PGE Turow Zgorzelec made it to the ULEB CUp Last 16 round by edging CEZ Basketball Nymburk 68-66 in the 2nd leg of the two-way series in Liberec, the Czech Republic on Tuesday night. Both teams had tied, 61-61, in the 1st leg in Pardubice, Czech Republic, turning the second game into a do-or-die battle. Turow will now face BC Kyiv in the Last 16 round, in a direct fight to reach the Final Eight in Torino, Italy. Meanwhile, Nymburk is out of the competition but made history by being the first Czech team to take part in the competitions - and reach the elimination rounds. David Logan led the winners with 23 points while Dragisa Drobnjak added 17 for Turow. Petr Benda and Michael Kremen each had 14 points for Nymburk while Rado Rancik added 12 for the guests, who led 28-29 late in the first half. An outstanding Logan and a three-pointer by Robert Witka allowed Turow to get a 41-34 margin at the break. Consecutive baskets by Drobnjak gave Turow its biggest lead, 64-50, midway through the fourth quarter. Rancik, Arthur Lee and Monty Mack fueled a 4-16 run that brought Nymburk back to the series, 68-66, with a minute to go. Thomas Kelati and Andres Rodriguez missed respective shots for Turow but Mack missed the chance to take the game to overtime.
Drobnjak got Turow going with a free throw but Lee immediately answered to give Nymburk a 1-2 lead. Benda scored around the basket while free throws by Ladislav Sokolovsky kept Nymburk ahead, 3-6. Drobnjak kept pacing Turow with consecutive baskets but Kremen still allowed the guests to regain a 9-10 edge. Slobodan Ljubotina answered from downtown while an unstoppable Drobnjak scored again for a 14-10 Turow lead. Kremen shined with another basket but Ljubotina bettered that with a three-point play, good for a 17-12 Turow edge. Nymburk was not done, as Rancik and Benda led a 0-7 run that Kremen capped with a triple to get back ahead, 18-21, at the end of the first quarter. Benda scored again early in the second quarter while Rancik added his second basket to make it a seven-point game, 18-25. Rodriguez tried to change things with a layup-plus-foul while Logan stroke from downtown to get Turow as close as 24-25. Benda and Lee stepped up for Nymburk with consecutive baskets but Mario Skecic singlehandedly kept Turow within 28-29. Free throws by Rodriguez and back-to-back baskets by Logan completed the hosts' comeback, 34-31. Witka fired in a triple while Logan and Kelati allowed the hosts to get a seven-point lead, 41-34, at halftime.
 An outstanding Drobnjak scored again after the break but a three-pointer by Kremen and a put-back layup by Blake Schlib brought Nymburk within 43-39. Kelati took over with his first triple, as Turow improved its defense early in the third quarter. The guests went scoreless in the next 2 minutes while a free throw by Ljubotina made it an eight-point game, 47-39. Schlib finally scored for Nymburk while Sokolovsky buried a three-pointer to bring the guests back to life, 47-44. Rodriguez and Benda traded baskets but Drobnjak gave Turow some fresh air at 51-47. Logan stepped up with a bomb from downtown to give Turow a 54-47 margin at the end of the third quarter. Logan shined early in the fourth quarter, following a three-pointer with a layup-plus-foul to break the game open, 60-47, after 32 minutes. Mack tried to change things with a three-point play but back-to-back baskets by Drobnjak gave Turow a 64-50 margin. Rancik stepped up with 7 unanswered points but he didn't find much help around. Meanwhile, Logan scored to make Nymburk call timeout at 66-57. A power layup by Lee, a free throw by Rancik and another basket by Mack gave the guests some hope, 68-64, with 2 minutes to go. Lee hit free throws to turn the game into a thriller, 68-66. Kelati and Rodriguez missed in the other end but Mack did not manage to tie the game in Nymburk's final possession.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
ULEBCup.com
|