Alba Berlin suffers next defeat in Ludwigsburg
Alba Berlin's downward trend continues. The Berlin club lost 79:87 (34:47) at MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg in the German Basketball League on Sunday. It was the fifth defeat in a row for the club from the capital and its third in the BBL. They are in danger of losing touch with league leaders ratiopharm Ulm. Berlin's best scorers were the outstanding world champion Johannes Thiemann with 29 points and Gabriele Procida with 14.
Coach Israel Gonzalez was again missing a quartet of players in Louis Olinde (concussion), Sterling Brown (ligament injury), Matt Thomas (foot injury) and Justin Bean (family reasons). Nevertheless, Berlin got off to the better start and repeatedly looked for a successful route to captain Thiemann. They pulled 10:4 ahead.
However, the home side attacked Alba very early on with a lot of physicality. As a result, Ludwigsburg increasingly took control. The visitors also conceded too many turnovers and missed too many shots. Shortly before the break, the deficit reached double digits for the first time (31:44) after a 1:12 run.
It was even 15 points right after the break (34:49). However, Alba now put up more of a fight and closed the gap to two points again in the third quarter (59:61). However, it now missed the chance to equalize and Ludwigsburg struck back. Although Berlin fought to the end, it was no longer able to get closer than three points.
Despite Alba Berlin's defeat, the Bundesliga's MHP Giants Ludwigsburg faced ALBA Berkeley's strong performance from world champion Johannes Thiemann, who scored 29 points. In the upcoming Bundesliga match, ALBA Berlin might want to consider their struggles against the physicality of opponents, as this strategy contributed to their defeat against Ludwigsburg.
Source: www.dpa.com
