London, Wednesday 21 January — The London Lions suffered a heartbreaking 73–72 defeat to Ratiopharm Ulm on Wednesday night, as Mark Smith buried a last-second putback at the buzzer to seal the win and officially end London’s EuroCup playoff hopes.

The Lions had fought all the way back to take a late lead behind a spectacular fourth-quarter stretch from Tarik Phillip, but Smith’s decisive finish off an offensive rebound erased London’s final defensive stand in front of a stunned Copper Box crowd.

Phillip was sensational down the stretch, repeatedly creating offence off the dribble and knocking down pressure shots to keep the Lions in front during the closing minutes. He finished with a game-high 19 points, including three three-pointers and multiple clutch floaters late in the fourth quarter.

Ulm head coach Ty Harrelson praised both the competitiveness of the contest and Phillip’s late-game brilliance.

“I thought London really fought today to try and keep their playoff hopes alive. Both teams defensively were very physical and made it difficult and then in the fourth quarter the game really opened up. I’ve gotta say Tarik Phillip was amazing in the fourth quarter, one of the best performances I’ve seen in the EuroCup this season.”

Deane Williams continued his strong form with 14 points and five rebounds, while Shavar Reynolds Jr. added 13 points and five assists. Chaundee Brown Jr. contributed 11 points, providing energy and attacking presence throughout his minutes.

For Ulm, Christian Sengfelder delivered a dominant interior performance with 23 points on 9-of-10 shooting, while Tobias Jensen added 11 points and five assists. Mark Smith, returning from injury, scored the game-winner and finished with six points, eight rebounds, and five assists.

The opening half was tightly contested, with London attacking the paint aggressively and generating frequent trips to the free-throw line, while Ulm found rhythm through ball movement and interior efficiency. Neither side was able to create meaningful separation, as momentum swung repeatedly and the game remained within one possession heading into the break.

Ulm briefly gained control in the third quarter behind timely execution and inside scoring, building a narrow advantage entering the final period — setting the stage for a dramatic finish.

The fourth quarter unfolded into a gripping back-and-forth battle. Deane Williams tied the game early with an and-one finish, while Shavar Reynolds Jr. attacked the rim to push London back in front. Both teams traded scores through the middle of the quarter, with Sengfelder continuing to punish inside and Ulm answering London’s momentum swings.

Phillip then took over late, burying a deep three and finishing consecutive floaters to give the Lions a 72–70 lead with 11.6 seconds remaining. After Ulm split free throws to trim the margin to one, London had an opportunity to close the game at the line but came up empty. A loose-ball scramble led to Ulm’s final possession, where Smith crashed the glass and converted the winning basket at the horn.

Harrelson acknowledged the emotional swing of the finish after Ulm finally found a late-game break to go their way.

“Proud of our team to lose the lead and find a way in the final moments to get the win. We’ve been on the other side of that — Besiktas hit a three on the buzzer in Ulm, and there’s been two games in the BBL we’ve lost on a last-second shot — so it was nice to finally get one go our way and sometimes that’s just the way basketball goes.”

Despite shooting 38.1% from three and forcing 15 Ulm turnovers, London were hurt by missed opportunities at the free-throw line.

Head coach Tautvydas Sabonis pointed to execution in the margins as the deciding factor.

“I think it’s self explanatory — when you miss 14 free throws out of 28, it’s hard to win a basketball game with those percentages. But I think my guys fought. With everything we have with this team at the moment with injuries, we stayed in the game, we fought, we made a run, we controlled the game at the end, it just slipped out of our hands. Little details — box outs, free throws — in a game like this every possession matters.”

The Lions now turn their attention to domestic action, traveling to face the Newcastle Eagles on Friday night at 7:30 PM.