Jackson and De Colo lift CSKA to 13th consecutive victory

CSKA Moscow kept its perfect record intact with a hard-fought 69-78 road win over Anadolu Efes Istanbul on Thursday. Win improved CSKA to 3-0 in Group F as it won 13 of 13 games this season, while Efes dropped to 2-1 in Top 16 action. Efes built a double-digit lead with a 9-0 run in the first quarter, but it did not take long for CSKA to rally behind second quarter baskets from Milos Teodosic. The visitors held 32-34 at halftime, and Aaron Jackson led the way as margin reached 34-43, before Stratos Perperoglou rallied the hosts to 49-49. However, Efes never regained the lead as Nando De Colo scored 11 points in the fourth quarter, and a 2-12 CSKA run during the final 3 minutes put the game away. De Colo matched his career-high with 22 points, and also had 7 rebounds and 4 steals. Jackson finished the game with 21 points for CSKA which was without forward Sonny Weems, while Andrey Vorontsevich collected 16 points plus 7 rebounds, and Teodosic scored 8 of his 11 in the second quarter. Perperoglou led the hosts with 17 points and 7 rebounds, Dario Saric scored 14 and had 3 blocks, Milko Bjelica netted 12, and Dontaye Draper 10 points in defeat.

First quarter: Efes uses 9-0 run to build double-digit lead

Vorontsevich opened the scoring with a tip-in, but Cedi Osman answered right back, banking in a runner. As both teams played intense, physical defense from the start, a triple and a pair of free throws from Saric made it 7-2. Jackson scored from close range for CSKA, and Vorontsevich added a jumper for 7-6. The hosts did not score a field goal for more than 3 minutes before Perperoglou sank a jumper, but De Colo drove for a tough layup on the other end. Draper made a steal and raced for a score, and Stephane Lasme finished another fast break with a put-back for a 14-8 Efes lead. The hosts' run did not stop there, however, as Perperoglou made a couple from the foul line, and Saric got a lucky bounce on a jumper for 18-8. After a timeout, Vorontsevich ended CSKA's drought with a triple that made it 18-11 at the end of the first quarter.

Second quarter: Teodosic and Vorontsevich put CSKA back in front

De Colo and Teodosic scored easy layups in the first 2 minutes of the second quarter. Teodosic followed it with a jumper, cutting the deficit to 18-17 while the visitors’ defense forced a couple of turnovers and held Efes scoreless for 3 minutes. Osman snapped that trend with two free throws, and after Jackson drove for a layup, Bjelica hit one from downtown and made one from close range for a 25-21 Efes edge. Krstic added a layup to the hosts’ tally, but Teodosic sparked a 0-6 run in which Vorontsevich scored inside and De Colo made free throws to tie it at 27-27. Bjelica answered with a wide open triple, and Thomas Heurtel knocked down a jumper but Vorontsevich made free throws, Jackson drove for a layup-plus-free throw and Kyle Hines scored a layup in the crowd for the visitors to go into halftime with a 32-34 lead.

Third quarter: Jackson fuels CSKA run, Perperoglou rallies Efes back

Lasme found Saric for a layup on the opening possession of the third quarter, but Jackson did better with a layup-plus-foul, and after a driving layup from De Colo, Jackson made a pair of runners on consecutive possessions for a 34-43 CSKA lead. Perperoglou snapped a 0-9 run with a triple, and big man Nenad Krstic fought his way for a short jumper to get Efes within 39-43. CSKA kept the margin with a three-pointer by Vorontsevich, and after Saric scored a layup, Jackson buried a corner triple for a 41-49 score. Saric answered right back from downtown, before Perperoglou scored 5 points, including a basket-plus-foul to tie it at 49-49. A hectic finale of the quarter saw both teams make multiple turnovers running transition. De Colo sank 3-of-4 from the free throw line, and after Bjelica made his pair of foul shots, Vitaly Fridzon beat the buzzer with a jumper, giving CSKA 51-54 lead after three quarters.

Fourth quarter: De Colo and late 2-12 run lift CSKA to victory

Teams did not muster much offensively in the first 3 minutes of the fourth period, with only Pavel Korobkov splitting free throws for CSKA and Lasme making both of his from the line. Jackson drove for a layup, and De Colo knocked down a mid-range jumper for a 53-59 CSKA lead. A basket from Bjelica ended Efes’ futility from the floor, but Korobkov scored a layup-plus-free throw that gave the visitors a 55-62 edge midway through the fourth quarter. Perperoglou scored from close range before a timeout, but Vorontsevich did the same after, keep the margin at 7 points. De Colo drove to the hoop, but Draper answered with a jumper and a three-pointer for a 64-66 score with 3 minutes to go. But following a technical foul on Heurtel, De Colo made 3-of-3 free throws and Teodosic nailed a three-pointer for 64-72. Osman scored a pair of free throws for Efes, but Jackson and De Colo sealed the deal for CSKA.