Green, Paris edge Banvit in series opener

Mike Green was the hero on Wednesday in leading Paris Levallois past Banvit Bandirma 67-65 in Game 1 of their two-game total-points Eurocup Quarterfinals series. Green set a quarterfinals record with 11 assists before banking in his own missed shot in the final second of the game to give Paris the win. However the series shifts to Turkey for Game 2, where Banvit will advance if it wins by at least 3 points. Green, who finished with 7 points, tied Marko Popovic for the most assists in a single game this late in the season. Blake Schilb led the Paris attack with 12 points, Maleye Ndoye added 11 and Sharrod Ford had 10 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. Vladimir Dragicevic led Banvit with 16 points and 9 rebounds, Sammy Mejia added 13 points and 3 steals and E.J. Rowland scored 10 in defeat.

Schilb scored first for Paris and Louis Labeyrie dunked as the hosts held Banvit without points for the first three minutes. Mejia got the visitors going with a three-pointer, but Paris continued its strong start with a Schilb three and Labeyrie free throw to make it 10-3. Four Banvit players scored in a 0-9 run capped by an Rowland that put Banvit on top 12-14. Paris called a timeout, after which Green tied it and came up with a steal that led to Ndoye’s basket. However Rowlands was fouled shooting a three and made the resulting free throws for a 16-17 Banvit lead after 10 minutes. Dragicevic and Berkay Candan extended Banvit’s advantage to 5 points early in the second quarter. Dionte Christmas answered with a three-pointer and Schilb tied the game at 25-25. Vladimir Veremeenko scored 6 quick points to keep Banvit on top. Green fed Michel Jean-Baptiste-Adolphe for a slam and JBAM split free throws in the closing seconds of the half to make it 30-33.

Mejia started the second half with a three-pointer, but Nicolas Lang did the same and Ford made free throws to bring Paris within 35-36. The teams traded shots throughout the bulk of the third quarter with Banvit always holding on to a slim advantage. Ndoye finished the quarter with a four-point play that tied that game at 51-51. Ndoye opened the fourth quarter with another three and Xavier Corosine added a triple of his own to cap a 10-0 run to make it 57-51. Candan and Keith Simmons brought the visitors within 2 midway through the quarter. After Green scored, Mejia connected from downtown and Simmons did the same for a 59-61 Banvit lead. Schilb’s basket-plus-foul put the hosts back ahead and they held on to a slim lead until Dragicevic free throws tied the score at 65-65 with just over a minute remaining. After turnovers on both ends, Green drove and missed a floater, but grabbed his own rebound and banked it in with 0.8 seconds on the clock to win the game for Paris.