The Academics Heidelberg sniffed the surprise for three quarters and then had to give up the German champion FC Bayern basketball.
Bavaria is in the final, for Heidelberg it is the end of a historical season. And it was scarce, very tight. Because the Academics Heidelberg only had to give FC Bayern Basketball in the fourth game of this semi-final series. There, however, the air pitched the air. In the end it was an 82:94 defeat. The Bavarians are in the best-of-five series in the final of the Basketball Bundesliga after 3: 1 victories.
Heidelberg started furiously and dominated Bayern from the triple line. DJ Horne demonstrated his accuracy in this phase, converted three out of three threes and brought the Kurpfälzer in the lead early. 89 percent litter quota and good defensive work under the basket (twelve rebounds) meant a stable 14-point lead after the first quarter (28:14).
Weathers and Dibba counter the Bayern
The Heidelbergers were able to take the momentum into the second quarter. This time it was Bakary Dibba and Michael Weathers who used Bavaria’s initially persistent throwing weakness again and again for quick counterattacks. The team, trained by Danny Jansson, was able to expand the lead to 17 points in the meantime. Shortly before the break, Bayern came back into the game. Because the Academics no longer defended so consistently under the basket and suddenly lacked any efficiency in the attack, Munich was able to catch up. After almost three minutes without your own point, the lead melted at halftime to 41:36.
Now Heidelberg was under pressure. Bavaria’s Niels Giffey sank three threes in succession right at the beginning of the second half and was able to compensate for the meantime. A close game developed in which Heidelberg was very narrow. So the Academics went into the last quarter with a 62: 58 lead.
Bavaria puts fruit in the lead
There the Bavarians fought their way around point by point and took the lead for the first time after a threesome by Andreas Obst. As a result, Heidelberg played agile, looked for increasingly difficult throws and awarded one attack after the other in the decisive phase. Bavaria expanded the lead to five points. The game seemed decidedly, but Ryan Mikesell and Erol Ersek still saved Heidelberg in the extension.
However, Bayern had an easy game there. They quickly took the lead and brought attack on attack routinely and ultimately deservedly entered the final. Heidelberg, however, said goodbye to the season, because for the first time since the return of 2021, the Academics were in a semi -finals – after only fought against relegation.
