Marco Buljevic (197-G-87, agency: Court Side) is a 21 year old swingman that is playing his first season with the EWE Baskets Oldenburg. He is seen as being one of Germanys most talented players from the birth year 1987. After playing in Ehingen(2 Bundesliga) and then going to Giessen and playing little there, he decided to move north and seek his luck with Oldenburg. It is never easy to find playing time for a team that has such a deep roster, but Marco has a very focused attitude and hopes to find his way into the rotation as the season progresses. Eurobasket was able to interview the 197 cm guard.

Hi Marco, thanks for taking some time to speak to eurobasket. com. This is your first season in Oldenburg. Why did you decide to go up north and join a team that has many offensive weapons?

First of all it's a great honor to be a part of a team that has high ambitions in three different competitions. To me it is as important as it is for a young player to be on the floor a lot and to have the opportunity to work out and practice on a very high level every single day with great coaches and good teammates. This opportunity was given to me here in Oldenburg and I am absolutely sure that I will learn a lot and improve my game.

What are the biggest differences between Giessen and Oldenburg?

Oldenburg is a bigger city than Giessen so there's a couple more things you can do here.


Do you have compassion for Giessen, who currently is going through so much problems with money, results and getting stuck in traffic?

I do. I have a lot of friends on that team. They have a bunch of players who already had to deal with difficult situations in their careers before and managed to still focus on basketball. I wish them nothing but the best.


Coach Simon Cote seems to be giving every one a lot of playing time. Even guys like Florian Hartensetin is having a late career awakening and Johannes Lischka is getting playing time. He recently played 36 minutes in cup play in a losing cause to Bonn. Do you feel a little unlucky because you might have goten more time under Simon Cote?

I'm not a person who looks back and says maybe I should have done this or that. I made a decision and have to live with it. After two years I felt it was time for me to move on. I don't have any regrets.


You have only played in five games and averaged three minutes per game. You are still young, but still you cant be happy about this situation in Oldenburg.

Every player wants to be on the floor a lot, but not every player can. So there are two options if you're a player who doesn't play a lot. First option is you are frustrated 24/7. You blame everybody else accept yourself for the situation. Second option is you use all your energy to improve your game. Go extremly hard every practice, do a lot of extra individual workouts, lift weights as hard as you can. Do whatever you need to do in order to still get better while not playing a lot. I believe in the second option.

You are considered one of the biggest German talents out of the year 1987. Is this a lot of pressure for you and how do go about handling the situation?

I don't feel any pressure at all. Actually there's even more talk and hype going on about other players from my generation right now. But that's fine with me. I always came from the background when they least expected me. I know my time will come!

What has coach Predrag Krunic been telling you? Does he give you confidence that you will play more in the future?

He has been telling me to always be ready during the game. And that's what I do. I physicaly and mentaly prepare for every single game like all the other players on our team. So whenever coach has the feeling he could use my services I will be able to perform well.

How is your relationship to coach Predrag Krunic. What have you learned from him?

We have a good relationship. It's impressive and I really appreciate how much free time he sacrifices to do individual workouts with me. That shows me that he cares about my development and makes me a better player. The most important thing I have learned from him is to be tough on the floor all the time. Especially on defense he expects nothing less than 100% effort.

It must be difficult playing behind the big three American Musketters Foster, Paulding and Gardner who play the guard position?What are the most important things that you have learned from them?

I don't view it as difficult. I feel blessed to have the opportunity to play against them in practice every day. I try to learn as many good things from them as I can.

How is the team chemistry this early in season?

The chemistry in our team is great. Eight players from last season's successful team stayed here so it was only jekel, marko and me who had to get integrated. The guys made us feel like we are part of the familiy from day one.

Besides the three Americans, you have two guys from Croatia and three guys from Serbia. How does this eastern block flair help shape the team into a well rounded club?

Every single player on the team helps to make it a well rounded club. To me it's even more impressive how good the chemistry is when you look at how many different nationalities are represented on this team.


How is your relationship to the other Americans? Do they stay together or do they bond with the others

My relationship with the Americans is good. All of them are not only great players but also have great characters. They absolutely bond with everybody else.

Rueben Boumtje Boumtje is a basketball veteran, who really cleans up under the basket. He always looks so focused on the court. Does he ever laugh?

He is one of the funniest guys on the team. Great teammate. Pleasure to be on the same team with him.

Oldenburg is one of the top teams in the BBL this season. What makes the team so special?

We play unselfish basketball. That's what's special about our team.

You are quite a big guard at 196m. Your known for being a shooter, but what other qualities can you offer at the guard position?

I think I do a solid job at finding open teammates.

Iowa St. sophomore Lucca Staiger (196-G-88) averaged 16.5 points and made 11-of-16 3-point attempts last week to help him earn Big 12 Rookie of the Week honors, announced today by the Big 12 Conference office.

The honor was awarded for the week of Dec. 8-14 and voted on by a panel of media covering Big 12 mens hoops.

A native of Blaustein, Germany, Staiger recorded a career-high 24 points vs. Drake behind a career-high eight 3-pointers on 11 attempts. Staiger, who made his first six 3-point attempts in the game, fell one shy from the school mark for 3-pointers made in a game (8), tying for second on ISUs single-game list.

Staiger followed up his Drake performance with nine points on 3-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc at Iowa. Staiger has made 62.5 percent (15-of-24) from 3-point range in his last three games, averaging 5.0 3-pointers made per game during that span. His season 47.8 percent clip from downtown currently ranks fifth in the Big 12.

Source: http://www.cyclones.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10700&ATCLID=3633456

Saturday night in FEB action, Hanzevast Capitals win once again in a blowout fashion, this time on the road over Landstede Basketball, while ZZ Leiden wins its second straight and Rotterdam Challengers win in Den Helder.

In the ZBC-hal, strong on-the-ball pressure, hard crashing of the offensive glass and a great inside-outside balance was the name of the game for Hanzevast Capitals, who were in charge from start to finish, winning in a 102-76 blowout over Landstede Basketball. Hanzevast's ball pressure and denials forced Landstede out of their comfort zones and to catch entry passes much further the three-point line. While it did not help Landstede's cause with the absence of Robby Bostain (191-G/F-84, agency: Sports Plus International, college: Furman) (foot injury), Hanzevast did not seem to miss the presence of Rogier Jansen (188-G-84, agency: Court Side) (suspension). Lead guard Torey Thomas (180-G-85, agency: Interperformances, college: Holy Cross) set the tone for Hanzevast, with strong ball pressure that helped turn defense into offense, and with the ability to get in the lane at will, setting himself up for drives or penetrate-kick looks. This also opened up offensive rebounding and postup opportunities for Hanzevast, who took advanatge of Landstede's interior defense, which is their Achilles' heel at this moment. Landstede had trouble getting defensive stops on the inside, and with excellent perimeter shooting and crisp passing, double teams in the post were not an option for Landstede. Landstede managed to remain close at the end of the 1st quarter thanks to the efforts of Frank Young (196-F-84, agency: Pro One Sports, college: W.Virginia) and Gerad Punch (193-G/F-84, college: Furman), who were behind 29-23 at the end of the quarter.

In the 2nd quarter, things got worse for Landstede (and got better for Hanzevast), with Landstede turning the ball over early in the quarter. Hanzevast executed their halfcourt pick-and-roll game to a science, with crisp passing and aggressive drives to the hoop. Role players for Donar such as Aaron Roye (185-G-88, agency: R.H.Consultancy), Bas Rozendaal (212-F/C-86, agency: R.H.Consultancy) and Sander de Roos (195-F-91) also made important contributions for Hanzevast. Two consecutive dunks from Ransford Brempong (203-F-81, college: W.Carolina) off penetration dishes and a three-pointer by sniper Will Whittington (191-G/F-84, agency: 540 Sports, college: Marist) helped Hanzevast to a 57-32 halftime lead.

In the 2nd half it would get no closer than 13 the rest of the way, as Hanzevats continued to dominate on the offensive glass, and Thomas continued to attack off the dribble at will, with each time gaining more success than anticipated. In the end, while both teams had little trouble putting the ball in the basket (Hanzevast 62.8% FG, Landstede 63.3% FG), the difference was that Hanzevast forced Landstede into coughing up the ball 25 times, had also 15 offensive rebounds, including five each by Brempong and Simon Conn (206-F/C-83, agency: R.H.Consultancy, college: Gardner-Webb). Hanzevast also had 35 pts. from the Landstede turnovers and 20 second chance pts. Both Conn and Brempong led six Hanzevast players in double figures with 17 pts each, with both having double-doubles (Conn 11 rebounds, Brempong 10). Thomas added 15 pts. and 8 assists, while Whittington also added 15 with four three-pointers. Young led Landstede with 17. Hanzevast improves to 10-6 and tied for 2nd place in the FEB with Eiffel Towers, while Landstede falls to 8-9.