Horsens IC played one of their best games ever in their third semi-final game against Næstved.

Horsens: – Yeah, man. We played great basketball tonight. It was teamwork. And we will take down Bakken Bears [reigning Danish champions] too – because we have the best coach in Denmark…

That was the reaction from topscorer Darryl Tucker after the semifinals against [Team FOG] Næstved.

– We didn’t play this well in the beginning of the season, but the coach has made us all better. We work hard. We work as a team now, and we’re also prepared for the finals, said Darryl Tucker.

– We are patient, and once we get started, we play as champions, says Brandon Tabb. In the Cup, we proved that we can beat Bakken Bears. We are the champions, because we are the Cup winners, and we will keep playing like this in the finals.

Charles Callison had lots of fans to attend to before he was ready to talk to us.

– We were mentally prepared for this game against Næstved. What do you say? A 15-0 lead. Næstved came here with a good team, and this was the final call for them, but they didn’t get a chance. We played beautiful. I hope the spectators enjoyed watching us play. This was great preparation for the finals, and we are ready now, said Charles Callison.

Head Coach Arnel Dedic is more cautious.

– I also believe we can do it, but it’s easier to win one cup game than a series of seven games.

– Our team is much stronger than last year. We’ve had our ups and downs, but we always came back stronger and progressed during the entire season.

– Take a player like Brandon Tabb, for instance. When he arrived here, he was like a big kid. Now he’s one of the best players in the league, and he’s also strong on defence and works hard for the team. Everyone is serious, and I was happy to see the way we defeated Næstved. This was our best game in two years, but Næstved suits us well and provided an opportunity for us to look good.

– My biggest concern is that there is a long break before the first game of the finals against Bakken Bears. This means that we may not be great in the first game. We will of course be great in game two, but we will need a practice opponent leading up to 2 May [the date of the first of seven finals games], so we can show what we’ve been working on at practice, Arnel Dedic said.

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This article is a translation of the original Danish article ”Amerikanerne: Vi tager også Bakken Bears i finalen” (by Tommy Poulsen), Horsens Folkeblad, 18 April 2019

Translation from Danish into English by: Brit Sørensen / BS Sports & Media

Photo credit: Dansk Basketball Forbund