When the sirens went off, Marcus Ericsson ran into the stands with a jubilant fist and released his emotions. The Swede was the main factor in the Euroleague 81:76 (43:33) home win for Alba Berlin against AC Milan on Friday night. Luke Sikma says of teammate Eriksson: “He’s a great shooter, and sometimes I just don’t go into the offensive rebound. I’m sure his litter will go well.” Eriksson scored a total of 21 points and scored five of eight three-pointers. It was also the factor behind teammate Johannes Thiemann’s home success, “a particularly strong performance from Marcus. He helped us a lot today and at times really carried us through,” said Thiemann.
Alba Berlin wins its third consecutive competitive match after beating AC Milan and appears to be running a run. The depth of the team is particularly useful for Luke Sikma: “Everyone has made their contribution. We have a wide squad. This is our great strength.” In addition to the very consistent trio of Ericsson, Sikma and Lu, players like Luis Olinde or Christ Kumadyi are also taking the next step in development and their An important role in the small and successful series of Berlin players.
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The fact that summer newcomers, such as Glenn Smith and Tamer Platt, are not yet fully functional, is no surprise to Alba’s coach, Israel Gonzalez. “We play with a lot of freedom, with a lot of ideas of our own and without a fixed system. It is difficult and new players need time to learn. Do you remember Modu Lou, it was difficult for him when he came to us and now he plays very well and carries our team in attack”, Gonzalez said.
On Sunday, Alba hosts Berlin Chemnitz in the Bundesliga (6pm, at Ostbahnhof). The Niners are the surprise in the league, occupying third place in the table and knocking Bayern Munich out of the cup three weeks ago. “Chemnitz is very dangerous this season and the next difficult opponent for us,” said Thiemann. When it comes to assists, Alba and Niners of Chemnitz are second in the German Basketball League. Both teams move the ball very well and find a teammate in a better position. “You play with good chemistry. They have very good shots and their great players are very flexible,” said Gonzalez. However, Chemnitz will have to dispense with the best passport from now on. Builder Gerald Robinson took advantage of his release clause and moved to Italy in end of November.
For Alba, Sunday’s home win would be their fourth straight win and Barcelona’s overtake Chemnitz in the Bundesliga. If Swede Marcus Ericsson turns the heat back on the outside and defends Alba vigorously, then the recognized 2,500 spectators should be able to celebrate Alba’s victory on Sunday as well.