ETB Miners — RheinStars Köln: 85:91, Pro A

ETB Miners lost 85 to 91 to Rheinstars Köln in the Pro A on October 4th. The visitors took control when it mattered most, despite a strong start from the home side. To be fair, the scoreline doesn't tell the whole story of how this one unfolded.

By then the Miners had built momentum, but Köln responded with efficiency from beyond the arc. The hosts shot just 4 from 14 on three-pointers while the visitors converted 6 of their 14 attempts. And here's the thing — it wasn't about volume, it was about who took the shots when the game was on the line.

Field goal accuracy told a different tale. Both sides made 29 attempts from the field, yet Köln hit 13 compared to the Miners' 9. The visitors also went perfect from the free-throw line, making all 8 attempts while ETB missed 2 of 8. By then the gap had opened enough that even a late push couldn't close it.

On the boards the story was more even. Miners grabbed 17 rebounds to Köln's 18, with the home side winning the offensive rebound battle 9 to 5. But assists told another story entirely — the hosts moved the ball with 9 assists while Köln managed just 5. Things came to a head when the visitors stopped forcing shots and let the game find them.

Köln sit 12th in the Pro A table with 14 wins from 34 games. They had looked vulnerable after their 73 to 90 defeat to Paderborn on October 2nd, but this result showed they could still compete at this level. The Miners, meanwhile, had already suffered a heavy 74 to 118 loss to USC Heidelberg just two days before.

What this means for the table is that Köln remain in the mix despite their position. They've lost more than they've won but they're not out of contention yet. The Miners will need to find consistency if they want to turn things around.