Eurocup: Herbalife Gran Canaria run snapped
The Eurocup Last 32 is now in its third week of competition and groups G through N are starting to take shape. There are plenty of discussion points from all the action on Wednesday evening, but the story of the day is arguably a first defeat of this season’s Eurocup for Gran Canaria. Bayern Munich and Lokomotiv Kuban managed to stay unbeaten at this stage, while Lietuvos Rytas and Unics Kazan both broke the century mark on the way to home wins.
Group G
Unics Kazan recovered from its weekend loss in the VTB United League with a cruising 103-67 win over fellow Russian club Zenit St. Petersburg. The victory pushed Unics to 2-1, the same record as Zenit. Keith Langford was once again the driving force for Unics with 24 points, followed closely by James White with 23 points. Strasbourg joined the Russian clubs on 2-1 in Group G with an 87-80 home win over Czech giant CEZ Nymburk, a victory fuelled by Antoine Diot who shot 6 from 7 on his way to 30 points for the French winners. Tadija Dragicevic had 17 of his 22 points in the first half and helped Strasbourg to a midway lead that they never looked back from.
Group H
Herbalife Gran Canaria Las Palmas had won every game before tonight, but in the Eurocup Last 32 and after 12 unbeaten games the Spanish club met its match. Home team Banvit Bandirma downed Gran Canaria 80-70 to join the club on a 2-1 record. The Turkish club controlled the game and led from the opening tip off to the closing buzzer and looked to Can Maxim Mutaf, who drained 5 triples on his way to 22 points. Suad Sehovic was the star of the show for Buducnost VOLI Podgorica as the team collected its first Last 32 win with a 93-86 success over Dinamo Banco di Sardegna Sassari. Sehovic was big from beyond the arc as he propelled his team to 35 first frame points and he eventually plundered 27 points. Sassari went big with a 2-19 rally in the fourth, but the Italian outfit left it too late.
Group I
Virtus Roma joined Cedevita on 2-1 at the top of Group I with a 73-66 home win over the Croatian club. The Rome hosts led 39-31 at the long break, but a 0-14 run in the third gave Cedevita the lead heading into the final act. Virtus rallied to come back and take the spoils, thanks in part to a big performance in the paint from Jordan Morgan with 17 points and 12 boards in the key area. Krasny Oktyabr Volgograd eased past CAI Zaragoza 71-66 in the chasing pack, with both teams now on a 1-2 record. It was the Russian clubs’ first win of the Eurocup Last 32 this season, while Zaragoza could not build off last week’s win.
Group J
Group J is the one to watch if you like unpredictable hoops and want the outcome to go down to the wire; it is the only group where all the teams were locked (1-1) heading into this round. That changed this evening as Limoges CSP and Khimki Moscow Region both collected wins to progress to 2-1 at the top of standings. Adrien Moerman led French club Limoges with a double-double of 20 points and 11 caroms as they defeated FoxTown Cantu 81-70. Khimki saw off PAOK Thessaloniki 78-82 in Greece to collect an important road win.
Group K
Bayern Munich remained unbeaten since dropping from the Euroleague with an 80-90 road victory over Union Olimpija Ljubljana. It was not a cruise for the German champs though as they trailed by 14 points through halftime, but a 0-19 flurry in the fourth stanza secured the win. A win against Olimpija in the reverse game next week will send Bayern through to the next round. It was a night of celebration for JDA Dijon as the club nailed its first ever Eurocup Last 32 win, a 81-86 away victory over German outfit Brose Baskets Bamberg. Steven Gray led the winning effort with 22 point, including the two three pointers that ultimately won the game.
Group L
Three teams share the lead in Group L after Wednesday’s games. Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius deconstructed Baloncesto Seville on the hardwood on the way to a 100-78 win in the Lithuanian capital. Martynas Gecevicius hauled 26 points, 7 from downtown and 7 boards on the way to the win as the hosts controlled much of the game in a routine victory. Telenet Ostend handed PGE Turow its first loss with a 99-71 home win, with the Belgian club sinking 15 of its 32 attempts from downtown in an impressive shooting performance. Michal Chylinski set the tone with 28 points for the winners.
Group M
Pinar Karsiyaka Izmir’s impressive continental campaign continued as the team moved to 3-0 in Group M with a 75-85 win away to Paris-Levallois. The Turkish club had Bobby Dixon providing the attacking impetus with 22 points and 5 assists, Kenny Gabriel posted 17 points and 7 rebounds for the winners. Besiktas Integral Forex Istanbul left it late to see off Neptunas Klaipeda and leave Lithuania with a 63-69 victory. The Turkish club had controlled for much of the game, but the hosts hit back late and made it nervy down the stretch, but Besiktas held on.
Group N
SLUC Nancy has been one of the more impressive home teams this season, winning five from six before tonight, but Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar still claimed a 57-66 road win in France. The Russian club remains unbeaten in 13 Eurocup games this season and surely has one eye on the ultimate prize come May. Current champs Valencia could not bounce back from last week’s defeat to Lokomotiv, with the Spanish club being shocked at home by CSU Asesoft Ploiesti. The Romanians came away from Valencia with an 87-92 win in arguably the shock of the week.