Delaney, Randolph lead Lokomotiv past Efes in Istanbul

Riding a three-game winning streak and the competition’s best defense, Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar went on the road to defeat Anadolu Efes Istanbul 61-76 in Game of the Week on Thursday. Lokomotiv improved to 7-2 and will be no lower than second place in Group E after Friday’s game, while Efes dropped its fourth straight to fall to 3-6. Anthony Randolph was all over the place from the start, scoring 10 points in the first quarter as Lokomotiv took control early on. Malcolm Delaney joined in the second quarter to help build a 28-38 halftime lead. The margin quickly grew to 13 points in the third, and Efes never came closer than 6 points rest of the way as it did not have an answer for Lokomotiv’s defense, while Victor Claver, Delaney and Randolph made plays for the visitors on offense. Delaney finished with 19 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds. Randolph had 17 with 6 rebounds and 2 blocks, while Claver scored 14 with 9 rebounds. Thomas Heurtel was the lone Efes scorer in double figures with 17 and also had 7 rebounds. Jayson Granger and Cedi Osman contributed with 9 points apiece in defeat.

First quarter: Randolph scores 10 to pace visitors early

Randolph opened the scoring with a fastbreak layup and after Ryan Broekhoff made a runner, Randolph's basket inside and a put-back made it 0-8. Efes did not score for almost four minutes before Heurtel banked a floater of the glass. Bryant Dunston followed with a pair of baskets inside, including a dunk, before a corner triple from Matt Janning made it 6-11. Heurtel answered with a three-pointer, and his foul shots put the hosts in front 12-11. The same player banked one in on a breakaway, and Alex Tyus scored inside to make it 16-13. But Randolph answered with a pair of long jumpers, including a tough turnaround buzzer-beater that made it 16-17 after 10 minutes.

Second quarter: Lokomotiv pulls away behind Delaney

Chris Singleton and Delaney opened the quarter with back-to-back triples, and after Jayson Granger knocked one down for Efes, Delaney buried another to make it 19-26. Efes answered with close range baskets from Tyus and Derrick Brown, before Furkan Korkmaz nailed a three to tie the score at 26-26 midway through the quarter. But Sergey Bykov made a fastbreak layup for Lokomotiv, and Singleton scored from close range. Andrey Zubkov continued the run with a pair of layups, each after an assist from Delaney, who then made free throws to open a 10-point lead. Heurtel snapped the 0-10 run by banking in from short range, but Bykov’s free throws made it 28-38 at halftime.

Third quarter: Visitors’ lead reaches 13 points

Granger’s coast-to-coast layup started the second half, but Claver scored on a back-door cut after Delaney’s inbound pass. Granger made a driving layup, but Janning answered with a jumper and Claver buried a triple to open a 32-45 advantage. Brown scored a put-back, but Claver replied by driving the lane for a two-handed dunk. Osman hit a triple for Efes, before Dario Saric hit from long range and close range to cut within 42-49. Delaney’s fastbreak dunk pushed the margin back to double figures, before Granger made a floater for the hosts, reducing the deficit to 44-53.

Fourth quarter: Lokomotiv closes it out in style

Tyus scored a put-back to open the fourth-quarter scoring, and after Delaney made a tough baseline jumper, Osman bettered it with a corner triple to make it 49-55. After a timeout, Claver nailed a triple, then drove for a reverse layup and a double-digit lead. Heurtel replied with a three-pointer, but a Coach Dusan Ivkovic’s technical allowed Delaney to make 3 of 3 from foul line and open a 52-63 cushion with 5:48 to go. Neither team scored for more than three minutes, before Saric split free throws and ended his streak of 32 consecutive made free throws. After a timeout, Granger missed both foul shots for Efes, before Randolph’s short turnaround jumper made it 53-66, sealing the deal with two minutes to go. Before the game’s end, Delaney and Heurtel traded baskets and Broekhoff hit a triple, extending his personal streak to 11 games with at least one three-pointer, 57-72. Randolph scored inside, and drove cost-to-coast for a layup-plus-foul, before Osman rounded out the scoring with a three-pointer.