Turk Telekom B.C beat Lions in EuroCup motion

7Days EuroCup

Turk Telekom 102-74 London Lions (13-18, 40-36, 72-54,)

(Turk Telekom: Sestina, 20; Grant, 18; Yilmaz, 15 — Lions – Dekker, 20; Koufos, 13; Zubcic/Hruban/Nelson, 9)

London Lions battled valiantly however in the end misplaced their EuroCup, Group B conflict 102-74 to Turk Telekom in Ankara, Turkey, on Wednesday evening.

Each groups got here into the sport in good type, because the Lions noticed off the Cheshire Phoenix, whereas Turk Telekom B.C beat fellow EuroLeague giants Fenerbahce within the Turkish League.

Turk Telekom got here into the sport sitting in second place in Group B and moved into pole place – nudging out Gran Canaria on factors distinction, with the Lions now slipping into seventh place forward of their conflict with Paris subsequent Wednesday.

Nathan Sestina led the house facet with 20 factors and Jerian Grant added 18. Notably, Tyrique Jones had 13 factors, seven rebounds and 4 blocked pictures.

For the Lions, Sam Dekker completed with 20 factors as their three-game profitable run within the EuroCup got here to a halt.

The groups had been evenly matched within the first half. The primary quarter was a comparatively low-scoring affair contemplating the depth and expertise on each side.

Excessive-intensity defence was on present to start. Kosta Koufos broke by first with a hook shot earlier than a baseline dunk from Dekker. Tomislav Zubcic additionally obtained in on the motion, backing down his man and scoring inside with an and-one.

Grant related with a three-pointer from the nook for the hosts, scoring 5 factors within the opening quarter. Vojtech Hruban scored off a Dekker help. On the finish of the primary interval, Dekker rose as much as knock down a buzzer-beating three-pointer. 

The Lions took a four-point lead within the second quarter with a Koufos dunk. However Jones willed his workforce again into the driving seat – ending a reverse layup adopted by an emphatic alley-oop dunk.

Veteran large man Koufos proved efficient for the Lions – scoring 9 factors and cleansing the boards within the second quarter. However the Turk Telekom facet began to construct some momentum. Grant and 2010 FIBA World Cup silver-medallist Semih Erden related on a pair of three-pointers.

Zubcic and Jones traded dunks to open issues up within the third. Within the third quarter, the house facet labored into their groove. The house workforce’s ball motion discovered wide-open areas for Yilmaz’s three-pointer. Jones scored eight of his 20 factors within the quarter.  

By this time, the hosts had constructed a 15-point lead. Sestina capped off a 6-0 run with a superb end on the basket. A Jones’ dagger three from the nook was countered with a Josh Sharma dunk off a pick-and-roll.

The spotlight play to shut out the quarter got here from Jones, who completed a reverse alley-oop dunk with type.

Enjoying by Ovie Soko’s slashing sport, the Lions lowered the margin within the fourth. Soko scored a three-point play, and Luke Nelson tallied seven of his 9 factors to shut the sport. 

Turk Telekom B.C will tackle the Turkish facet Gaziantep on Sunday, 18 December. The Lions will come up in opposition to Paris on Wednesday, 21 December, on the Copper Field.

With the highest eight groups advancing to the knockout levels. Each one in all their remaining 12 video games now turns into essential to safe qualification.

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