Anadolu Efes rallies past CSKA for seventh straight win

Anadolu Efes Istanbul registered a pivotal win in Top 16 Group E by edging CSKA Moscow 63-60 at home on Friday. Efes improved to 7-1 and registered its seventh consecutive win in Group F. CSKA dropped to 5-3 and is tied with Panathinaikos for third place. Jordan Farmar paced the winners with 15 points. Jamon Lucas added 14 and 11 rebounds, while Semih Erden scored 10 for Efes. Milos Teodosic led CSKA with 26 points - a new Euroleague career high. Sasha Kaun added 12 for the guests. Kaun had all the points in a 0-6 run that gave CSKA an early 2-8 lead. Vladimir Micov led a 0-9 run that boosted the guests' margin to 10-22. Farmar and Dusko Savanovic brought Efes within 16-22 after 10 minutes. Lucas took over early in the second quarter to get Efes a bit closer, 22-26. Teodosic and Sonny Weems stepped up to keep CSKA out of trouble, 26-34, at halftime. Savanovic and Lucas brought Efes within 37-38 midway through the third quarter, but Teodosic singlehandedly gave CSKA a 41-46 lead at the end of that quarter. An outstanding Lucas took over in the fourth quarter to give Efes its first lead, 52-51. A jumper by Micov gave CSKA its last lead, 56-58. Farmar struck from downtown and hit 4 free throws in crunch time for a 63-60 lead with 6.9 seconds left. Zoran Erceg and Teodosic missed respective three-point shots that would have sent the game to overtime, allowing 11,350 fans at Abdi Ipekci Sports Hall to celebrate a thrilling win.

First quarter: Kaun stars as CSKA takes lead

Nenad Krstic got CSKA going with a jump hook that Josh Shipp matched with a fast break basket. Kaun took over with an off-balance reverse layup and a big alley-oop slam. CSKA kept running its offense through Kaun, whose alley-oop layup gave his team a 2-8 lead. Farmar scored in penetration, but Teodosic quickly answered with a six-meter jumper. Lucas split free throws and fed Shipp for a fast break dunk. Teodosic nailed a three-pointer to restore a 7-13 CSKA edge. Erden stepped up for Efes. Kaun made foul shots and Vladimir Micov followed a wide open triple with a reverse layup, which caused Efes to call timeout at 10-20. Efes tried to improve its offense by bringing Sasha Vujacic and Stanko Barac off the bench. Kaun dunked to cap a 0-9 CSKA run, as Farmar shined with consecutive driving layups. Dusko Savanovic added a fast break basket to bring Efes a bit closer, 16-22, after 10 intense minutes.

Second quarter: Teodosic, Weems keep the guests ahead

CSKA tried twin point guards with Theo Papaloukas and Aaron Jackson together on court. Jackson shined with a high-flying put-back basket, as CSKA improved its defense and refused to allow any open shots. Lucas tried to change things with a driving layup off the baseline and a power basket by Erden kept Efes as close as 20-26. Lucas scored again to cap a 6-0 Efes run, before CSKA called timeout at 22-26. Teodosic, who took full control of the game's tempo, stepped up with a catch-and-shoot three-pointer off a timeout and Sonny Weems matched Kerem Tunceri's jumper with a driving layup, good for a 24-31 CSKA lead. Weems swished a three-pointer to restore a double-digit CSKA margin, 24-34. Efes regained its defensive momentum after a timeout. Meanwhile, Vujacic nailed a long two-pointer that fixed the halftime score at 26-34.

Third quarter: Teodosic holds off Efes's rally

Lucas nailed a one-handed jumper in the lane immediately after the break. Shipp added a fast break dunk that made it a 4-point game. CSKA kept struggling to score and Coach Ettore Messina quickly called timeout to readjust his team's offense. Lucas picked up a loose ball and put it in, but Teodosic answered with a driving layup. Savanovic downed a mid-range jumper, which a red-hot Teodosic erased at the other end. Efes tried to use shorter possessions, but shots did not fall in until Savanovic took over with a three-point play that got the hosts as close as 37-38. Papaloukas hit a jumper and CSKA raised its level of aggressiveness, holding Efes scoreless for two minutes. Meanwhile, free throws by Teodosic gave CSKA some fresh air at 37-42. Farmar made foul shots, which Teodosic bettered with an off-balance triple. Teodosic split free throws and Tunceri hit a five-meter shot for a 41-46 score through three quarters.

Fourth quarter: Efes rallies to win a thriller

Both teams struggled to score early in the fourth quarter until Erden took over with a power layup. Zoran Erceg banked in a mid-range shot that Erden erased with a second-chance layup to make it 45-48 with over seven minutes left. Sinan Guler collected a steal that led to an acrobatic layup, but Teodosic did even better with a bomb from downtown. Erden split free throws and a jumper by Lucas made it a one-point game, 50-51. CSKA could not find the way to the basket and another jumper by Lucas gave Efes its first lead of the night, 52-51, with over four minutes to go. Lucas split free throws and a three-pointer by Teodosic put CSKA back ahead, 53-54, turning the game into a thriller. Tunceri answered from downtown and a dunk by Kaun tied it at 56-56. Micov banked in a close jumper, but a three-pointer by Farmar restored a 59-58 Efes lead. CSKA fouled Farmar, who made free throws with 16.7 seconds to go. Teodosic missed from downtown, but Papaloukas grabbed the offensive rebound and Efes sent Teodosic to the line with 7.5 seconds left. He made both attempts, but so did Farmar at the other end. CSKA had the chance to tie the game, but Erceg and Teodosic missed from downtown in the final seconds, allowing Efes to celebrate yet another win!