Science City Jena

Science City Jena
LeaguesProA
Founded1994; 30 years ago (1994)
HistoryTuS Jena
1994–2002
Baskets Jena
2002–2007
Science City Jena
2007–2021
Medipolis SC Jena
2021-2024
Science City Jena
2024-present
ArenaSparkassen Arena
Capacity3,000
LocationJena, Germany
PresidentDietmar Bendix
Head coachBjörn Harmsen
Championships1 ProA
Websitewww.baskets-jena.de

Science City Jena[1] is a basketball club based in Jena, Germany that plays in the ProA. Their home court is the Sparkassen Arena, which seats 3,000. Their current head coach is Björn Harmsen.

The team was known as Erdgas Baskets Jena through the 2006 season, then as POM Baskets Jena, then Science City Jena in 2007.[2] After being renamed to Medipolis SC Jena in 2021[3] due to sponsoring reasons, the name Science City Jena was again used from the 2024/25 season on.[4] In the 2015–16 season, they won their first ProA title and promoted to the Bundesliga.

History

Although never a big sport in the former East Germany, basketball was played in Jena since the 1960s. In 1994, a new basketball program was found in the "Turn- und Sportverein (TuS) Jena". Starting in the lower divisions the club gained promotion to the second division (2. Liga Süd) in 2001. Once established in professional sports the club started to become a basketball only organization with the founding of the Baskets Jena GmbH which now holds the license.

The biggest success so far has been the promotion to the 1st division (BBL) in 2007. The stay in the top league lasted only one year with the club finishing last after an eventful year. With the promotion, the team switched to the bigger "JenArena" which allowed attendances up to 3.000 in a temporary construction. Financial difficulties in maintaining the "JenArena" led to a return to the gym "Werner-Seelenbinder-Halle".

In the 2015–16 season, Jena won the ProA championship by beating SC Rasta Vechta in the Finals and was promoted back to the Bundesliga.[5]

In 2021, the team changed its name from Science City Jena to Medipolis SC Jena.[6]

For the 2024/25, the team changed its name back to Science City Jena.[7]

Honours

Champions: 2015–16

Season by season

Season Tier League Pos. Cup European competitions
2013–14 2 ProA 5th
2014–15 2 ProA 5th
2015–16 2 ProA 1st
2016–17 1 Bundesliga 13th
2017–18 1 Bundesliga 13th
2018–19 1 Bundesliga 18th Quarterfinals
2019–20 2 ProA 4th
2020-21 2 ProA 4th
2021–22 2 ProA 3rd
2022–23 2 ProA 15th
2023–24 2 ProA 5th
2024–25 2 ProA 5th First round

Players

Current roster

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

Medipolis SC Jena roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Nat. Name Ht. Wt. Age
C 1 United States Morgan, Raymar 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 105 kg (231 lb) 36 – (1988-08-08)8 August 1988
G 2 Germany Falkental, Raphael 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) 79 kg (174 lb) 19 – (2005-06-17)17 June 2005
G 3 United States Cooks, Zach 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) 71 kg (157 lb) 25 – (1999-04-03)3 April 1999
G 5 Germany Carter, Christopher John 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 94 kg (207 lb) 32 – (1992-05-07)7 May 1992
F 8 Germany Christen, Robin 2.02 m (6 ft 8 in) 105 kg (231 lb) 33 – (1991-04-19)19 April 1991
C 11 Germany Lodders, Robin 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) 107 kg (236 lb) 29 – (1994-11-30)30 November 1994
F 23 United States Moore, Rasheed 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 107 kg (236 lb) 29 – (1995-05-13)13 May 1995
F 25 Germany Bank, Lorenz 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 95 kg (209 lb) 23 – (2001-04-06)6 April 2001
PF 35 Germany Haukohl, Stephan 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 101 kg (223 lb) 31 – (1993-06-27)27 June 1993
G 36 Germany Krause, Kristofer 190 m (623 ft 4 in) 83 kg (183 lb) 24 – (2000-03-06)6 March 2000
C 41 United States Herrera, Alex 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) 112 kg (247 lb) 32 – (1992-08-15)15 August 1992
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
  • United States Kendall Chones
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • Injured Injured
Updated: September 17, 2024

Notable players

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

Criteria

To appear in this section a player must have either:

  • Set a club record or won an individual award while at the club
  • Played at least one official international match for their national team at any time
  • Played at least one official NBA match at any time.

References

  1. ^ "Home: baskets-jena.de". baskets-jena.de. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  2. ^ SCIENCE CITY JENA (GER-1.BUNDESLIGA) MEN
  3. ^ "Neuer Name: Aus Science City Jena wird Medipolis SC Jena". baskets-jena.de. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  4. ^ "Back to the Roots – Science City Jena ist zurück". baskets-jena.de. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  5. ^ "ProA Meister 2015/16: Science City Jena". Schoenen-dunk.de. 8 May 2016.
  6. ^ "Neuer Name, neues Logo: Aus Science City Jena wird Medipolis SC Jena" (in German). Medipolis SC Jena. 27 July 2021. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  7. ^ "Back to the Roots – Science City Jena ist zurück" (in German). Medipolis SC Jena. 30 June 2024. Retrieved 17 September 2024.