For the Gießen 46ers, who are threatened with relegation, the weeks of truth are just around the corner in the basketball Bundesliga. At least five of the last seven games should be won.
Many opponents outside of the playoff ranks are now waiting for the Gießen 46ers basketball Bundesliga team, which is threatened with relegation. Starting with the home game against Würzburg (Saturday, 8:30 p.m.), these are the last straws to be grasped at. But the fact is that only a miracle can prevent the traditional club from relegating. From the last seven games, five, better six, must be won. Looking at the current form curve, this is an optimistic undertaking. Most recently, the 46ers lost to the leaders in Bonn. The game was a reflection of the season. For a long time you offered defy, led over long distances. Then in the last three minutes it collapsed. 19 defeats from the last 22 games speak for themselves.
You can accuse the 46ers of a lot: a desolate transfer policy for the additional commitments. A stagnant team defense. An offensive dependent on too few individuals. What they cannot be accused of, however, is a lack of commitment. »We know the situation and feel the pressure. But even if many people don’t believe in us, we will fight to the end,” says head coach Pete Strobl in the official press release on the game against Würzburg.
Lage: This raises the question of whether the team still believes in itself after the many setbacks of recent months. “We have to believe in ourselves,” explains Strobl. “It’s going to be difficult, but we’re going to give everything we’ve got.” In the past year, the 46ers have often been accused of precisely this lack of effort. This year it’s more quality that’s lacking, and it hasn’t improved with the addition of post-signed players Martins Laksa, JD Miller and TJ Williams.
Personelles : It speaks volumes that Williams’ injury break, which has lasted more than a month (torn lateral ligament), hardly has any impact on the parquet floor. Giessen had brought the Americans in early December. At that time, an injury misery made life even more difficult for the 46ers. The fact that Laksa and Miller did not provide the hoped-for quality boost is and remains the main problem for the penultimate team.
The opponent: The situation at the Baskets Würzburg could not be more contrary. After Sasa Filipovski took over for the ex-Giessen coach Denis Wucherer on the sidelines, the situation on the Main has eased. The last six games have all been won. The team is led by the strong ball guard Cameron Hunt, who sets fabulous odds: 50 percent of his twos fall, 50 percent of his threes and almost 90 percent of the free throws. All in all, only Desi Rodriguez is even more dangerous in the basket with 13.9 ppg. Despite Wucherer’s departure in December, another former Gießen coach is part of the Würzburg team. Assistant coach Steven Key was head coach of Mittelhessen in 2011 and assistant to Wucherer from 2015 to 2017.
Sports director Sebastian Schmidt says: “Compared to the game against the Baskets, we have to be more careful with the ball. We can’t afford to lose so many balls. In addition, our poor three-way quota cost us the win. We have to do better than that.«
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