Regular Season Game 6 - December 02, 2009 CET: 20:30 Local time: 20:30 - FERNANDO BUESA ARENA

Records

Ave.   Ave.
0-0 Final Four 0-0
0-0 Playoffs 0-0
0-0 Top 16 0-0
3-2 Regular Season 3-2
3-2 Overall 3-2

Referees

Crew Chief
BACHAR, SHMUEL, Israel
Referee
BOLTAUZER, MATEJ, Slovenia
Umpire
JURAS, MARKO, Serbia

Team Stats

Ave.   Ave.
80.6 Points 78.8
32.8 Rebounds 30.2
8.8 O. Rebounds 7.4
24.0 D. Rebounds 22.8
14.8 Assists 10.8
3.4 Steals 8.4
1.8 Blocks 2.0
11.6 Turnovers 15.2
52.5 % 2PT 53.0 %
40.5 % 3PT 37.8 %
76.2 % FT 79.5 %
87.8 Index 79.8

Player Stats

Ave.   Ave.
14.2 / SPLITTER, TIAGO Points 17.2 / WINSTON, KENNEDY
6.6 / SPLITTER, TIAGO Rebounds 4.8 / Jaaber
2.0 / SPLITTER, TIAGO OR 1.4 / HUTSON, ANDRE
4.6 / SPLITTER, TIAGO DR 3.6 / Jaaber
2.6 / SPLITTER, TIAGO Assists 3.4 / Jaaber
0.6 / SPLITTER, TIAGO Steals 2.8 / Jaaber
0.8 / Barac Blocks 1.0 / CROSARIOL, ANDREA
2.2 / SPLITTER, TIAGO Turnovers 4.0 / Jaaber
66.7 % / Eliyahu 2PT 75.0 % / CROSARIOL, ANDREA
66.7 % / Micov 3PT 75.0 % / GIGLI, ANGELO
100.0 % / Barac FT 100.0 % / GIGLI, ANGELO
19.8 / SPLITTER, TIAGO Index 15.0 / WINSTON, KENNEDY

THE TAKE

A big battle atop the Group C standings is scheduled on Wednesday at 20:30 CET, when Caja Laboral welcomes Lottomatica Roma to Vitoria, Spain. Both teams join CSKA Moscow in a three-way tie for second place in Group C, all at 3-2 and right behind Maccabi Electra, first at 4-1. Laboral continues facing severe injury problems, as Marcelinho Huertas and Brad Oleson are not expected to take part in this game while forward Lior Eliyahu is questionable. With Huertas sidelined, Pau Ribas will see most minutes at point guard, with Sean Singletary coming off the bench. Singletary will play a critical role against a physical point guard like Ibby Jaaber, Roma's most diverse contributor so far this season. Meanwhile, combo Jacopo Giachetti plays an important role for Roma due to his experience, know-how and silent leadership. Jaaber took over in Roma's home win against Laboral in October, so the hosts must stop him to prevent Lottomatica to get its run-and-gun game going. With Oleson unavailable, Carl English will see his scoring duties extended against Roma. Meanwhile, Vladimir Micov and Fernando San Emeterio will share minutes at small forward. English is set to test his shooting skills against Ricky Minard, who can put him into trouble in one-on-one situations. San Emeterio has the tough mission to stop Kennedy Winston, who has been been unstoppable so far this season. Lottomatica is deeper at both wings due to Laboral's severe injury problems, so Luca Vitali, Rodrigo De La Fuente and Herve Toure give the guests an extended rotation to play more physical down the stretch. Lottomatica's main concern, however, will be stopping former All-Euroleague center Tiago Splitter, one of the best low post players anywhere. If Eliyahu is still sidelined, Stanko Barac will see playing time alongside Splitter or three-point specialist Mirza Teletovic. Lottomatica has its own frontcourt problems, as Angelo Gigli did not play this weekend and may miss his third consecutive Euroleague game. Andre Hutson hopes to use his experience and post skills to get Teletovic into foul trouble. Andrea Crosariol has the tough mission to guard Splitter, while Herve and veteran forward Alessandro Tonolli will try to open the court with their three-point shots. Lottomatica must run its offense through Jaaber and get Hutson involved in the low post. Laboral has to feed Splitter down low to generate double-team situations and find open shots for Teletovic and English. Expect nothing but a high-profile Group C showdown at Buesa Arena.

REFEREES: Shmuel Bachar, Matej Boltauzer, Marko Juras


GAME NOTES

Caja Laboral

Tiago Splitter surpassed Dejan Tomasevic for 20th place on the Euroleague career rebounding charts last week. He how has 605 career rebounds.

Splitter set a career-high with 4 blocks against Lottomatica Roma last season. Splitter also tallied 17 points and 6 rebounds to help Caja Laboral win 96-103 in overtime in Rome.

Splitter set a Euroleague career high with 5 assists last week against CSKA Moscow. He is averaging 2.6 assists per game this season, which is more than double his career average entering the season (0.9 apg.).

Mirza Teletovic scored a season-high 17 points in Week 1 against Lottomatica Roma.

Lottomatica Roma

Ibby Jaaber scored a Euroleague career-high 20 points in a regular season game against Caja Laboral last season. He also made a career-high 4 three-pointers, though Caja Laboral walked away with a 96-103 overtime win. Jaaber matched the 20-point output this season against Maccabi.

Jaaber, who leads the Euroleague with 2.8 steals per game, has recorded at least 1 steal in seven straight Euroleague games dating back to last season.

Kennedy Winston has made more three pointers (12) at more than double the rate (52.2%) in his first five games this season than he did in his two previous Euroleague campaigns combined (6 for 24, 25%).

Luca Vitali has made 10 consecutive free throws over his past four Euroleague appearances.
Tuesday, December 01, 2009
Euroleague.net

Quotes Head Coaches

IVANOVIC, DUSKO
Caja Laboral
"We are not thinking about injuries. They are there, but we cannot waste our time thinking who is out. We must focus on who is in and work hard with the players that are healthy. Practices are not as we expected them to be, but our target cannot be other but to use all we have to play good and win. I think the team showed some improvements. More than the fact that we are missing some players, what affects us more is the situations where some players are going in and out. We are lacking some continuity sometimes, especially in defense, in intensity. Our goal is to make it to the Top 16, everything else will come later. This week’s game is very important for us, as it can allow us to fight for the first two spots of the group, or maybe for the third and four. I don’t look at our injuries, so I don’t look at theirs either. Jabber, Hutson and Winston are their key players, for sure, but they defeated CSKA with a good game by Toure, and we cannot forget of players like Minard or Vitali."
GENTILE, NANDO
Lottomatica Roma
"It will be a very tough game for us. We are coming from two lost in a row in Euroleague and in the Italian League either. We lost confidence and we need first of all to gain confidence back. Furthermore we arrive in Spain without three important players such as Datome, Gigli and De La Fuente, and also Toure has muscle problems. It won't be easy at all."

Players

CROSARIOL, ANDREA
Lottomatica Roma
"We are in a difficult moment, because we had a bad loss in Ljiubljana but most of all in the Italian league, in our court in front of our supporters, and we also have some injured players. So we are a bit upset. The game in Vitoria is not the right one to face with at this stage for our confidence, because it is a very difficult court against a very talented and physical team. We have to try to forget the previous games and try to focus only on the game with Caja Laboral."
Tiago Splitter - Caja LaboralCaja Laboral held off a late Lottomatica Roma charge to record a 67-60 win on Wednesday night at Fernando Buesa Arena in Vitoria, Spain. Mirza Teletovic scored 17 points and All-Euroleague center Tiago Splitter had 15 points and 8 rebounds as Laboral improve to 4-2 in Group C and ensured at least a tie for second place. Laboral coul be tied for first if Union Olimpija beats Maccabi Electra on Thursday. Laboral travels to face Maccabi in Tel Aviv next week. Roma dropped its third straight to fall to 3-3 and hosts CSKA Moscow next. Laboral used separate 11-0 and 9-0 runs to build a 26-11 lead midway through the second quarter, but Roma stormed back with a 1-14 charge to stay within 33-28 at halftime. Splitter and Teketovic stepped up in the third quarter as Laboral pulled away and Fernando San Emeterio opened the fourth quarter with a triple for an 18-point lead. Ricky Minard would not let his team give in and carried Roma back to within single digits. And even though Roma could not complete the comeback, it did manage to protect the 12-point margin from its Week 1 win for potential head-to-head tiebreaker purposes. San Emeterio added 13 for the winners, who outrebounded Roma 34-25. Minard paced Roma with 15 points and Kennedy Winston added 12.

Both team needed to run the floor a few times before Andre Hutson scored the game’s first point more than two minutes into the game. Carl English stepped up and buried a long jumper for Laboral’s first points. Winston scored on the offensive glass, but the hosts went ahead when Splitter passed out of the post to Teletovic for a three-pointer. Sean Singletary stole the ball and finished a one-man fast break with a circus shot layup. Splitter then scored inside as the hosts took control at 9-4 and Roma head coach Nando Gentile called timeout. Laboral remained hot and English drilled a three-pointer to stretch the hosts’ run to 11 unanswered points before Winston attacked the basket for a tough score. With Hutson and Herve Toure already with 2 fouls each, Gentile sent in veteran captain Alessandro Tonolli earlier than usual and he showed why with a three-pointer from the corner. Splitter dropped a hook shot in, but Winston fed Andrea Crosariol for a power slam to end the first quarter at 17-11.

Splitter took a pass from San Emeterio for an alley-oop layup and Teletovic climbed over Tonolli for a layup as the Laboral lead reached double figures early in the second quarter. Vladimir Micov scored inside, then stole the ball and drew an unsportsmanlike foul from Ricky Minard. Micov made 1 free throw, but then scored a layup on the ensuing possession for a 9-0 start to the quarter. Ibby Jaaber ended a four-minute scoring drought for the guests with a layup. Free throws from Toure and Jaaber brought Roma back within 10. Roma’s zone press frustrated the home team’s guards and Laboral found more trouble when Splitter picked up his third foul going for a rebound. Hutson scored from the line to complete a 0-7 run that made it 26-18. English fought his way inside and drew a foul, but Luca Vitali bettered him with a triple. Minard weaved his way through the Laboral defense for a bucket and Vitali drew a charge from English, who joined Splitter on the bench with three fouls. After a timeout, Winston hit from outside to compete a 1-14 charge that brought Roma all the way back. San Emeterio made sure his team kept the lead with a pair of triples, but Minard answered back with a three at the buzzer to get to 33-28 at halftime.

Ricky Minard - Lottomatica RomaSplitter fed a cutting English and then Singletary set up Teletovic for a three-pointer as Laboral restored a double-digit edge at the onset of the second half. Winston got Roma on the scoreboard, but Singletary pulled up for a three and then Teletovic sank a pair of free throws as Laboral assumed control of the game. Hutson scored and Crosariol threw down a dunk before Winston hit a turnaround jumper that gave Roma hope. Splitter banked in a shot and then used a low-post move to push the Laboral lead to 13. Teletovic banked a jumper, but Crosariol muscled his way to a basket at the other side. Splitter tacked on a pair of free throws at the end of the third quarter for a 53-38 Laboral lead.

San Emeterio’s third three-pointer of the game upped the Laboral lead to its peak,18 points. Hutson stepped outside for a jumper, but Singletary blew through the Roma defense for an easy score. Toure flashed his athleticism on a drive to the hoop only to see San Emeterio score on the offensive glass. Minard would not let his team go down without a fight and slashed for a basket, hit a three and then spotted Vitali for a triple to bring Roma within 60-50. San Emeterio ended Laboral’s mini-drought before Teletovic ended Roma’s hopes with a triple. Minard answered back as the visitors aimed to protect the 12-point victory they achieved in Week 1. Jaaber rifled in a three-pointer to bring the visitors within 65-56. Splitter was whistled for an offensive foul, but Jaaber missed from downtown and Singletary made a jumper to ensure the Laboral win. Minard’s free throws in the closing seconds made sure Roma held any potential head-to-head tiebreaker.
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
Euroleague.net
Referees: BACHAR, SHMUEL (ISR), BOLTAUZER, MATEJ (SLO), JURAS, MARKO (SRB)
Attendance: 9280
By Quarter1234
Caja Laboral17162014
Lottomatica Roma11171022
End of Quarter1234
Caja Laboral17335367
Lottomatica Roma11283860
Head coach: IVANOVIC, DUSKO
Caja Laboral
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
3FG
M-A
FT
M-A
Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
4 RIBAS, PAU 17:38     0/1   1 2 3 2 1 2     3    
5 MICOV, VLADIMIR 16:55 5 2/4   1/4 1 3 4   1 2     2 5 6
6 BUESA, MARTIN DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
7 SINGLETARY, SEAN 30:17 9 3/5 1/5     2 2 3 3 3     1 5 12
9 HUERTAS, MARCELINHO DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
11 ELIYAHU, LIOR DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
12 TELETOVIC, MIRZA 39:04 17 2/7 3/5 4/4 1 5 6 1 1 1   1 3 3 16
19 SAN EMETERIO, FERNANDO 31:34 13 2/2 3/5   1 2 3 3         2 3 18
21 SPLITTER, TIAGO 28:39 15 5/10   5/6 1 7 8 3   1 1   4 5 21
23 ENGLISH, CARL 23:36 8 2/4 1/3 1/2 1 1 2 1 1 2     4 1 2
25 URIARTE, JON IRKUS DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
42 BARAC, STANKO 12:17   0/2       3 3           1    
Team           1 2 3               3
Totals 200:00 67 16/34 8/19 11/16 7 27 34 13 7 11 1 1 20 22 78
47.1% 42.1% 68.8%
Min: Minutes played; Pts: Points; 2FG M-A: 2-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); 3FG M-A: 3-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); FT M-A: Free Throws (Made-Attempted); Rebounds: O (Offensive), D (Defensive), T (Total); As: Assists; St: Steals; To: Turnovers; Bl: Blocks (Fv: In Favor / Ag: Against); Fouls: Cm (Commited), Rv (Received); PIR: Performance Index Rating
Head coach: GENTILE, NANDO
Lottomatica Roma
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
3FG
M-A
FT
M-A
Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
5 GIACHETTI, JACOPO 12:30   0/1 0/1                   3 1 -4
7 JAABER, IBRAHIM 34:47 7 1/4 1/5 2/2 1 2 3     1   1 3 3 1
8 TONOLLI, ALESSANDRO 5:39 3   1/1             1     2    
9 HUTSON, ANDRE 26:56 8 3/6   2/4 1 1 2 1 1 1     4 4 6
10 TOURE, HERVE 15:52 3 1/4   1/2 1 4 5     4 1   2 2 1
11 CROSARIOL, ANDREA 13:04 6 3/4   0/2   2 2     3     2 1 1
15 WINSTON, KENNEDY 35:42 12 6/10 0/2   2 4 6 3 1 1     1 5 19
16 CASALE, GIULIO DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
18 MINARD, RICKY 25:15 15 2/4 3/4 2/2   3 3 3 1 1     2 3 19
20 VITALI, LUCA 30:15 6 0/1 2/6     1 1 3 1 1     3 1 3
Team           1 2 3               3
Totals 200:00 60 16/34 7/19 7/12 6 19 25 10 4 13 1 1 22 20 49
47.1% 36.8% 58.3%
This game is not yet played

Head Coaches

IVANOVIC, DUSKO
Caja Laboral
"It was a very difficult game. It was a tough one, but we managed to have the game under control most of the time. It's a pity we didn't manage to keep the point-difference. We lost too many balls in the last four minutes and allowed some threes, but I'm satisfied with our defense tonight. We did things well tonight, maybe we relaxed a little bit at the end, but we won't think too much about it tonight. We still have the same target; to qualify for the Top 16. If we are able to fight for the first spot, we will, but right now we don’t think about anything else other than making it to the next stage."
GENTILE, NANDO
Lottomatica Roma
"It was a very difficult game for us. Both teams came into the game with a lot of physical problems and injuries, and the game was very tough, very physical, with good defense on both sides. After a bad streak in our domestic competition, this game was very important for us because we needed to play a good game and recover our confidence. Caja Laboral is a very experienced team, but we managed to fight for 40 minutes and recover from an 18-point deficit."

Players

SAN EMETERIO, FERNANDO
Caja Laboral
"Our goal was to win tonight and we did it. We couldn't reach the 12-point deficit we lost in Rome, unfortunately. I think we stopped a little bit in the last period, when we should have kept running, but in the end, what counts is winning. Now we are above them in the standings and that's the important thing. It was a difficult game for us, we knew that we couldn't play without control, and I think we did a great job playing half-court basketball. We still aim to finish this group in first place."
HUTSON, ANDRE
Lottomatica Roma
"We are disappointed for the loss, but at least we were able to keep the point-difference close in the end, so we will try to continue fighting for the rest of the games of the round in order to make it useful. We played good defense tonight, but we didn’t shoot the ball so well, and that was a problem for us and prevented us from having real chances to win."
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