Ratiopharm UIm achieved an important victory in the German-German Eurocup duel against the Chemnitz Niners and thereby retained its chance of reaching the round of 16.
Ratiopharm UIm achieved an important victory in the German-German Eurocup duel against the Chemnitz Niners and thereby retained its chance of reaching the round of 16.
When Justin Simon stuffed the ball through the ring, the door to the round of 16 opened again for Ratiopharm UIm. After the 88:76 (22:19, 24:22, 18:23, 24:12) against the Chemnitz Niners, the Ulm team were able to move up to sixth place and have the opportunity to advance in the remaining four group games.
Chris Ledlum leads Ratiopharm Ulm to victory
Ulm got off to a stable start, scoring from the three-point line, scoring from the half court and scoring from the free throw line. However, Ulm was unable to break away decisively against the Chemnitz Niners in the first quarter. Therefore, coach Ty Harrelson’s team went into the second quarter with a narrow 22:19 lead. There the Ulm team suddenly played big. Chris Ledlum in particular showed his athleticism under the basket both defensively and offensively and used his rebounds to ensure that Ulm was able to build a ten-point lead. It took until the middle of the second quarter for Chemnitz to get back into the game. But after a spectacular dunking by Tobias Jensen and Ledlum’s points 17 and 18, Ulm led 46:41 at the break.
In the third quarter it seemed as if Ulm could finally pull away. But the renewed ten-point lead didn’t last long. Chemnitz increased the passing speed, and Ulm’s defense, which had been very stable until then, had more and more problems. Only Alec Anigbata’s remarkable block prevented Ulm from entering the final quarter with a narrow deficit (64:64).
Ratiopharm Ulm wins the direct comparison
Meanwhile, Ledlum seemed to have used up his powder. The 24-year-old forward only managed five points in the second half, but was still named player of the game with 23 points and five rebounds. Malik Osborne was able to remedy the situation in this phase and, with his total of 15 points, ensured that Ulm were able to further extend their lead.
Because Ulm not only wanted to win the game at the end, but also the direct comparison after the 78:89 defeat in the first leg. And so the Ulm team continued to put pressure on in the final phase despite their clear lead. With success: Justin Simon put the final exclamation point seconds before the end and pushed the ball into the basket to make the final score 88:76.
