after a third failure to contain Tenter one on one, Ulm head coach Mike T burned a timeout and the timeout burned his team. Baffling fundamental mistakes buried Ulm. When the team needed to come together, they split apart. While key Ulm players like Emeka Erege and Michael Bree struggled defensively, Peter Heizer forced plays on offense and Ulm's attack became one on one. The Nurnberg lead ballooned to 20. By the end of three Ulm's ship was taking water 73-50.
In the fourth quarter, it finally sank.
Ulm began to foul poor free throw shooters and full court press to cut into the lead, but it managed only a dent. Niki Arinze found his rhythm in the fourth consistently scoring for Ulm, but the game was already over. A technical foul on Nurnberg head coach Stephan Harlander after Christian Grosse rolled into Gioulekas near the Ulm bench gave Ulm a break --- Kenny Price sank the free throws and Ulm cut into the lead.
Unfortunately, it was not Ulm's night.
Or maybe more appropriately, the night belonged to Nurnberg.
Credit must be given to the Falcons, although Ulm's defensive effort and offensive teamwork left something to be desired. All five Nurnberg starters reached double figures. Sortirius Gioulekas finished his fine performance with 22 points and 10 rebounds while Julius Jenkins added 22 of his own. Cory Jenkins scored 20 points and Karim Aw posted 13 points and 10 boards. Key in the win was veteran point guard Marcel Tenter who directed his teams attack with 14 points and 11 assists. Niki Arinze led Ulm with 21 points. Taylorhoops.com Player of the game Maksym Shtein finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds but shot a poor 3 for 10 from the foul line. Peter Heizer hit only 2 of 12 field goals while Kenny Price made 3 of 11. Ulm let Nurnberg shoot 54% from the floor while hitting only 42% of their own shots. Mike T's men hit only 9 of 19 free throws (47%) and made 8 of 26 threes (31%). As a positive, Ulm outrebounded the strong rebounding Nurnberg 42 to 33 and allowed only 5 offensive boards.
In the big picture, the game is simply one of many in a long season. It is natural to be let down after a loss, but keeping things in perspective, ratiopharm Ulm slips one game behind Nurnberg with 23 games remaining. A lot can and will happen. Ulm now marks Saturday night March 5th as a special night on their calendar when Nurnberg visits Sportszentrum Kuhberg in Ulm. For Ulm, that will hopefully be the night they can set their situation right with a big win over Nurnberg. This Ulm team is playing with huge expectations and a road loss against a top opponent is not out of the ordinary. Some fans might feel Ulm should be invincible, but every team has ups and downs. Certainly Ulm was outplayed and outworked, but the team will turn the negatives into positives, learn from the mistakes, address the issues, improve and move on.
Now 6-1 in league play, ratiopharm Ulm returns to the practice floor Monday with a focus on defensive fundamentals and team defensive play. The team must take ownership and make improvements. Working to come together, Ulm hosts BBC Bayreuth next Saturday night at Sportszentrum Kuhberg in Ulm. Tip time is 7pm. Follow all the fast breaking ratiopharm Ulm basketball action all season long on Taylorhoops.com!
GO ULM!
MIKE T
Mike T at the Post game press conference |
