Triumph Lyubertsy rallied from a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter to edge Le Mans 74-77 on the road and register its first win in Group B on Tuesday. Triumph stole its first road win and will try to stay undefeated against Hemofarm Stada next week. Meanwhile, Le Mans needs to bounce back right away but faces mighty Power Electronics Valencia on the road next week. Brion Rush led the winners with 19 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Valery Likhodey added 16 points while Paul Miller had 13 for Triumph. JP Batista and Dee Spencer led Le Mans with 17 points apiece. Zach Wright added 13, Marc Salyers had 11 while Maleye Ndoye got 10 for the hosts. An outstanding Spencer shined late in the first half to give Le Mans a 41-33 margin at the break. Triumph rallied after the break but Ndoye and Wright fueled an 11-0 run that gave Le Mans a 63-53 margin after 30 minutes. Triumph returned to the game with a 1-13 run and it all came down to the final seconds, in which Rush followed a jumper with 3-of-4 free throws to win it for the guests.
Batista got Le Mans going with a layup but back-to-back dunks by Likhodey and Miller gave Triumph a 2-4 edge. Salyers buried a three-pointer and Wright added a free throw, but Konstantin Nesterov answered from downtown for a 6-7 Triumph lead. Le Mans did not panic, however, as a triple by Spencer and free throws by Batista gave the hosts a 11-7 lead. Egor Vyaltsev tried to change things with a layup but Spencer nailed another one from downtown while Guillaume Yango added a layup to make it a six-point game, 16-10. Triumph improved its defense, not allowing open shots. Meanwhile, Vyaltsev and Pavel Sergeev struck from downtown while Sergey Varlamov added a put-back basket to tie the game, 18-18, after 10 minutes. Wright and Varlamov traded baskets early in the second quarter while Maleye Ndoye gave Le Mans a 22-20 lead. Batista send the crowd to their feet with a put-back dunk while Ndoye also slammed it to boost the hosts' margin to 26-21. Likhodey tried to change things with a layup but an unstoppable Ndoye struck from downtown for a 29-23 score. Salyers took over with back-to-back triples but Rush - who had been scoreless so far - answered twice from beyond the arc to keep Triumph within 35-29. Spencer followed a triple with free throws but Rush singlehandedly brought Triumph within 41-33 at halftime.
Nesterov followed free throws with a dunk immediately after the break. Le Mans could not find the way to the basket, committing 3 turnovers in as many minutes. Vyaltsev downed a three-pointer while Rush and Likhodey hit free throws to give Triumph a 43-44 edge, after a 0-9 run. Batista rescued Le Mans with a jumper that Sergeev bettered with his second triple. Salyers and Rush traded baskets while a three-point play by Batista put the hosts back ahead, 50-49. Likhodey followed a layup with free throws to give Triumph a 52-53 edge. A triple by Ndoye ignited an 11-0 run in which Wright had 5 points to restore a 63-53 Le Mans margin after 30 minutes. The hosts went scoreless for more than 5 minutes and Triumph made the most out of it. Sergeev sank another triple while Miller followed a dunk with a back-to-back triples that completed Triumph's comeback, 63-64, after an 0-11 run. Spencer stepped up with a key basket while Antoine Diot dunked it to make Triumph call timeout at 68-66 with 2 minutes left. Miller tied it with a put-back basket while Likhodey followed a layup with free throws for a 70-72 Triumph edge. Wright made 1-of-2 foul shots and a jumper by Rush made it a three-point game, 71-74. Rush hit 3-of-4 free throws in the final seconds while Spencer missed from downtown at the buzzer.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
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