Alba wins game for third place in the cup

After the first quarter it was still balanced 21:21. From the second quarter, several players took over on the offensive for Alba. Deeshyra Thomas hit an important throw at the end of the Shotclock, Stefanie Grigoleit reliably sank the ball under the basket and on the free -wire line, Marie Bertholdt and Theresa Simon scored 13 points each. Alba started in the last quarter with a lead of over 20 points and could not take this lead from the Angels.

For the Alba fans who had actually hoped for the cup victory, this was a welcome consolation. The audience in the Sömmeringhalle celebrated every goal, every steal, and asked for a “encore” loudly when the guests were awarded. The last few minutes cheered the Berlin supporters. The players were also celebrated again after their success and picked up their deserved medals.

The enormous disappointment on Saturday, when the cup victory mission failed in the semi -finals, and the comeback a day later, ultimately show what the ambitions of the Berliners are. Since their first league climbing, they presented a dizzying pace, have become a master from Underdog, who now wants to defend his title.

In the Bundesliga and in the play-offs with several games in a series, the Berlin women were able to show how much bite they have. Despite a defeat at home, they reached the fifth game of the finals when winning the title last season and fought the championship title after an interim behind. The team structure, which coach Cristo Cabrera also attaches as much value on, can also run under pressure like an oiled machine.

So far, Alba has not been able to show this quality to the same extent in the do-or-to-games of the trophy. And before the final Four, Alba had only come across second division teams, a real endurance test was missing in advance.

In the championship, the title defense remains the goal

In the semifinals, the euphoria was initially great when a lot didn’t work out at Saarlouis. When the opponent changed after the break, Alba could no longer react – not even physically. “In the end, we lacked a little bit,” said Captain Lena Gohlisch after the game.

With the superior victory in the small finale, Alba should be easier to look back on league and play-offs now and to reinterpret the season as a time of the important experiences from which one can emerge strengthened.

With the participation in the Eurocup next to Bundesliga operations, the team knowingly exposed itself to a double burden. There you were excreted early, but had a chance to get to know the European level before. This experience certainly aroused the ambition to play on an equal footing in the future. It is obvious that this can also have consumed this on the forces.

The challenge will now be to keep looseness with a view to the championship. However, opponents like Saarlouis have strengthened and gained quality. But a league without competition, which nobody wants to have at Alba either. And if the Berliners can get their joy of playing and reflect on their own strengths, a lot is still possible for Alba this season.