Wilbekin steers Darussafaka to fifth consecutive victory

Darussafaka Istanbul reached the midway point of the 7DAYS Regular Season with its unbeaten record still intact after cruising to a never-in-doubt 85-77 victory over MoraBanc Andorra. The hosts established a double-digit lead in the second quarter and never looked back, using a 10-2 run early in the second half to put the outcome beyond doubt. Darussafaka was led by playmaker Scottie Wilbekin who combined 24 points – including 4 of 6 three-point shooting – with 6 assists and 5 steals. James Bell added 22 points and Michael Eric came close to a double-double with 11 points and 9 boards. Andorra got a very solid all-round performance from Vladimir Jankovic with 14 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals. Andrew Albicy hit 4 three-pointers in his total of 14 points and big man Przemek Karnowski scored 17. Darussafaka remained top of the group at 5-0, while Andorra dropped to 1-4.

Andorra scored the opening basket on Albicy’s first triple and the lead regularly changed hands during the opening five minutes. But then Bell scored 6 points in less than two minutes and Darussafaka was on its way to finishing the first quarter with a 26-17 lead. A highlight reel slam from Bell highlighted a 10-2 second-quarter run as the lead grew to 15 points, but back-to-back triples from Albicy allowed Andorra to pull back to 48-37 at the half. Darussafaka dominated the early exchanges of the third quarter to steadily extend its advantage to 19 points with another 10-2 run and Andorra never really looked like recovering. A trio of Wilbekin three-pointers midway through the final quarter protected the lead and although Karnowski battled hard to add 6 points in just over two minutes, helping to reduce the deficit to single digits, it was already too late as Darussafaka eased to victory.