Darussafaka dominates Trento to stay on Top 16 pace
Darussafaka Tekfen Istanbul dominated Dolomiti Energia Trento 74-95 on Tuesday night at BLM Group Arena to remain in control of its Top 16 destiny. The visitors rewrote the club record book in improving to 3-2. A win in Round 6 at home against Segafredo Virtus Bologna would clinch the team a quarterfinals berth. Jarrod Jones set a club record and a EuroCup season-high with 17 rebounds to go along with 12 points to lead six Darussafaka scorers in double figures. Gary Browne, Doron Lamb and Bonzie Colson added 14 points each, Kartal Ozmizrak scored 11 and Johnathan Hamilton 10. Browne also dished 15 assists. James Blackmon paced Trento with 22 points and Justin Knox added 13. The loss sent Trento's record to 0-5 in the Top 16.
Knox scored twice in the opening minutes to help Trento grab an early lead. Hamilton had a pair of put-backs, the second of which tied it at 10-10 midway through the opening corner. A series of free throws by Colson and Hamilton pushed the visitors in front 12-16. Browne knocked down back-to-back three-pointers to start a 0-11 Darussafaka charge that Lamb ended with a triple to make it 15-27 late in the quarter. Alessandro Gentile ended Trento's drought, but Sinan Guler beat the first-quarter buzzer with a layup for a 17-29 advantage! Gentile opened the second quarter with a basket-plus-foul and Toto Forray added a three-pointer as Trento trimmed the gap to 25-31. Ozmizrak answered with a pull-up from downtown for the visitors and Lamb connected on his second three in a 0-10 run that made it 25-41. Threes kept falling with Blackmon making one for the hosts before Lamb made another and Ozmizrak two more for the visitors, the last of which extended the margin to 30-50. Jones added another triple for a 22-point margin before Trento playmaker Aaron Craft split free throws to end the half at 34-55.
Darussafaka remained in total control with the start of the second half. Lamb continued to score and the margin slowly grew. It reached 40-69 on a put-back slam by Colson. Davide Pascolo and Knox reduced the Trento deficit to 24. Colson beat the third-quarter buzzer to put Darussafaka ahead 46-74. Colson's next basket to start the fourth quarter put the visitors' lead at 30. The lead peaked on a bucket by Guler that made it 46-78. Blackmon heated up as the defenses faded away and both teams started to fill the buckets. The hosts managed to make the final deficit more respectable as the visitors went home with a key road win.
Darussafaka's big numbers
Darussafaka tied the club record with 15 three-pointers, which it last accomplished in December 2004 against Makedonikos Kozani. It also had the second-most points, rebounds (48), assists (22) and performance index rating (116) in club history.
Telling numbers
The visiting team dominated the early proceedings with great three-point shooting and outstanding rebounding. It was 34-55 at halftime with Darussafaka having made 9 of 18 three-point shots and bested Trento 12-27 on the glass. Even though its three-point shooting dipped in the second half (6 of 18), Darussafaka finished with a 31-48 rebounding advantage.
Did you notice?
Trento's teenage guard Alessandro Votolini made his EuroCup debut and got on the scoreboard with 4 free throws in the game's final minute. The 18-year-old received a round of applause from the local fans. Darussafaka forward Troy Selim Sav made a three-pointer midway through the fourth quarter for the first basket of his EuroCup career. Selim Sav, who scored a free throw in his first appearance of the regular season, finished the game with 5 points.
What's next
These teams will play their next and final Top 16 games on Wednesday, March 4. Darussafaka will host Segafredo Virtus Bologna knowing a win will extend its season and send it to the quarterfinals. Trento will bid farewell to the competition with a road game at Partizan NIS Belgrade.

Tuesday, February 4, 2020
Eurocupbasketball.com