Euroleague Regular Season Round 3

The 2014/2015 Euroleague Regular Season The 2014/2015 Euroleague Regular Season has entered the third round of the group stage with six clashes taking place around the continent on Thursday. Friday will see another 12 teams take to the hardwood to complete the week’s action.

Group A

Anadolu Efes Istanbul vs. Zalgiris Kaunas, 62-65
Lithuanian powerhouse Zalgiris travelled to Turkey to take on Efes at the Ipekci Arena in Istanbul. The visitors needed all of the clock to win the game, but collected their second victory of the Euroleague Regular Season, while Anadolu Efes received their first blemish.

The hosts took an early 4-0 lead, but Kaunas responded and the games traded down the first quarter, ending the opening period with Zalgiris edging 13-16 in front. The visitors extended their advantage through the second frame, a 6-0 run late in the half securing a 26-34 lead at the midway point. The teams could not be separated as they went bucket for bucket through the third stanza, tying the quarter to keep the deficit at eight points (42-50). Efes put pressure on Zalgiris in the last quarter, but the minutes dried up and Edgaras Ulanovas claimed the win with two late free throws.

Ulanovas set the tone for the winners with 19 points and 7 rebounds, while Arturas Milaknis secured 14 points.

Nenad Kristic paced the Turkish team with 22 points, but was alone in reaching double figures.

Unics Kazan vs. Dinamo Banco di Sardegna Sassari, 85-62
Unics Kazan swept Italian club Sassari aside with a crushing victory in Russia. Kazan rarely looked troubled after weathering the Italian storm in the second quarter and picked up its first win in the process. Sassari is left languishing at the foot of Group A with a poor 0-3 record.

Unics pulled ahead early in proceedings and managed to maintain a lead throughout the opening quarter, carving out a 21-17 lead at the first split. The hosts continued to control the game early in the second quarter and opened a six point lead at 33-27. However, Sassari responded with a 2-8 run that was capped by a Rakim Sanders triple that handed the Italians a 35-37 lead at the long break. Unics emerged from the locker room in attacking mood and through the third frame poured in 31 points to command the game 66-54 through thirty minutes. The home team extended through a comfortable fourth to ease to victory.

Unics had six players score double figures, D’or Fisher with 14 points, Nikolaos Zisis with 13, James White and Kostas Kaimakoglou with 11 each, and finally Curtis Jerrells and Keith Langford with 10 apiece.

Sanders topped the game with 18 points, while Edgar Sosa registered 13 points and David Logan offered 10 for the Italians.

Real Madrid vs. Nizhny Novgorod, 112-83
Spanish juggernaut Real Madrid took apart Nizhny Novgorod at home with a destruction job over the Russian visitors. Madrid turned it on in the Spanish capital with a massive display that included 33 assists dished out in an unselfish attacking performance.

The game was never in doubt for Los Blancos as they took control in the first quarter to pace to a 26-18 lead at the first break in play. Madrid consolidated through a high scoring second, outpacing Nizhny 31-28 to lead 58-46 at halftime. A winning 24-17 third period made it a procession for the hosts during the final frame, but Real added some extra glitz to the scoreboard throughout Q4.

Jaycee Carroll was sensational in the win, securing 32 points. He was backed up by Rudy Fernandez with 14 points and Felipe Reyes with 12 points.

Taylor Rochestie nailed 23 for the downed visitors and Trey Thompkins added 16.

Group B

ALBA Berlin vs. Maccabi Tel-Aviv
After the big defeat at CSKA Moscow last week, defending Euroleague champions Maccabi Tel-Aviv got back on track with a cruising away victory over German club ALBA Berlin. The Israeli team will be happy to leave the German capital city with another victory on the board, while ALBA is still searching for answers as the team sits on 0-3.

ALBA looked unable to stop the Tel-Aviv attack from early on, while at the other end the hosts struggled to string together attacking plays. As the first buzzer sounded the champs had carved a 16-23 lead onto the scoreboard. A big second quarter for Tel-Aviv gave the team a huge advantage at halftime, a 13-23 run to thank for a double digit lead at the long break (29-46). The damage had been done and Tel-Aviv cruised through the second half, allowing a tied 17-17 third quarter before losing the fourth narrowly enough to never look troubled in the closing minutes.

Brian Randle was the go to guy for Tel-Aviv has he notched 25 points and 5 rebounds, while Devin Smith added 16 and Jeremy Pargo took 15 points. Alex Tyus and Guy Pinini nailed 10 each.

Reggie Redding sent home 15 points in the losing effort and was backed up by Leon Radosevic with 13 points and Jamel McLean with 12 points.

Group C

Panathinaikos Athens vs. Fenerbahce Istanbul, 91-73
Greek giant Panathinaikos kick-started its Euroleague campaign with a massive home win over Turkish visitors Fenerbahce. The Greens went hot to hand Fener its first loss of the competition, while Panathinaikos joined the Turks on a 2-1 record.

A blazing first quarter from Panathinaikos shocked the visitors as they streamed in 31 points and held Fenerbahce to 19 points. The first split came and the hosts had a big early lead. The Greeks extended their cushion with another awesome period, sinking the away team 28-17 to hold a formidable 59-36 lead at the midway buzzer. Fenerbahce improved in the third period, but the game was all but settled as Panathinaikos continued its consistency to extend to 82-57 through three quarters. Fener won the final quarter 9-16, but it was nowhere near enough for the visitors to win the game.

A.J. Slaughter led the Panathinaikos storm with 23 points, followed by Estaban Batista with 14 and Antonis Fotsis with 13 points.

Nemanja Bjelica sunk 16 points for the losing team, while Jan Vesley hit 13 points in the loss.

Group D

Cvrvena Zvezda Belgrade vs. Valencia, 76-63
Spanish club Valencia continues to struggle in the Euroleague Regular Season after losing on the road to Serbian heavyweight Crvena Zvezda. The hosts led throughout to claim their second win of the competition, while Valencia’s woes continued and they have yet to win a game this term.

The Spanish team took an early lead at 6-8 early in the contest, but the Belgrade contingent responded with a big ending to the first frame, opening a confident 21-16 lead after 10 minutes. The hosts continued to press and impress at the start of Q2 and soon opened a double digit lead at 29-18 with 5 minutes of the first half remaining. Before the midway buzzer Crvena Zvezda had opened a commanding 39-26 lead. In the second half the Belgrade dominance continued as the home team treated the Kombank arena to a 26-13 run that put the scoreboard on 65-42 after 30 minutes. Valencia rallied in the final act and shortened the gap, but ultimately the hosts eased down the straight.

Boban Marjanovic led five Red Star players in double figures with 16 points, while he also added 9 boards. Marcus Williams offered 14 points, 8 assists, and 4 rebounds in the success. Jaka Blazic sunk 13 points, Nikola Kalinic secured 12 points, and Luka Mitrovis scored 10.

Dwight Buycks paced Valencia with 14 points, with Pau Ribas claiming 13, Sam Von Rossom 12, and Bojan Dubljevic 10 points.

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