Alba Berlin has won its fourth consecutive victory in the basketball Bundesliga. The reigning champion defeated the Syntainics MBC from Weißenfels with 86:60 (37:29) in the east derby.

The albatrosses thus caught up with leaders Telekom Baskets Bonn. Both clubs have a record of ten wins and one loss, Bonn is first thanks to the better point difference.

The guests balanced the game for 18 minutes, by then the Berliners had already lost the ball ten times. But in the last 97 seconds before the break, the hosts pulled away with a 10-0 run. The reigning champions controlled the game in the second half, and six minutes before the end the hosts were 20 points behind for the first time. National basketball player Johannes Thiemann scored each of his 13 points in the first half and didn't miss a shot.

Calles celebrates successful return to Hamburg

Meanwhile, the EWE Baskets Oldenburg are exacerbating the crisis at the Veolia Towers Hamburg. With a 96:95 (53:47) away win, the Lower Saxony inflicted the sixth defeat in a row on Hamburg. DeWayne Russell hit an attempt at the line four seconds from time, with Trey Drechsel leading the visitors by 27 points.

Oldenburg coach Pedro Calles celebrated a successful return to Hamburg, where the Spaniard had trained for the past two seasons. Calles' successor at the Towers Raoul Korner was absent due to illness, with the actual assistant coach Benka Barloschky standing on the sidelines for him.