 La Caja de Canarias Gran Canaria became the first team to record a win at the Euroleague Basketball Nike International Junior Tournament by downing Union Olimpija Ljubljana 64-78 in Group A on Thursday afternoon. Point guard Oscar Alvarado paced the winners with 21 points and 5 assists. Rafael Rodriguez added 13 points while Bakary Konate posted a double-double - 10 points, 15 rebounds - for Gran Canaria. Nejc Buda led Olimpija with 15 points. Andriy Lebedintsev added 14, Gezim Morina had 11 while Luka Voncina got 10 for the Slovenian powerhouse, that led 23-21 after 10 minutes. Nejc dominated throughout the second quarter, reaching halftime with 10 points and 7 rebounds. Morina and Voncina also struck from downtown to boost their team's lead to 41-32 at the break. Granca found a go-to guy in Rodriguez, as he had 9 points in the third quarter. He got some help from floor general Alvarado to bring their team back to life, 54-52, after 20 minutes. Jesus Lopez followed a critical three-pointer with a layup-plus-foul to complete Gran Canaria's comeback, 59-60. Konate led his team's defense in cruch time, while Alvarado followed free throws with a three-pointer to seal the outcome, 62-71, with 3 minutes to go.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Vladimir Stankovic, Berlin |
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