A few days after the narrow defeat in the Champions League against Reggiana, the Telekom Baskets Bonn also suffered a setback in the BBL and lost at the Hamburg Towers with 84:91 (43:39).
The Baskets missed out on confirming sixth place and are slipping out of the direct playoff ranks after two Bundesliga wins in a row. Hamburg, on the other hand, celebrated their second league win in a row and can continue to hope for the play-ins.
Darius McGhee and Phlandrous Fleming were Bonn’s best throwers with 17 points each. Brae Ivey also contributed 17 points for the Towers. The Baskets took a total of 41 three-pointers, but only hit twelve of them.
Baskets collapse after a good start
Bonn got off to a good start in the game and led 9:4 after four minutes thanks to a three-pointer from Fleming Jr. But then someone pulled the plug on the Baskets. On offense the three-pointers didn’t fall, on defense they allowed the Towers too many easy shots. After a 12-0 run by the hosts, Baskets coach Roel Moors took the first time out. Bonn went into the first quarter break with a 19:24 deficit.
However, nothing changed in the second half of the game. After Till Pape lost the ball, 3×3 world champion Fabian Giessmann made it 30:22 for Hamburg.
Bonn turns the game
But then the Bonn game took a hit. The Bonn team increased their intensity both offensively and defensively and came closer step by step. After 16 minutes, Darius McGhee scored from almost ten meters to make it 33:33. And it went on like this. Bodie Hume put Bonn back in the lead (39:36), Fleming increased the lead to 43:36 from half distance. With the siren, Bonn’s Brae Ivey made the halftime score 43:39 from Bonn’s perspective.
But Bonn missed the start of the third quarter again. At first a lot went together with the baskets and Hamburg took advantage of it. Ivey made it 53:46 for the hosts with a three-point game. Thomas Kennedy then set an example and caused a hello wake-up effect with his dunk.
Hamburg’s Ivey difficult to stop
That had an effect. Four quick points from Pape and Kennedy again brought Bonn back to 52:53. McGhee then made the next lead change with a three-pointer (55:54, 27th). However, Hamburg’s Ivey was difficult to stop that evening. First he gave Hamburg the lead again with a three-pointer, then he increased the score to 64:61 for the Towers after the third quarter with a layup.
The fourth quarter remained even in the first few minutes. On both teams, McGhee and Ivey, both point guards with foul problems, have to go to the bench. In the middle of the game, however, Bonn made three unsuccessful attacks in a row. Hamburg took advantage of this to pull away with seven points (76:69, 35th).
Towers decide the game from the free throw line
When Jordan Barnett gave the Towers a nine-point lead (80:71), Moors took the next timeout around four minutes before the end. Fleming then made it 80:85 from Bonn’s perspective with a three-pointer, forcing Hamburg to take a time-out. But the baskets couldn’t get any closer. The last three-point attempts were missed. Instead, Hamburg decided the game from the free throw line.
The Baskets continue with the important game in the play-ins of the Champions League against Reggiana on Wednesday (January 15, 2025, 8 p.m.). In the Bundesliga, the Frankfurt Skyliners are coming to Bonn on Sunday (January 19, 2025, 3 p.m.).
