German Basketball League - Bayern faces a championship final; Chemnitz takes the lead against Alba.
After a victorious performance against the Würzburg Baskets, the basketball players from FC Bayern Munich have become the first team to qualify for the playoff finals of the German championship. They won with a strong score of 75:61 (38:33) and finished the three-game semi-final series with a clean 3:0. The upcoming rival for the final series is yet to be decided, as it seems to be a close call between the Niners Chemnitz and Alba Berlin.
As for Munich's Carsen Edwards, he mentioned feeling elated about being in the finals despite not knowing who they would be up against. "We're just happy to be in the finals. Who the opponent will be doesn't matter to us," he stated on the streaming platform Dyn.
Currently, the Niners Chemnitz seem to be leading the race. They are just one game away from sealing the win in their semi-final series against Alba Berlin. On Sunday, they triumphed over them with a score of 84:72 (37:29). They now lead 2:1 in the best-of-five series, with the fourth game scheduled to take place on Tuesday (6:30 pm) in Chemnitz.
In a surprising turn of events, the Niners managed to steal the lead in the final quarter, despite losing their star center Kevin Yebo to disqualification due to foul play earlier in the game. Trailing by a few points, Chemnitz staged a come-from-behind victory with an impressive 11:0 run in the last quarter and a solid defense. They shut down the Berliners, scoring 31:11 in the fourth quarter.
The game against the Würzburg Baskets would have been easier if they hadn't lost Isaiah Washington due to an ankle injury in the third game against Bayern. But the Baskets persevered with a sold-out tactake Arena crowd behind them, landing most of their shots and putting up a strong defense.
Bayern's efficiency level rose significantly in the second half of the game. Their lack of accuracy from previous quarters was now gone, and they started to pull away with each passing minute. After the break, it was Serge Ibaka who dominated under the basket and helped the guests build a larger lead. However, Würzburg did not back down and fought hard until the very end. "Pride prevails. We gave our best. It was a great season," remarked Baskets coach Sasa Filipovski.
