Alba Berlin's center Koumadje suspended for one game and fined

Alba Berlin's center Khalifa Koumadje has been suspended for one game after being sent off in the top game against Niners Chemnitz. The 27-year-old was also fined 2,000 euros, as the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) announced on Thursday evening. However, the factual decision of the assault, which the referees had penalized with a disqualifying foul last Sunday, was not confirmed by the game management after reviewing the game images. However, the conduct of the 2.21-metre-tall Koumadje was deemed unsportsmanlike.

The Chadian center was involved in a scuffle with Jonas Richter from Chemnitz in the fourth minute of the game. On viewing the video footage, the referees recognized an attempted kick. Koumadje had acknowledged his misconduct, but had already been conspicuous for unsportsmanlike conduct during the season, according to the statement on the punishment. At the beginning of February, he had punched his opponent in the face in the game against Göttingen and was suspended for four games. He returned in Chemnitz.

Alba's sporting director Himar Ojeda defended his player after the game. "That was not a kick. He tried to get up, was pushed and only slipped with his foot," said the Spaniard. "Even if he reacted wrongly in the end, of course, he is a victim of this development." Shortly before, Koumadje had been violently tackled several times, but there was no whistle.