Note To Self: Don't Enter The Russian Dunk Contest

Okay so last night we began the EuroChallenge Top 8 and got the advantage by getting the first win. But that blog will follow. This blog deals with a team we played to get to this point (Krasnodar) and a big time ex-NBA player that they had on their team (Gerald Green). We should all know by now that if players don't stick in the NBA that they come to Europe and try to stay financially taken care of until they get another shot but who would have thought that two of the best ex-NBA dunk contest participants would get the chance to meet in one of the best Dunk Contests I've ever seen halfway around the world? I, for one, was very impressed...what about you?

Do What You Do      Hallelujah Hollaback      ...blackhercules21...

MEG Gottingen vs. Lokomotiv Kuban 92-71

Goettingen continued Lokomotiv slow start in EuroChallenge as they beat them 92:71. The German side improved to 3-1 in Group A, while the Russian squad fell at 0-4. The hosts opened the game with 30-19 and added 22-15 in the second period. Goettingen nailed 20 points each in the last two quarters for the total success. Dwayne Anderson paced all the winners with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Taylor Rochestie and Christopher McNaughton followed him with 14 apiece. Joksimovic Nebojsa and Vladovic Jakov responded with 15 points each in the losing effort.

View Highlights Here

LOKOMOTIV KUBAN (Coach: Filipovski, Saso)

			Field Goals			Rebounds
#	Name	min	2pm-a	3pm-a	ftm-a	off	def	tot	ast	pf	st	bs	pts
6	Capin, Aleksandar	35	1-3	0-6	0-0	0	1	1	3	1	0	0	2
23	Joksimovic, Nebojsa	32	2-3	2-9	5-8	1	1	2	1	2	3	0	15
15	Green, Gerald	31	1-5	3-5	0-0	0	6	6	3	2	0	2	11
12	Gist, James	27	2-5	1-3	2-2	0	2	2	1	2	1	0	9
11	Dragojlovic, Vladislav	20	4-7	0-0	0-2	3	5	8	0	4	0	3	8
5	Vladovic, Jakov	21	3-4	2-4	3-4	1	1	2	7	4	0	0	15
25	Sheleketo, Maksim	15	1-1	2-4	0-0	1	1	2	0	3	0	0	8
14	Savenkov, Aleksandr	15	0-0	0-0	1-2	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1
13	Krivosheev, Maxim	6	1-1	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	2
7	Vzdyhalkin, Aleksei	DNP - Coach's Decision
9	Dubovitskiy, Victor	DNP - Coach's Decision
24	Surovtsev, Aleksei	DNP - Coach's Decision
Total			15-29	10-31	11-18	6	17	23	17	18	4	5	71

MEG GOETTINGEN (Coach: Patrick, John)

			Field Goals			Rebounds
#	Name	min	2pm-a	3pm-a	ftm-a	off	def	tot	ast	pf	st	bs	pts
10	Rochestie, Taylor	34	3-11	2-4	2-3	0	1	1	2	1	0	0	14
22	Anderson, Dwayne	31	6-8	1-4	6-7	6	4	10	2	4	1	1	21
21	Boone, Jason	20	6-10	0-0	1-1	8	7	15	1	3	0	1	13
11	Little, John	17	1-3	1-3	0-0	0	1	1	0	2	2	0	5
23	Oliver, Chris	17	2-7	0-1	0-0	0	2	2	0	3	0	1	4
13	Frazier, Chester	21	0-0	0-1	0-0	0	2	2	3	1	1	0	0
5	Kulawick, Robert	20	0-1	4-6	0-0	0	2	2	0	1	1	0	12
12	Jacobson, Ben	18	3-8	0-1	3-4	0	2	2	3	2	0	0	9
7	McNaughton, Christopher	17	6-9	0-0	2-2	4	4	8	2	3	0	0	14
33	Toppert, Cody	3	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	2	2	0	0	0	0	0
15	Meeks, Michael	3	0-0	0-1	0-0	0	1	1	0	0	0	1	0
Total			27-57	8-21	14-17	18	28	46	13	20	5	4	92

Do What You Do      Hallelujah Hollaback      ...blackhercules21...

Don't Waste Your Life

Our game schedule has not been conducive to keeping up with my blog. It seems like every other day we're playing a game or leaving for another country. Last night we dismantled the Russian representative of the Eurochallenge. Rumor had it that they decided to sign Gerald Green and James Gist to assure victory in their last 3 Eurochallenge games. Unfortunately for whoever made that decision, it didn't pay off. There will be numerous highlights uploaded to facebook and twitter and my blog over the next couple of days, but today's blog is about wasting your life.

I came across this "news" story that had me in tears (literally laughed til I teared) but as funny as it is, a lot of people are not doing what they want with their lives. I know I always come back to how lucky I am to be doing what I love, but sometimes I'm reminded in the silliest ways. If you aren't doing what you want to be doing right now, hopefully it's just a means to an end. Goapele has a song "Closer" which is currently my ringtone because I'm getting Closer To My Dream Everyday...not wasting my life like this guy...get over that hump today

Expert On Anteaters Wasted Entire Life Studying Anteaters

Do What You Do      Hallelujah Hollaback      ...blackhercules21...

Showdown at Lokhalle - MEG Göttingen Faces a Revamped Opponent

by Björn-Lars Blank

In week 4 of EuroChallenge, the German team MEG Göttingen will face an opponent they have very good memories of. In their very first European game the Violets were able to pull off a big upset over BC Lokomotiv Kuban. With this surprising win in Russia, Göttingen truly had a dream start to their first European campaign. In the second match against Lokomotiv (Tuesday, December 15, Tip-Off 7:30 pm CET) they look to once again, surprise the favored team.

Despite the fact Lokomotiv is still waiting for their first Eurochallenge win of the season, the Russian club is the odds-on favorite. The 4th ranked team in Russian Superleague A recently signed two new players, former NBA Slam Dunk Champion Gerald Green and NBA Draftee James Gist. With new signings of this caliber, and only three games left in the opening round of Eurochallenge, Lokomotiv will try to make a strong push to advance and play on in the next round of 16. Coach Sasho Filipovski’s team can hardly afford a fourth straight loss.

Green, who played with Dirk Nowitzki’s Dallas Mavericks last season, has left a good impression in his first domestic league game for Lokomotiv. He collected 29 points in 26 minutes of playing time. Gist added 11 points. Despite the efforts of the new signees, Lokomotiv fell short losing 77-81 to EuroCup team Unics Kazan.

Göttingen started with two wins before dropping their game against KK Buducnost m:tel in week 3. Still, the Violets remain on the top of the standings of group A. And still, Göttingen remains unbeaten at home this season. With the Lokhalle providing a real home court advantage Göttingen won all six home games in the domestic league as well as landing a blowout win over BCM Gravelines Dunkerque two weeks ago. In the 2nd home game of European competition, head coach John Patrick is well aware of the difficulty facing this new look Lokomotiv team.

“We are facing a new Lok Kuban team. Gist and especially Green are two of the most gifted athletes on the planet. We will need our full concentration and some loud support to get the victory. We will not surprise them this time, so we need 40 minutes of intensity and concentration” says Patrick, hoping his team gets a huge lift by the home fans.

In the first encounter Göttingen surprised Lokomotiv and took the opening win. Chris Oliver scored 22 points and collected 11 rebounds. By half time the Violets were already up by 22 points. In the end Göttingen celebrated a 88-76 victory.

Do What You Do      Hallelujah Hollaback      ...blackhercules21...