Eurocup Qualifying Round, Game 2 report: Bizkaia Bilbao Basket 90-79 BC Donetsk
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 Bizkaia Bilbao Basket beat BC Donetsk 90-79, edging the visitors in a thrilling finish to advance to the Eurocup Regular Season. The winners will join Spirou Basket, Spartak St. Petersburg and Turk Telekom in Group E. Donetsk entered the game with an 8-point cushion after its 71-63 home win in Game 1, but it took Bilbao exactly 3:47 to erase the deficit and claim a 9-0 lead. Bilbao dominated the second period held a seemingly comfortable 22-point lead at the break, but Donetsk responded with a monster 12-29 third quarter and regained control of the game and the series. In the end, Bilbao had what it took to pull out the series in the last minutes, led by Marko Banic's game-high 28 points. Chris Warren scored 17 while Alex Mumbru and Javi Salgado added 13 and 12, respectively. Marques Perry paced Donetsk with 26 points. Chris Owens scored 19 and grabbed 9 rebounds, Artur Drozdov added 11 points and P.J. Tucker chipped in 10 in the losing effort.
A Javi Rodriguez jumper set off a 9-0 Bilbao burst fuelled by 6 quick points from Banic. Out of a timeout, Owens finally got a shot to fall for Donetsk with 5:55 to go in the first, sparking a 3-9 mini-run by Donetsk. The visitors pulled to within 16-15 on another shot from downtown by Goran Konic, but Warren drained a three with 1 second on the clock to put Bilbao up 23-19 after 10 minutes. Jerome Moiso hit a field goal and Warren added a jumper and a dunk to put Bilbao ahead by 10 and force a Donetsk timeout early in the second. Just like in the first quarter, Owens hit a jumper out of the stoppage of play, but Warren and Rodriguez each drilled three-pointers and Bilbao was up 37-23 after a jumper by Damir Markota. Perry fed Owens for a dunk, but the home team kept pouring it on and Mumbru capped a 12-3 run to put the home side ahead by 21 points. Janis Blums’s first basket of the game sent Bilbao into the break up 53-31.
Donetsk came out of the locker room swinging and Tucker threw down an alley-oop served by Perry to get to within 57-42. Salvador Guardia made a three-pointer, but Perry answered with one of his own, Ricardo Marsh added a jumper and Tucker scored two more from the free-throw line to make it 60-49. Banic dropped a jumper, but Donestsk rolled off a 0-7 run capped by an Owens three-pointer to cut the deficit to 65-60 at the end of three quarters and turn the series provisionally back in Donetsk’s favor. The teams traded baskets in the opening minutes of the final period and Donetsk got to within 69-67 on a three-pointer and jumper by Owens. Warren got 2 points from the foul line, but Owens hit another jumper and Bilbao called for time with 4:50 to play and the series in danger of slipping away. Salgado made a jumper and then Mumbru made a basket-plus-foul. Moments later Mumbru got another three-point play to tie the aggregate score at 82-74. Donetsk turned the ball over and Banic hit a clutch jumper with :26 to play to put Bilbao up 10. Perry made 1 of 2 from the line and then Banic calmly dropped 2 foul shots. Perry made 2 foul shots, but Salgado matched him with another pair. Perry made 2 more free throws, but once again Salgado drained 2 more to seal Bilbao’s qualification.
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Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Euroleague.net
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