(sks). This Thursday (8 p.m.) the Gießen 46ers Rackelos will welcome the Erfurt Lions in the Basketball-Pro-B in the east hall. Two days later the away game against the Frankfurt Skyliners Juniors (7 p.m.).
The various game cancellations in recent months have made it a rock-hard week for the entire 46ers program. The Rackelos, which are peppered with double-license players, especially feel this. In the Bundesliga, players like Maximilian Begue and Tim Uhlemann are challenged on both Wednesday and Sunday. The Pointers in the regional league are playing away games on Friday and Sunday and have to see whether players like Fritz Rostek are available.
While the 46ers are in a relegation battle, the Pointers are fighting for nothing less than the championship. The Rackelos, meanwhile, have their sights firmly set on the bottom playoff spots again after three wins in a row. At the same time, the high form ensured that a large point buffer was created for any relegation. “We’ll throw everything into the balance,” says coach Patrick Unger. Who will be available to him on the two days will only become clear as the week progresses.
This also applies to Kilian Binapfl, who twisted his ankle in the game against Speyer. In pain, the forward jumped off the floor and writhed. The physios treated him immediately. Binapfl was then able to appear again and “run out” of the pain, as the layman puts it. But he could no longer participate.
About the opponents: Like Giessen, Erfurt has won the last three games. After extra time, the first leg ended narrowly in favor of the Thuringians. Best man of the lions is Guy Edi. The French forward is the best player in these categories with almost 19 points and nine rebounds. His eye for the free man is so keen that he has already posted two triple-doubles this season. Behind a very strong starting five, the performance gap is noticeable. So far, the East Germans trained by Uvis Helmanis are more than they should be with fourth place in the table.
“We have to make it over the defense again and take the tailwind with us,” hopes Unger. Of course, this also applies to the away game on Saturday in Frankfurt (7 p.m.). The second farm team from Hessenland has won ten games out of 20 games so far. You’ve already reached the playoff spots. In the first leg, the people of Bankenstadt won 78:77. The best players are Matthew Meredith, Jordan Samara and Felix Hecker, who, however, all play only irregularly as double license players.
The Rackelos, who now have to grit their teeth, can also sing this song. To reach the playoffs, three wins from the remaining four games are mandatory. In short: a tough week for the Central Hessian basketball teams.
