Galatasaray beats Sassari, reaches the eighthfinals

Galatasaray Odeabank Istanbul advanced to the Eurocup eighthfinals as the first-ranked team in Group N by downing Dinamo Banco di Sardegna Sassari 87-69 at home on Wednesday. Galatasaray finished Group N with a 4-2 record and got first place due to its tie-break advantage with CAI Zaragoza. Galatasaray is now set to face Pinar Karsiyaka Izmir in the eighthfinals. Sassari was third with a 3-3 record and was eliminated from the 2015-16 Eurocup. Sinan Guler led the winners with 18 points. Vladimir Micov had 16, Stephane Lasme added 15 and 14 rebounds, Chuck Davis got 11 points while Curtis Jerrells contributed 10 for Galatasaray. Jarvis Varnado led Sassari with 14 points. Rok Stipcevic added 13, Joe Alexander and Tony Mitchell each had 12 while David Logan got 11 for the guests. A three-pointer by Brent Petway gave Sassari an 8-11 lead. Lasme led a 10-2 run which allowed Galatasaray to get a 18-13 edge after 10 minutes. Tony Mitchell briefly put Sassari back ahead, 24-25, but Micov and Davis helped Galatasaray restore a 36-33 margin at halftime. A layup by Guler made it a double-digit game, 50-39. Sassari managed to get within 57-50 early in the fourth quarter. Davis, Goksenin Koksal and Guler shined early in the fourth quarter, as Galatasaray boosted its margin to 75-55 and never looked back.

Logan got Sassari going with a three-pointer, as Galatasaray went scoreless for almost 3 minutes until Lasme stepped up with a put-back layup. Stipcevic answered from downtown but Koksal and Micov helped the hosts tie it at 6-6. Stipcevic scored again and Petway bettered Koksal's mid-range jumper with a big triple from the right wing, good for a 8-11 Sassari lead. Jerrells answered from downtown and Lasme put Galatasaray back ahead, 13-11. Logan and an unstoppable Lasme exchanged baskets and a three-pointer by Micov boosted Galatasaray's lead to 18-13 after 10 minutes. Varnado hit a jump hook early in the second quarter but Micov and free throws by Joey Dorsey gave Galatasaray a 22-15 margin. Varnado scored down low, Dorsey and Mitchell traded baskets and an outstanding four-point play by Logan brought Sassari as close as 24-23. Mitchell put Sassari ahead with a jumper which Micov bettered with a triple. Jerrells scored in a one-on-one situation, Stipcevic nailed one from beyond the arc but 5 quick points by Davis made the guests call timeout at 34-28. Lasme made free throws by Mitchell singlehandedly kept Sassari within 36-33 at halftime.

Jerrells struck from downtown immediately after the break but Varnado brought the guests even closer, 39-37. Lasme scored again and a jumper by Schilb gave Galatasaray a 43-37 margin. Lasme bettered Varnado's free throws with a three-point play and soon added free throws to boost the hosts' margin to 48-39. Guler shined with a driving layup that made it a double-digit game, 50-39. Stipcevic nailed a corner triple, Mitchell and Guler joined the three-point shootout and a dunk by Petway kept Sassari within 53-47. Guler took over with a reverse fast break layup that Logan matched with his trademark jumper in transition. Davis hit free throws to fix the score at 57-49 after 30 minutes. Joe Alexander split free throws early in the fourth quarter. Davis stepped up with back-to-back baskets and Koksal added a layup in transition to boost Galatasaray's margin to 63-52. Koksal kept pacing the hosts with a corner triple that made Sassari stop the game at 66-52. Guler stayed on fire with a three-point play and soon hit one from beyond the arc to break the game open, 72-55, with 6 minutes left. Micov hit his own triple and even when Alexander scored again, all Galatasaray fans had plenty of time to celebrate that their team stays very nuch alive in the fight to win the Eurocup title.