Nelson Weidemann and Tobias Jensen helped carry the German side past the London Lions
Balanced Ulm ends losing skid thanks to returning players
Game Report
3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 6 of 18
Regular Season
group b
ratiopharm ulmULM
8786
London LionsLDN
group b
Overview
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ratiopharm ulm made some big changes in the offseason, bringing in important new parts to the team. But it was two returners from last season who really carried the German side to an important home victory over the London Lions to end a losing streak.
Ulm had lost its last five games in all competitions – including two in the BKT EuroCup – before getting a balanced effort in holding on for an 87-86 win to improve to a 4-2 record in Group B.
“We had six players in double figures, which is something we had been wanting. We wanted to get the ball moving again - play with a style that the opponent doesn’t know who’s going to get the next basket,” said Ulm head coach Ty Harrelson.
Nelson Weidemann scored 17 points, Len Schoormann had 14 points, Chris Ledlum picked up 11 and Tobias Jensen, Malik Osborne and Diego Garavaglia chipped in 10 points apiece.
Weidemann was excellent all game but drained two big three-pointers in the final 3 minutes while also tallying 4 rebounds and 3 assists. Jensen also had 3 assists and 3 steals.
“Once we lost the lead down the stretch, a couple of our returners – Nelson Weidemann and Tobias Jensen – made really big plays,” Harrelson said.
Ulm used a 15-4 run spanning halftime for a 48-36 lead. But London answered right back with a 2-16 surge to pull ahead. The hosts punched back with eight of the next 10 points and never let London reclaim the lead.
London was down 80-73 with under 2 minutes to go and Kameron McGusty converted back-to-back three-point plays to pull within one point. Weidemann hit his second late triple at the other end and Ulm finished the game from the line – Schoormann knocking down two with 16 seconds to go and Garavaglia making the winning ones with 2.7 seconds remaining.
“I think Len Schoormann played a great game today,” Harrelson said. “He drove the ball, he made some nice passes and some big plays.”
Schoormann, who contributed 1 rebound, 1 assist and 3 steals, added: “We moved the ball side to side pretty well. We played as a team and tried to keep their points down.”
Ulm’s defense did a good job forcing London into miscues with 22 turnovers – the key number in the game, according to London head coach Tautvydas Sabonis.
“Twenty-two turnovers is 22 times we can’t shoot, 22 times we can’t get a rebound. In a game you lose by one point, that says it all,” the Lions coach said.
London fell to 2-4 in the group as it could not take advantage of a career-high 23 points from Tarik Phillip while McGusty had 18 points.
Ulm’s defense has struggled all year with 94.6 points per game allowed, the second-most in the league. But London had the worst offense in the EuroCup with just 72.8 points per game.
“We played really good defense in the first half. I am just proud of how our team found a way to win in the end,” Harrelson said.
