Rixos Cup 6: Besiktas, Olympiacos take Game 1

Rixos Cup

Olympiacos’ Acie Law looks for an opening between Budivelnik defenders as the two-time defending Euroleague champions continue their pre-season preparations by competing in the Rixos Cup 6 in Istanbul, Turkey.

The Sixth Annual Rixos Cup tipped off in Istanbul on Tuesday with the first two games of the preliminary round. In the annual pre-season tip-off competition, the Rixos Cup features six teams divided into two groups that play over three days to determine the rankings within the groups, with the first place team from each group playing for the Cup, the second place teams playing for third place and the third play teams playing for fifth place.

This year’s clubs consist of five teams that will be playing in the Euroleague, two-time defending Euroleague champions Olympiacos Piraeus (Greece), Budivelnik Kiev (Ukraine), Anadolu Efes (Turkey), Fenerbahce Ulker (Turkey), Zalgiris Kaunas (Lithuania), and Besiktas Integral Forex (Turkey), who will compete in the Eurocup this season after playing the in the Euroleague during the 2012-13 campaign.

Group A
Olympiacos Piraeus, Greece
Budivelnik Kiev, Ukraine
Anadolu Efes, Turkey

Group B
Fenerbahce Ulker, Turkey
Besiktas Integral Forex, Turkey
Zalgiris Kaunas, Lithuania

Preliminary Round
Tue., Sept. 24
Besiktas Integral Forex – Fenerbahce Ulker, 56:49
Besiktas opened the Sixth Annual Rixos Cup with a big 56:49 win over cross-town rivals Fenerbahce Ulker. Besiktas opened the contest with a 18:6 first quarter, holding the Fenerbahce squad to just six points in the opening frame to build a 12-point advantage. That margin would be short-lived though as Ulker would roar back to put up 21 in the second frame, while tightening their defense to allow their rivals a mere five in the second 10. Fenerbahce took a 27:23 lead into the mid-game break. Besiktas cut two off their deficit in the third and pulled away down the stretch to pick up a game one win, 56:49.

Chris Lofton led Besiktas with 12, while Caner Topaloglu added 11. Emir Preldzic was the only member of the Fenerbahce contingent that scored in double figures as he dropped 17.

Olympiacos Piraeus – Budivelnik Kiev, 80:72
Olympiacos, the two-time defending Euroleague champions, continued their pre-season preparation in hopes of a three-peat in the Euroleague, with an 80:72 victory over Budivelnik Kiev in Game 1 of the Rixos Cup. Playing without their floor leader, Euroleague MVP Vassilis Spanoulis, the Greek squad turned those leadership duties over to Acie Law, who led the Reds with 15 points. Budivelnik, who will be the first Ukrainian team to compete in the Euroleague, outscored Olympiacos for the first three quarters, opening up a 25:18 advantage after the first 10, taking a 43:33 lead into the intermission after an 18:15 second frame, and adding a point to the margin with a 20:19 third quarter to head into the final frame up 63:52. Olympiacos turned things around in the fourth, outscoring the Ukrainian squad 28:9 in the final 10, to take Game 1 of the competition 80:72.

Law was game-high for Olympiacos with 15, Bryant Dunston added 13, and Konstanitinos Sloukas dropped in 11. Michailis Anisimovas and Sergiy Gorbenko each scored 13 for Budivelnik, with Blake Ahearn adding 12.

Wed., Sept. 25
18:00 Budivelnik Kiev – Anadolu Efes
20:15 Besiktas Integral Forex – Zalgiris Kaunas

Thurs., Sept. 26
18:00 Anadolu Efes – Olympiacos Piraeus
20:15 Zalgiris Kaunas Fenerbahce Ulker

Final Round
Fri., Sept. 27
15:45 Fifth Place Game
18:00 Third Place Game
20:15 Championship Game

Leave a Comment

You must be logged in to post a comment.