Nike IJCT L'Hospitalet, 2nd semifinal report: AXA FCB 88-67 Cibona
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AXA FC Barcelona stormed into the Euroleague Basketball Nike International Junior Classification Tournament L’Hospitalet final by thrashing Cibona 88-67 in the second semifinal on Friday. In addition to advancing it to the title game, Barcelona also sealed an invitation to the Nike International Junior Tournament at the 2008 Euroleague Basketball Final Four in Madrid this May. Barcelona next faces FMP Zeleznik in the title game on Saturday night. Nihad Djedovic paced the winners with 22 points, Daniel Perez and Michel Diouff each added 12 and Agusti Morales had 10 for Barcelona. Tomislav Zubcic led Cibona with 28 points on 7-for-9 two-point and 11-for-11 free-throw shooting plus 10 rebounds. Sven Smalgajic added 11 while Marko Petrovic, son of the great Aleksandar Petrovic, had 10 for Cibona. The game had as many as nine lead changes in the opening six minutes, but a power layup by Radosevic and a basket by Toni Brnas gave Cibona an 11-14 lead. Barcelona tried to change the game momentum, playing more physical with Papa Abdoulaye and Diouff in the middle. Meanwhile, a corner three-pointer by Konstantine Tamaradze allowed his team to regain the lead, 17-16. Tamaradze stepped up with a layup and fed Perez for an easy basket, good for a 23-21 Barcelona edge after 10 minutes. Barcelona kept running its offense through Djedovic, but Smalgajic single-handedly kept Cibona within 32-26. A 10-2 run that Diouff capped with consecutive baskets allowed Barcelona to break the game open, 42-28. Petrovic followed a three-point play with a long two-pointer, but a five-meter jumper by Diouff helped Barcelona to take a 46-35 halftime margin. Nothing changed early in the third quarter, as a free throw by Djedovic and another basket by Perez gave Barcelona a 60-47 margin, causing Cibona to call a much-needed timeout. Radosevic left the game with an ankle injury, leaving Cibona without its biggest reference around the baskets. Meanwhile, a corner three-pointer by Morales broke the game open, 71-53, at the end of the third quarter. Djedovic and Abdoulaye shined early in the fourth quarter, as Barcelona opted to rest its starters for the big game against Zeleznik later in the day.
See Stats
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Saturday, January 05, 2008
Javier Gancedo, L'Hospitalet
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