1. Wheelchair Basketball Bundesliga: Hot Rolling Bears lose to Hannover United
Meal. The Hot Rolling Bears return from Hanover without points. With 77:32 (21:7 | 18:11 | 22:9 | 16:5) the victory clearly goes to the hosts Hannover United.
Hannover United celebrates its 10th anniversary. The foxes have invited numerous guests to this day of celebration, to which the Hot Rolling Bears once again offer hearty congratulations, which not only gives the Essen wheelchair basketball players a great backdrop for the RBBL1 return, but also twice the motivation of the home side, who of course give their fans a home win want. Martin Kluck’s team, which once again underlined its qualities last season with third place, started the game energetically. While the routines of the Hanoverians play determined and free, the team of coach Dennis Nohl just can’t get into their own rhythm. The Bears act nervously, let United force them into hectic deals and quickly realize that they still have a lot to do this season. The newcomers Lena Knippelmeyer and Abraham Mamo celebrate a successful debut and, as top scorers in their colors, ensure calm and the individual points. And Ali Hasson, who, thanks to a double license from RSC Osnabrück, could be loaned out to stand in for Amy Kaijen, turned out to be a valuable piece of the team’s puzzle. Team is an important key word here, because it grows together continuously and also shows with small successes in the game that the new systems from Nohl work and work.
For many of the Hot Rolling Bears players, it was the first few minutes in the 1st German wheelchair basketball league – one of the toughest leagues in our sport in the world. The starting program of the bears, which goes backwards up last year’s table – Hannover United, RSB Thuringia Bulls, RSV Lahn-Dill – is the absolute tough program for every team and especially a promoted team. It is precisely then that such a defeat is also valuable, because it shows limits and weak points that make the difference against potentially weaker opponents. This homework must now be clearly defined and then implemented accordingly. And that’s going to be a bear’s job.
But that is exactly the task that Dennis Nohl and his team will take on with their heads held high and will master together step by step.
Tim van Raamsdonk: “I think we got a really difficult team as our first opponent at the start of the season in the 1st Bundesliga. Even though we made mistakes that we don’t usually make, I’m proud that we’ve always stayed positive together and also had some good moments on the field. Every player wrote really hard and I enjoyed the vibe of the game. It was a great experience for me to make my debut in the 1st Bundesliga, even though we lost to Hannover, who are in the top 3 teams. We learned a lot of good things from the game and will work to do better next week.”
Head coach Dennis Nohl: “The game was clearly expected, but we substituted through, could use everyone and could all make mistakes. We mustn’t forget that this is one of the top 3 teams in Germany. That’s why we pulled out the positive things and know what we have to work on. We now have the next major tasks ahead of us, which will certainly not be any easier with the Thuringia Bulls and RSV Lahn-Dill, but this is also an opportunity for us to play directly against the best teams at the beginning. It is important that we go out with motivation. Today’s game was good, we clearly saw our weaknesses, both offensively and defensively, and we need to work on that now and gradually improve. We compensated well for the individual failures today, which is why I’m proud of every player and his performance and I’m looking forward to what’s to come.”
Played and scored for the Hot Rolling Bears: Abraham Mamo (11 points), Lena Knippelmeyer (6), Tim van Raamsdonk (5), Hannfrieder Briel and Ali Hasson (4 each), Joel Schaake (2), Romario Biswane, Tobias Mitschke and Steffen Rundholz.
1. Wheelchair Basketball Bundesliga – The match day at a glance:
10/01/2022 RSV Lahn-Dill – DONECK Dolphins Trier 84:57
01.10.2022 Rhine rhinos – BBC Münsterland 69:64
10/01/2022 RBC Cologne 99ers – ING Skywheelers 56:65
10/01/2022 Hanover United – Hot Rolling Bears 77:32
02.10.2022 BG Baskets Hamburg – RSB Thuringia Bulls 38:93
03.10.2022 12:00 BG Baskets Hamburg – DONECK Dolphins Trier (early 14th matchday)
Next Sunday, October 9th, 2022, the Hot Rolling Bears are expecting the reigning German runners-up, the RSB Thuringia Bulls, for the first home game of the season in Essen. Ball is at 3 p.m.