Gran Canaria reaches quarterfinals despite home loss

Herbalife Gran Canaria Las Palmas reached the Eurocup quarterfinals by despite a 77-78 home loss against Limoges CSP on Wednesday. Gran Canaria had previously recorded a 65-82 win in Limoges and advanced to the quarterfinals with an aggregate score of 159-143. Gran Canaria is set to face Stelmet Zielona Gora in the next round. Alen Omic led Gran Canaria with 15 points. Brad Newley added 13, Kevin Pangos had 12 and 6 assists while Sasu Salin got 10 points for the hosts. Ali Traore led Limoges with 19 points. Bo McCalebb added 17, Nobel Boungou-Colo had 16 while Leo Westermann got 10 for the guests. Boungou-Colo had 8 quick points to give Limoges an early 4-11 lead. Traore had 6 unanswered points in another 0-9 Limoges run that made it a double-digit game, 11-22. D.J. Seeley and Pangos brought Gran Canaria within 18-24 after 10 minutes. Three-pointers by Newley and Pablo Aguilar put Gran Canaria ahead, 29-26, early in the second quarter. McCalebb and Boungou-Colo allowed Limoges to tie the game, 42-42, at halftime. Traore fueled an 0-8 run which gave Limoges a 44-52 edge soon after the break. Gran Canaria stayed within 54-61 after 30 minutes sealed the outcome of the series behind a solid fourth-quarter performance from Salin and Omic. Pangos sank three bombs from downtown in crunch time to give his team a 77-75 lead. Free throws by Boungou-Colo and Matt Gatens helped Limoges win the game.

Omic got Gran Canaria going with a layup which Boungou-Colo bettered with a seven-meter bomb for a 2-3 Limoges lead. Will Daniels struck from downtown and a dunk by Boungou-Colo boosted the guests' lead to 2-8. Albert Oliver found Omic for a layup that a red hot Boungou-Colo bettered with his second triple. Salin joined the three-point shootout and matched Westermann's layup with a mid-range jumper for a 9-13 score. Xavi Rabaseda found his first points but Daniels sank one from beyond and Traore scored down low, added a rainbow jump hook and a baseline jumper to force the hosts to stop the game at 11-22. Seeley stepped up with a backdoor layup and fed Rabaseda for a fast break basket. A three-pointer by Pangos and a big basket by McCalebb fixed the score at 18-24 after 10 minutes. Omic scored in the low post early in the second quarter but Traore scored off a high post pick for a 20-26 Limoges lead. Newley swished a corner triple and Aguilar also struck from downtown to make the guests stop the game at 26-26. Newley and Westermann traded three-pointers and a free throw by Seeley gave the hosts a 30-29 lead. Westermann hit foul shots that Aguilar matched with a second-chance basket. Anzejs Pasecniks made free throws and a wild basket by Oliver boosted Gran Canaria's lead to 36-32. McCalebb sank a triple and Eulis Baez made his team restore a 37-35 edge. Traore nailed a jump hook and Boungou-Colo bettered Baez's basket with a triple. Omic took over with a layup-plus-foul and free throws by Boungou-Colo tied the game, 42-42, at halftime.

Traore buried his trademark jump hook immediately after the break but Omic quickly answered with a layup. Gran Canaria stayed strong on defense but started to use longer possessions to run the game clock down. An unstoppable Traore scored again in the low post and a tip-in by Boungou-Colo gave Limoges hope at 44-48. The hosts had been limited to just 2 points in 5 minutes and back-to-back layups by Frejus Zerbo and McCalebb boosted the guests' lead to 44-52, after a 0-8 run. Newley rescued Gran Canaria with a three-pointer but Gatens answered from downtown. Oliver and Omic made free throws off a Gran Canaria timeout but Traore buried a mid-range jumper for a 51-57 Limoges lead. Mark Payne hit foul shots which Seeley improved with a big triple. A buzzer-beating layup by Traore gave Limoges a 54-61 margin after 30 minutes. Traore split free throws early in the fourth quarter but Newley followed a jumper with a driving layup to keep Gran Canaria within 58-62. McCalebb stepped up and singlehandedly boosted Limoges's lead to 59-67 with over 6 minutes left. Omic ignited the crowd with a big slam but McCalebb did better with a wild triple. Salin hit free throws and a layup by Baez sealed the outcome of the series, 65-70. Both teams, however, kept fighting for a prestigious win. A couple of three-pointers by Pangos kept the hosts within 74-75 in the next-to-last minute. Pangos downed another triple but free throws by Boungou-Colo and Gatens allowed Limoges to win the game, even when Gran Canaria was the series winner and reached the next round.