Bayern Munich rolled past Siena to remain unbeaten

Turkish Airlines Euroleague debutant FC Bayern Munich remained undefeated in Group C by knocking off Montepaschi Siena 87-78 in its first-ever home game in the competition. John Bryant collected 15 points, 11 rebounds and 2 blocks while Malcolm Delaney scored 20. Nihad Djedovic added 14 points with 5 assists Lucca Staiger chipping in 10 points for Bayern, which improved to 2-0. Josh Carter paced Siena with 14 points while Taylor Rochestie netted 13, Kim English 12 and Benjamin Ortner tallied 11 points. Othello Hunter collected 9 points and 5 rebounds as Montepaschi dropped to 0-2 in the group.

First quarter: Bryant scores 6 points in key 9-0 Bayern run

Bayern coach Svetislav Pesic made one change to his starting lineup with Robin Benzing coming on for Bryce Taylor alongside Malcolm Delaney, Nihad Djedovic, Boris Savovic and John Bryant. Montepaschi coach Marco Crespi shook up his starting five with Kim English and Othello Hunter playing for Erick Green and Spencer Nelson. The other three starters were Daniel Hackett, Joshua Carter and Benjamin Ortner. Hunter got the guests on the board first with a triple from the right wing, which Djedovic answered right back. Bryant’s inside basket gave Munich its first lead of the game at 5-3. English’s triple from the right side handed the lead back to Siena at 7-8. After Benzing hit, Carter converted a three-point play to start an 0-8 Montepaschi run, which included Hackett’s trey for a 9-16 advantage. Bayern roared back with a 9-0 surge led by Bryant, who hit inside, from long range and a foul shot for six points and an 18-16 Munich lead. Ortner stopped the run with an inside score to even the game before Taylor slashed to the rim for a 22-20 Bayern lead after one quarter.

Second quarter: Djedovic, Delaney spark late 16-7 Bayern surge

Two Chevon Troutman scores were followed by a coast-to-coast layup by Heiko Schaffartzik for a 6-0 run as Bayern opened a 28-20 gap. Taylor Rochestie finally scored for Siena at the 6:43 minute mark of the second quarter and added a jumper before English beat the Munich defense back for an easy layup to make it 28-26, resulting in a Munich timeout. Munich increased the intensity out of the timeout and a Bryant tip-in snapped a 2:43 minute scoreless stretch for Munich. It also sparked an 8-0 run, which ended with an easy layup by Djedovic for a 36-26 advantage. Rochestie stopped the bleeding with a triple but saw Lucca Staiger answer right back with a long ball. A Delaney jumper pushed the cushion to 12 points, 43-31, and the hosts led 46-33 at the break thanks to Delaney’s three-ball just before the buzzer.

Third quarter: Siena inches to within 11 points before Djedovic three starts run

Djedovic’s free throws opened the second half and Ortner scored Siena’s first points of the quarter. Savovic and Carter swapped triples and an Ortner three-point play trimmed the margin to 53-41. The cushion was only 55-44 after two Carter foul shots. But Djedovic nailed a big triple for Bayern to wake Munich’s offense back up. The trey started a 13-5 Bayern run, which featured Benzing hitting a jumper and a three-ball as Munich jumped ahead 68-49. The advantage was 70-52 after three quarters.

Fourth quarter: Siena run not enough to make things interesting late

Yassin Idbihi opened the fourth quarter by giving Bayern a 20-point lead for the first time. Staiger added a free throw and a triple to push the margin to 76-52. English’s foul shot and Jeffrey Viggiano’s score cut it to 76-65. Staiger went to the other side of the court to nail a long ball for a 79-57 lead. Siena would not go down without a fight with a 2-14 run with triples by Carter and Rochestie and a dunk for Ortner to make it 81-69 with less than three minutes left. But Delaney made four straight free throws and Siena could not come up with enough possessions to make it interesting in final minute.