By Stefan Djordjevic/ sdjordjevic@eurohoops.net
MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg had a grand return to the Basketball Champions League which finished with a Final Four appearance and a third place in the end.
Nobody feels good after missing out on the trophy, especially when so close to the prize but the Germans should feel very proud of their accomplishment.
The team returned to the BCL after their run in the 2017-18 season when they also reached the FInal Four but finished fourth. This time around, they made a step forward and acrtually became the first German team to win a medal in the competition.
It was also done in a convincing fashion. Most teams have trouble finding the energy and motivation for the third-place clash but Ludwigsburg was not one of those.
They dominated Hapoel U-NET Holon for a 20-point win and marked the biggest margin of victory in a medal game so far in the copmetition. They also made as much as 14 three-pointers in the game, tying their best in BCL and also delivering their best percentages ever from deep with 58%.
One of the main reasons for such a run in the 2021-22 campaign, as well as for the final score of the third-place game, was Justin Simon.
Simon, who was averaging 15.5 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 2.2 assists for the season, wasn’t honored with a spot on the BCL Star Lineups and that gave him some extra motivation going into the fight for a medal.
He certainly got his message across. He banked in game-high 27 points and actually marked a record. It was not only his personal best but also the best scoring performance in the BCL Final Four ever.
Simon was so good that the fact that Joe Ragland reached 145 assists and became the player with the most assists in a single BCL season, was completely overshadowed.
He was on fire from the very start with 16 points already in the first quarter. He also finished the game with six rebounds, six assists, and three steals. That way, Simon became the first player to combine more than 25 points, more than 5 rebounds, more than 5 assists and more than 2 steals in a game.
In fact, there have been a total of 12 players that scored 20+ points in the BCL Final Four with only three of them reaching 25 or more. In addition to Simon, Vitor Benite scored 25 in the 2019-20 semifinals while Kevin Punter banked in 26 points.
Punter actually did it in the 2019 Final for Segafredo Virtus Bologna, pushing them to title. He is only joined by Chima Moneke, who scored 24 in the Final this year, as the players to have scored 20+ in the last game of the season.
|
Player |
Points |
Game |
Season |
|
Justin Simon |
27 |
Third-place |
2021-22 |
|
Kevin Punter |
26 |
Final |
2018-19 |
|
Vitor Benite |
25 |
Semifinal |
2019-20 |
|
Chima Moneke |
24 |
Final |
2021-22 |
|
Dylan Ennis |
24 |
Thrid-place |
2020-21 |
|
Sek Henry |
24 |
Semifinal |
2020-21 |
|
Bonzie Colson |
22 |
Third-place |
2020-21 |
|
Joe Ragland |
22 |
Semifinal |
2021-22 |
|
Kevin Punter |
21 |
Semifinal |
2018-19 |
|
Tyrese Rice |
21 |
Semifinal |
2018-19 |
|
Jordan Theodore |
21 |
Semifinal |
2016-17 |
|
David Holston |
20 |
Third-place |
2019-20 |
|
Jamal Shuler |
20 |
Semifinal |
2016-17 |
|
Manny Harris |
20 |
Semifinal |
2017-18 |
Photo Credit: Basketball Champions League