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Match report by Jed Forson
The Gladiators’ FIBA ​​Europe Cup campaign began with a defeat in Germany to Ludwigsburg.
Coming off a 4th quarter comeback win in Manchester on Sunday afternoon, while their hosts are coming off a narrow loss to ULM and have started their season with a 2-2 record.
Ludwigsburg finished eighth in the Bundesliga last season but reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League and finished third in the competition two years ago, so this has not been an easy start to the European campaign for the Gladiators.
In the starting five, Kyle Jimenez and Trevond Barnes moved to the bench, and Isaiah Hill and Tanner Stuckman joined the starters from Sunday: Patrick Whelan, Fraser Malcolm and Fahro Alihodzic.
The game started physically with both teams going into the bonus and fouling out early.
The Gladiator’s offense struggled to get going shooting just 25% from the field and 16% on two-pointers in the first quarter. The defense forced their opponents to shoot 1/9 from three, but they were able to take advantage of easy points off turnovers and points in the paint.
This trend continued in the second as Ludwigsburg was able to get out in transition and score after some great defense from them, protect the rim and pick up several blocks.
The Gladiators’ turnovers – after being comparable to their opponents – began to rise as the German outfit increased their intensity in defence. At halftime, the Gladiator’s ability to get to the free throw line kept them in the game, but the lead was ten.
Unfortunately for the Gladiators, this trend continued in the second half.
Ludwigsburg’s aggressive trap defense led to several turnovers and the Gladiators struggled to get the ball over half court at times. The lead opened up to over 20 points in the third.
The Gladiators slowly chipped away at the lead to end the third, but in the fourth quarter, Ludwigsburg extended their lead to over 30, dampening any thoughts of a miraculous fourth quarter comeback.
On a bad night for the team, Tanner Stuckman was the one consistent offensively, finishing with 16 points and two steals.
Ultimately, it was a bad night for the Gladiators, who never led. Their German opponents won on a wire-to-wire basis and they will look to bounce back at home to Newcastle on Friday night.
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