RheinEnergie picked up a crucial victory in the Bundesliga following a comfortable 87-68 win over EnBW Ludwigsburg.

The win allows Rhein to cement a third spot in the the league, trailing front-runners Alba Berlin and the second placed  team, GHP Bamberg.

Alba Berlin moved one step closer to finishing the season in first place after they edged Telekom Baskets Bonn 85-83.

The win leaves Henrik Rodl's side one win clear of second-placed GHP Bamberg.

Alba, Bamberg and Rhein are now certain of their place in the end-of season play-offs and look set to provide an exciting finale for fans of the Bundesliga.

Rhein have already impressed the German basketball fans with their march to the quarter-finals of the EuroCup this year and Sasa Obradovic's side will be among the favourites to cap their season off with the German title.

Defending champions Bamberg, who defeated BS|Energy Braunschweig 78-69, could also defend their title, but it is Alba who remain at the top of the tree.

The on-form Berlin outfit also remain on course for a domestic double as they prepare to face Ludwigsburg in a BBL-Pokal quarter-final on Wednesday.

Despite that, head coach Rodl was not overjoyed with his side's marginal victory over Bonn.

He said: "We need to improve significantly for our vital game with Ludwigsburg on Wednesday night."

A third-quarter collapse by Alba almost allowed Bonn to steal the points as they continue their quest for a play-off place, but Rodl's side done just enough to hold on.

That means Mike Koch's side remain in eighth place, a position which would see them involved in a play-off rematch with Berlin should each side remain in their current position.

The game lacked the dynamic play Branko Klepac had brought to the occasion in recent years and Koch paid tribute to the 26-year-old, who announced his retirement last Monday after learning he had multiple sclerosis.

"We pushed Alba right to the very end and our performance was devoted to Klepac," said Koch.

At the bottom of the table, five teams are still battling it out to beat the drop.

BG Karlsruhe picked up an important 72-68 win against the EWE Baskets Oldenburg while the Walter Tigers Tubingen went down 79-73 to fourth-placed Eisbaren Bremerhaven - a result which leaves them just one defeat away from the bottom two.

Braunschweig's defeat to Bamberg leaves them rooted to the bottom while the Deutsche Bank Skyliners joined them in the bottom two after losing to the Giessen 46ers in overtime.

It is the first time the 2004 German champions Frankfurt have slipped into the relegation zone this season, but they continue to attract a sizeable support.

On Sunday a sell-out 5,002 witnessed them lose for the third successive match.

Charlse Baton's side will need that support for their remaining four games of the season but it will not be easy to turn their poor form around, especially with Bamberg awaiting in their next game on Sunday.