16th Matchday: Champions or runners-up - who keeps the pressure on Magdeburg?

Wednesday, 10 December

• THW Kiel had no fixture on Matchday 15 and sit fifth with 21:7 points, having played only 14 matches. Most recently, the cup winners drew 27:27 with Eisenach.
• At the bottom of the table, TVB Stuttgart are the team of the moment: after victories over relegation rivals Minden (30:27) and Leipzig (33:32), the Swabians have climbed out of the relegation zone and now sit 12th with 11:19 points.
• Kiel and Stuttgart will see the league’s second- and third-best scorers face off: Kai Häfner (Stuttgart) has scored 128 goals, while Kiel’s Elias Ellefsen á Skipagøtu has 115 from one match fewer. With 131 saves, Andreas Wolff ranks third among the goalkeepers.
• Statistically, the roles are clear: THW have won all 20 previous encounters against TVB.

• After the crucial win against Leipzig, Minden lost to Stuttgart and Magdeburg, but had the past weekend off. The promoted side currently sit 16th with 7:23 points, two points above the first relegation spot.
• HC Erlangen have earned just one point from their last four matches and most recently lost 27:35 away to Rhein-Neckar Löwen. HCE have dropped to 13th with 11:19 points.
• In the 2022/23 season, HCE won both matches against Minden, but overall GWD lead the head-to-head with nine wins to four, and have only lost twice at home to Erlangen.

• FRISCH AUF! Göppingen have taken just one point from their last three matches – a draw with Melsungen – and were chanceless in their recent 26:37 defeat to leaders Magdeburg. With an even points tally (15:15), Göppingen are 10th.
• Victory over champions Berlin and victory away at European League winners Flensburg – TBV Lemgo Lippe are flying at the moment. After four straight wins, TBV rank third with 23:7 points, level with Flensburg.
• Lemgo’s Tim Suton leads the scorers of both sides with 94 goals, while Göppingen’s top scorer is Marcel Schiller (73). In the goalkeeper rankings, Göppingen’s Kristian Sæverås (114 saves) is ahead of Lemgo’s Constantin Möstl (104).
• Last season, Göppingen remained unbeaten against Lemgo with a home win and an away draw. Overall, the record is nearly even: 26 wins for TBV compared to 22 for FRISCH AUF!.

• With their 37:26 win over FRISCH AUF! Göppingen, SC Magdeburg extended their unbeaten run to 13 wins and a draw and remain four points clear of Flensburg and Lemgo, despite having a match in hand. SCM are still the only unbeaten team in the DAIKIN HBL.
• MT Melsungen celebrated a narrow 33:32 derby victory over Wetzlar – their first after three matches without a win. With 17:13 points, they rank seventh, twelve points behind the leaders.
• Omar Ingi Magnusson has scored 107 goals and is the league’s fourth-best scorer; SCM goalkeeper Sergej Hernandez tops the keeper rankings comfortably with 158 saves.
• In the 2024/25 season, both teams won their respective home matches; overall, SCM lead the series 27:7 after 44 duels.

• After drawing with Hannover, SC DHfK Leipzig lost the “four-point match” away in Stuttgart 32:33 and remain bottom of the table, four points behind safety.
• Hamburg’s 33:29 win over Eisenach was their seventh of the season, following their surprise defeat to BHC. With 15:15 points, HSVH are ninth.
• In one category, however, the Saxons are among the top five: Domenico Ebner is fourth best goalkeeper with 125 saves. Hamburg’s Dane Nicolaj Jørgensen sits ninth among the top scorers with 84 goals.
• The teams have met only eight times in the HBL; HSV have won four, Leipzig three – and the Saxons have only won at home once.

• The narrow 32:33 derby defeat to Melsungen was Wetzlar’s ninth consecutive loss. They remain second from bottom with 5:25 points.
• Hannover have taken four points from their last four matches, most recently losing narrowly 28:32 to Füchse Berlin. They are 11th with 12:18 points.
• Hannover are unbeaten in their last three matches against Wetzlar with two wins and a draw; prior to that, the away team won four consecutive fixtures. Overall, HSG lead with 16 wins to 12.

Thursday, 11 December

• After an outstanding start with eleven matches unbeaten (two wins, nine draws), SG Flensburg-Handewitt have lost momentum since their home defeat to Magdeburg. They recently drew with Gummersbach and then lost 33:34 to Lemgo. With a match more, the runners-up sit four points behind SCM (23:7).
• One point behind SG and five behind Magdeburg are the champions from Berlin (22:8), who have already suffered four defeats but recently beat Hannover 32:28.
• Despite shoulder issues, Mathias Gidsel (Berlin) continues to lead the league’s scoring chart with 137 goals. Flensburg’s top scorer is Marko Grgic in fifth place (94). Simon Pytlick (85) and Emil Jakobsen (83) also feature in the top 10.
• Both teams face tough tasks in the Cup quarter-finals next week: Füchse host Kiel, while Flensburg travel to Magdeburg.
• Although Berlin have won three of the last five encounters, the overall record is clearly in Flensburg’s favour with 25 wins to eight; the Füchse have only won three of 20 matches in Flensburg.

• Can Bergischer HC continue their upward trend against Eisenach? Their last four matches yielded a 29:29 draw with Gummersbach and wins over Löwen and Hamburg. As 15th with 8:22 points, BHC have a three-point cushion above the relegation zone.
• One place but three points ahead of BHC are ThSV Eisenach, who recently lost 29:33 in Hamburg but previously earned a surprise point against THW Kiel.
• In next week’s Cup quarter-finals, BHC will have the chance to qualify for the Final4 for the second time, facing Melsungen.
• Eisenach have won the last three matches against BHC and lead the overall record narrowly with six wins to four.

• VfL Gummersbach are unbeaten in the last five league matches but have become draw specialists with three stalemates, the latest a 29:29 against Bergischer HC following a 37:37 in Flensburg. With 21:9 points, they sit sixth.
• Two places and five points behind them are Rhein-Neckar Löwen, who have won their last two matches against Wetzlar and Erlangen (35:27), and now have 16:14 points.
• Löwen goalkeeper David Späth has made 146 saves, 51 more than Gummersbach’s Bertram Obling. Jannick Kohlbacher leads Löwen’s scoring with 86 goals, while Julian Köster tops Gummersbach’s ranks with 71.
• VfL have won the last three meetings with Löwen but still trail significantly in the overall record: 11 wins to 23.