


Heading into his team's fifth game in just 10 days, ALBA Berlin head coach Israel Gonzalez stressed that all players would need to contribute on Thursday evening against LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne. Not only did his bench deliver, but it provided 53 of ALBA's 88 points to lead the hosts to their second straight victory and help them end the season on a good note.
No ALBA player featured for more than 25 minutes while as many as eight of scored at least 8 points. Luke Sikma led the way with 12, but it was Johannes Thiemann who stepped up in key moments off the bench in the first quarter and at the end of the third quarter to provide the hosts with a much-needed boost in energy and help them maintain their lead.
"Congratulations to the players who played their fifth game in 10 days with only one day off after every game," Gonzalez said at the post-match press conference. "It's amazing. It's very difficult because the EuroLeague level is always very high and it is great to be able to survive these 10 days."
Only two teams had recorded more average assists than ALBA's 19.8 heading into the last round of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season, and the hosts proved once again that they are one of most altruistic sides this season. ALBA produced 23 assists with almost all the players successfully getting everyone else involved in the game. All but two ALBA players recorded at least 1 assist, with Jaleen Smith led the way with 7.
Gonzalez called it "the ALBA way" and pointed out that he was proud of his players for the team effort. His rotations against ASVEL bore fruit and his men looked anything but tired throughout the game to secure their 11th victory this season.