Berlin sweeps Belgrade; Darwin Cook Effigy Burned by Fans
May 4, 2015 21:03:12 GMT -6
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Post by Belgrade on May 4, 2015 21:03:12 GMT -6
Berlin sweeps Belgrade
Summary:
Game 1: Berlin 104, Belgrade 97
Game 2: Berlin 95, Belgrade 90
Game 3: Berlin 85, Belgrade 83
Game 4: Berlin 103, Belgrade 92
Questionable lineup changes made by Belgrade
With a tough first round matchup, Belgrade management felt the need to switch up their strategy in order to compete with Berlin. Larry Bird and Charles Barkley swapped positions, with Bird playing the 4 and Barkley playing the 3. The two had not played in these positions in any regular season games.
In three regular season meetings, Berlin easily beat Belgrade each time:
In the first meeting, Oscar Schmidt schooled Barkley, dropping 39 while Barkley only mustered 14. Larry Bird was not a part of the Belgrade organization at this time.
In the second meeting, Barkley was able to score 23 points, but was surpassed again by Schmidt who had 27. Bird had just 6 points.
In the third meeting, Schmidt went off on Barkley again dropping 42. Barkley was able to score 20 before fouling out. Bird scored 19. Alex English was not with Berlin during any of the three meetings.
Bird contains Schmidt, but English buries Barkley
It was clear to Belgrade management that Schmidt was not a good matchup for Barkley, who averaged 27.5ppg during the regular season. While Schmidt is a strong post defender, he is incredibly weak on the outside. This presented an opportunity for Belgrade to throw the 6'9'' Bird at the 4 position, in an effort to stretch Schmidt away from the basket.
Bird vs Schmidt
Game 1: Bird 29 pts, Schmidt 25 pts
Game 2: Bird 26 pts, Schmidt 25 pts
Game 3: Bird 19 pts, Schmidt 25 pts
Game 4: Bird 29 pts, Schmidt 30 pts
The Bird vs Schmidt experiment went as planned for Belgrade as Schmidt did not score more than 30 in any game and Bird averaged 25.8 ppg, better than his 18.4 ppg during the regular season, and better than Barkleys results against Schmidt in the 3 previous meetings.
For Belgrade to succeed, however, they would still need production from Barkley and their guards, Cook and Maravich. English, acquired late in the season by Berlin, was up to the task.
Barkley vs English
Game 1: Barkley 19 pts, English 20 pts
Game 2: Barkley 18 pts, English 26 pts
Game 3: Barkley 15 pts, English 14 pts
Game 4: Barkley 24 pts, English 20 pts
Analysts are still in disagreement whether the experiment was Belgrade's best shot at winning. Some believe that had Barkley played the 4 he would have had the same level of production as he did against English, while Bird would not have been as successful against English as he was against Schmidt. Others believe Belgrade's logic on the change was unfounded and that they should have gone in with their regular lineup.
Cook averages just 9.5ppg in series; fans burn effigy in streets of Belgrade
While Berlin won the series in straight sets, the average win spread was just 6 points per game. Belgrade management was hoping to get much more production from their guards, specifically Darwin Cook, who averaged 15.6 ppg during the regular season. Belgrade felt that if they had any advantage on Berlin in the series, it was at the guard position. In the end, Cook averaged just 9.5 ppg in the 4 games, on just 27% shooting. Rumours immediately hit the twitter-sphere that Belgrade management was ready to ship Cook out at the next opportunity. When reached for comment, Belgrade management shot down the rumours saying they would let their emotions settle before making any decisions.
Belgrade fans were not as reasonable, taking to Belgrade streets and burning an effigy of Cook
Summary:
- Questionable lineup changes made by Belgrade
- Bird contains Schmidt, but English buries Barkley
- Cook averages just 9.5ppg in series; fans burn effigy in streets of Belgrade
Game 1: Berlin 104, Belgrade 97
Game 2: Berlin 95, Belgrade 90
Game 3: Berlin 85, Belgrade 83
Game 4: Berlin 103, Belgrade 92
Questionable lineup changes made by Belgrade
With a tough first round matchup, Belgrade management felt the need to switch up their strategy in order to compete with Berlin. Larry Bird and Charles Barkley swapped positions, with Bird playing the 4 and Barkley playing the 3. The two had not played in these positions in any regular season games.
In three regular season meetings, Berlin easily beat Belgrade each time:
- Berlin 97, Belgrade 84
- Berlin 113, Belgrade 86
- Berlin 117, Belgrade 99
In the first meeting, Oscar Schmidt schooled Barkley, dropping 39 while Barkley only mustered 14. Larry Bird was not a part of the Belgrade organization at this time.
In the second meeting, Barkley was able to score 23 points, but was surpassed again by Schmidt who had 27. Bird had just 6 points.
In the third meeting, Schmidt went off on Barkley again dropping 42. Barkley was able to score 20 before fouling out. Bird scored 19. Alex English was not with Berlin during any of the three meetings.
Bird contains Schmidt, but English buries Barkley
It was clear to Belgrade management that Schmidt was not a good matchup for Barkley, who averaged 27.5ppg during the regular season. While Schmidt is a strong post defender, he is incredibly weak on the outside. This presented an opportunity for Belgrade to throw the 6'9'' Bird at the 4 position, in an effort to stretch Schmidt away from the basket.
Bird vs Schmidt
Game 1: Bird 29 pts, Schmidt 25 pts
Game 2: Bird 26 pts, Schmidt 25 pts
Game 3: Bird 19 pts, Schmidt 25 pts
Game 4: Bird 29 pts, Schmidt 30 pts
The Bird vs Schmidt experiment went as planned for Belgrade as Schmidt did not score more than 30 in any game and Bird averaged 25.8 ppg, better than his 18.4 ppg during the regular season, and better than Barkleys results against Schmidt in the 3 previous meetings.
For Belgrade to succeed, however, they would still need production from Barkley and their guards, Cook and Maravich. English, acquired late in the season by Berlin, was up to the task.
Barkley vs English
Game 1: Barkley 19 pts, English 20 pts
Game 2: Barkley 18 pts, English 26 pts
Game 3: Barkley 15 pts, English 14 pts
Game 4: Barkley 24 pts, English 20 pts
Analysts are still in disagreement whether the experiment was Belgrade's best shot at winning. Some believe that had Barkley played the 4 he would have had the same level of production as he did against English, while Bird would not have been as successful against English as he was against Schmidt. Others believe Belgrade's logic on the change was unfounded and that they should have gone in with their regular lineup.
Cook averages just 9.5ppg in series; fans burn effigy in streets of Belgrade
While Berlin won the series in straight sets, the average win spread was just 6 points per game. Belgrade management was hoping to get much more production from their guards, specifically Darwin Cook, who averaged 15.6 ppg during the regular season. Belgrade felt that if they had any advantage on Berlin in the series, it was at the guard position. In the end, Cook averaged just 9.5 ppg in the 4 games, on just 27% shooting. Rumours immediately hit the twitter-sphere that Belgrade management was ready to ship Cook out at the next opportunity. When reached for comment, Belgrade management shot down the rumours saying they would let their emotions settle before making any decisions.
Belgrade fans were not as reasonable, taking to Belgrade streets and burning an effigy of Cook
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