Fenerbahce beats Monaco to stop four-game skid

Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul scored 33 points in the fourth quarter to pull away from AS Monaco for a 96-86 victory at Ulker Sports and Event Hall on Thursday night. The win snapped a four-game losing streak and raised Fenerbahce’s record to 4-9 on the season while sending Monaco to its fourth loss in a row and a 5-8 record. Jan Vesely led six Fenerbahce scorers in double figures with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists for a season-high PIR of 32. Marko Guduric scored all of his 18 points in the second half, Nando De Colo scored 15, Pierria Henry had 13 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 steals and Achille Polonara and Devin Booker added 11 points apiece. Mike James paced Monaco with a season-high 31 points, Yakuba Ouattara added 15 and Alpha Diallo 10.

Brock Motum opened the scoring for the visitors before Vesely got Fenerbahce on the scoreboard. Motum and Diallo helped Monaco jump ahead 4-6 by the first TV timeout. De Colo came off the bench and quickly tied it with free throws. It was 11-11 after Diallo and Henry traded threes. De Colo connected from downtown to give Fenerbahce its first lead, 14-13. A fastbreak dunk and a three-pointer from James gave him 9 points and gave Monaco a 16-18 lead after 10 minutes.

Donatas Motiejunas made free throws and a three-pointer and fed Ouattara for a layup as Monaco stretched the lead to 19-25, which prompted a Fenerbahce timeout. Sehmus Hazer closed the gap with a layup and a triple. Polonara tipped in a missed De Colo free throw to even the score at 27-27. A put-back by Vesely gave the visitors the lead at the midway points of the quarter. Vesely scored on three straight possessions, though a triple by James tied it at 33-33. The Fenerbahce center found a wide-open Henry for a three-pointer and a 5-point lead, after which Monaco called timeout. James connected on a four-point play after the stoppage and banked in a three on the halftime buzzer to send Monaco into the locker room ahead 40-42.

Guduric scored 11 points – including 3 triples – in a 13-1 run to open the second half to give Fenerbahce the lead. More than 4 minutes passed before Ouattara’s put-back, which was Monaco’s first basket of the half. Ouattara added a triple and Paris Lee netted free throws as Monaco trimmed the deficit. James’s steal and layup made it 57-56 and prompted a Fenerbahce timeout. A floater by Motum completed the comeback and Danilo Andjusic’s free throw gave Monaco the lead, 58-59. De Colo’s layup left the teams tied at 63-63 through three quarters. 

Polonara dunked and Henry sank a three to the delight of the Fenerbahce faithful. James made his fifth triple to bring Monaco within 68-66. De Colo gave Fenerbahce a 7-point lead with a triple.  After a timeout, Will Thomas knocked down a three, but Henry made a layup and came up with a steal that lead to a Booker three as the hosts took a 78-69 advantage. Polonara stretched the difference to 12 with a three. Monaco fought back through a three by Ouattara and free throws by James to make it 83-76 with 3 minutes remaining. James struck again with a steal and a three-point play. Diallo committed an unsportsmanlike foul on Vesely with 2:08 remaining and a three by Guduric all but put the game on ice.

Fenerbahce heats up late

The game between Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul and AS Monaco was tied after three quarters before the hosts heated up in the fourth quarter to score 33 points. Fenerbahce made 5 of 7 two-pointers and 6 of 7 three-pointers in the last 10 minutes to pull away for the win. The production was shared by six players: Pierria Henry scored 7, Nando De Colo 6 and Devin Booker, Marko Guduric, Achille Polonara and Jan Vesely had 5 apiece. Everyone but Vesely had a three-pointer in the fourth. For the game, Fenerbahce was 13 for 22 (59.1%) from downtown.

James feasts on Fenerbahce again

Mike James scored a season-high 31 points in AS Monaco’s loss at Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul. It was the ninth time in his career that he reached the 30-point mark and the third time he’s done so against Fenerbahce. He netted 31 with AX Armani Exchange Milan in a 92-85 loss in Istanbul in December 2018 and led CSKA Moscow to an 88-70 victory over Fenerbahce in the Russian capital in November 2019. James also leapfrogged Jan Vesely and Alexey Shved into ninth place on the all-time EuroLeague scoring charts with 2,889 points. However, the end ended on a down note as he left the game with an apparent leg injury in the penultimate minute.

Pivotal performer: Vesely shines

Jan Vesely had one of his best games in a Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul uniform to lead his team to victory over AS Monaco. He posted 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting along with 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals. Vesely’s performance index rating of 32 was a season-high and one of the 10 best in his career. He also achieved a milestone in the game. Vesely grabbed the 500th offensive rebound of his career, becoming the sixth player to reach that mark. His 2 steals gave Vesely sole possessions of eighth place all-time with 263. He entered the round tied with Gianluca Basile. Nando De Colo ranks seventh with 272.