Banvit BK Bandirma held off a third quarter charge from BC Triumph Lyubertsy at home on Wednesday evening en route to an 86-79 win that lifted the hosts into a three-way tie for first place in Group I. Banvit improved to 2-1, while dropping Triumph, which was undefeated in the regular season, to 0-3. Chuck Davis fueled the winners with 26 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists. He was aided by Kalin Lucas with 15 points, while Keith Simmons and Serkan Erdogan scored 12 apiece and Vladimir Stimac posted 10 points and 10 rebounds. Tasamin Mitchell paced Triumph with 22 points and 8 rebounds, while Yuval Naimy netted 20 points, Tywain McKee 12, and Kyle Landry 11.

Triumph had to wait over two minutes into the game to score its first basket, and Landry's three-pointer did not start a flurry of baskets for the visiting team. Instead, Banvit’s Davis and Simmons took over the scoring with three triples in quick succession, each player assisting the other. In the final two minutes of the quarter, Triumph finally came to life, recovering from 22-5 deficit to pull back within 22-11. Davis had already got into double digits by the end of the first buzzer. Triumph made four changes in personnel for the second quarter. Mitchell remained on the floor and began to up the accuracy with some inside shots, while McKee warmed up to provide assists and rebounds –plus a shot from beyond the arc which closed the score to 41-34. Mitchell made it past the 10-point mark early on in the quarter, but Davis maintained his shooting form for Banvit; he contributed another 10 points for the second quarter in a row, playing a big part in Banvit going into halftime 48-34 up.

Mitchell, Landry and Naimy all combined in the third quarter to mount a Triumph comeback. Banvit’s only response was an Erdogan three-pointer as the visiting team went on a scoring run that brought it within 51-49. Naimy’s shot from outside and Mitchell’s short range jumper then put Triumph ahead for the first time. On defense, the visitors kept Davis quiet and he failed to score a single point in the third quarter, with only Banvit’s late series of points from Lucas and Stimac stemming the flow of Triumph baskets and bringing the score back level, 62-62, going into the fourth quarter. Triumph scored double Banvit’s tally in a third quarter that set up a great last 10 minutes. Banvit opened up the final quarter with a pair of dunks from Simmons and Davis, who became the focal point of the home offense as it relied upon a strong finish. The lead went back and forth in a race to the final buzzer, with Banvit making it a 7-point game two minutes from the end. A series of late free throws from Lucas, Davis and Kenan Bajramovic eventually swung the game Banvit’s way, en route to an 86-79 victory.