2018-19Regular SeasonRound 4
Herbalife Gran Canaria 91
CSKA Moscow 106
October 26, 2018 CET: 21:30
Local time: 20:30 GRAN CANARIA ARENA

CSKA outguns Gran Canaria in high-scoring showdown

CSKA Moscow stayed undefeated in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season by downing Herbalife Gran Canaria 91-106 on the road on Friday. CSKA improved to 4-0 in the standings with the comeback win, while Gran Canaria dropped to 1-3. Nando De Colo paced the winners with 22 points. Cory Higgins added 17, Othello Hunter got 16, Will Clyburn and Alex Peters both scored 15 while Sergio Rodriguez contributed 11 and 8 assists for CSKA. Clevin Hannah led Gran Canaria with 17 points. D.J. Strawberry added 16 while Chris Evans had 14 for the hosts.

Eulis Baez and Strawberry shined early and a three-pointer by Evans made CSKA call timeout at 10-4. Strawberry and Evans each struck from downtown and a jumper by Hannah made it a double-digit game, 18-8. De Colo and Rodriguez stepped up for the guests and a fastbreak layup by Higgins brought CSKA within 22-21. Ondrej Balvin and Kim Tillie kept Gran Canaria in charge, 29-26, after 10 minutes. Xavi Rabaseda took over early in the second quarter and a dunk by Balvin made it 41-35. Strawberry hit a triple and Hannah added a close basket to make the guests stop the game at 46-38. Hunter, De Colo and Higgins brought CSKA as close as 55-52 at half-time, and a fastbreak layup by Clyburn gave CSKA its first lead, 55-57, soon after the break. Strawberry and Baez pulled back the hosts but Hunter stayed unstoppable, Rodriguez downed a three-pointer and a layup by Kyle Hines made Gran Canaria call timeout at 67-71. A jumper by Rabaseda tied it again, 73-73, but Higgins and Clyburn put CSKA back in charge, 77-80, after 30 minutes. A three-pointer by Strawberry kept Gran Canaria within 84-86 midway through the fourth quarter. But Peters struck twice from beyond the arc and another three-pointer from Higgins sealed the outcome, 88-97, with over 2 minutes left.

Pivotal performer

De Colo scored 13 of his 22 points in the final 11 minutes, making the difference down the stretch. He also had 6 assists, 4 steals and 4 fouls drawn for a PIR of 27.

Game-changing moment

It was a close game for 35 minutes, until Peters buried a couple of three-pointers. Higgins and De Colo joined the three-point shootout to put the victory on ice as Gran Canaria never recovered.

Stellar stat

CSKA had 12 turnovers before halftime, but just 3 in the second half. Perimeter defense made the difference, too: Gran Canaria hit 7-of-10 three-point shots (70%) in the first half but just 1-of-14 (7.1%) after the break.

Did you notice?

De Colo missed his first free throw attempt this season – he is now 18-of-19 for the season, 94.7%. He is the best free throw shooter in EuroLeague history, hitting 579 of his 618 attempts – 93.7%.

Next game:

CSKA hosts Olympiacos Piraeus on Thursday, November 1 at 18:00 CET. It is a rematch of the 2012 EuroLeague Championship Game, which Olympiacos won 61-62. Gran Canaria visits Khimki Moscow Region, in a rematch of the 2015 7DAYS EuroCup Finals. Khimki swept the two-way series and lifted the EuroCup trophy for the second time.

Will Clyburn - CSKA Moscow - EB18
Friday, October 26, 2018
Euroleague.net
Referees: PUKL,SASA; JOVCIC, MILIVOJE; PAPAPETROU, PETROS
Attendance: 7430
By Quarter1234
Herbalife Gran Canaria29262214
CSKA Moscow26262826
End of Quarter1234
Herbalife Gran Canaria29557791
CSKA Moscow265280106
Herbalife Gran Canaria
  Rebounds Blocks Fouls
# Player Min Pts 2FG 3FG FT O D T As St To Fv Ag Cm Rv PIR
4 OLIVER, ALBERT 12:36 3   1/2         3         4   1
5 HANNAH, CLEVIN 24:10 17 5/7 1/3 4/5   2 2 6 2 3     2 5 22
8 ERIKSSON, MARCUS 2:55               2 1       2   1
12 BALVIN, ONDREJ 21:20 8 3/4   2/2   2 2 1   1 1   3 2 9
13 BAEZ, EULIS 18:10 6 3/3 0/1     2 2 1 1 1     3   5
14 PASECNIKS, ANZEJS 20:08 9 3/4   3/4   3 3   1 1       4 14
21 PAULI, ORIOL 16:54 8 3/3   2/4 2 1 3     4       3 8
22 RABASEDA, XAVIER 17:22 7 2/5 1/3   1 1 2 1 2     1 1   5
23 EVANS, CHRISTOPHER 21:22 14 4/6 2/5     2 2 1 1       4 3 12
24 STRAWBERRY, DJ 25:41 16 2/5 3/7 3/5   1 1 1   1     2 4 10
40 FISCHER, LUKE DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
41 TILLIE, KIM 19:22 3 1/3 0/3 1/2 1 3 4     3   1 1 2 -2
Team           2   2               2
Totals 200:00 91 26/40 8/24 15/22 6 17 23 16 8 14 1 2 22 23 87
        65% 33.3% 68.2%
Head coach: MALDONADO, SALVA
Min: Minutes played; Pts: Points; 2FG M-A: 2-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); 3FG M-A: 3-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); FT M-A: Free Throws (Made-Attempted); Rebounds: O (Offensive), D (Defensive), T (Total); As: Assists; St: Steals; To: Turnovers; Bl: Blocks (Fv: In Favor / Ag: Against); Fouls: Cm (Commited), Rv (Received); PIR: Performance Index Rating
CSKA Moscow
  Rebounds Blocks Fouls
# Player Min Pts 2FG 3FG FT O D T As St To Fv Ag Cm Rv PIR
1 DE COLO, NANDO 27:02 22 5/6 2/6 6/7 1 1 2 6 4 3     2 4 27
5 PETERS, ALEC 29:25 15   5/6     5 5 1 2 2     4   16
7 UKHOV, IVAN 5:01     0/1   1   1             1 1
11 ANTONOV, SEMEN 8:11 2 1/2 0/1   1 4 5           3 1 3
13 RODRIGUEZ, SERGIO 27:00 11 1/3 3/7   1 4 5 8   1     3 4 18
20 VORONTSEVICH, ANDREY DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
21 CLYBURN, WILL 33:02 15 6/13 0/2 3/4 4 4 8   1 2 1 1 2 6 16
22 HIGGINS, CORY 24:29 17 4/5 3/4 0/1       4 2 3 1   4 3 17
23 HACKETT, DANIEL 5:50   0/1       2 2     3     2   -4
30 KULAGIN, MIKHAIL DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
42 HINES, KYLE 16:29 8 4/5     2   2 1             10
44 HUNTER, OTHELLO 23:31 16 7/9   2/4 3 3 6   1 1     3 2 17
Team             2 2               2
Totals 200:00 106 28/44 13/27 11/16 13 25 38 20 10 15 2 1 23 21 123
        63.6% 48.1% 68.8%
Head coach: ITOUDIS, DIMITRIS

Head Coaches

MALDONADO, SALVA
Herbalife Gran Canaria
"First of all, congratulations to CSKA for the win. We played well but they were better than us. The first half was spectacular – two teams with aggression and rhythm. We played very well. In the second half, especially in the fourth quarter, maybe we were tired around the 35th minute. We started to miss the open shots that we were making before. It was a great game and I proud of my team for its great effort. Honestly, I am not sad for the loss. We competed until the 35th minute and they kept improving, playing at a very high rhythm all game long. We lost track and they took advantage of that, hitting shots in the decisive moments, basically. They kept scoring, hitting 4 three-point shots in critical moments. We hit 1-of-14 three-point shots in the second half, missed 4 free throw attempts, and they are a team that doesn't forgive anyone, proving it in the final minutes. My team gave my best and didn't get the win, but we played a very good game."
ITOUDIS, DIMITRIS
CSKA Moscow

"I would like to congratulate my team and my players for the outcome, for the win. I also want to congratulate Gran Canaria for their fight and their crowd. I think that everybody witnessed two different halves from my team. In the first half, we lacked concentration, motivation and aggression on the defensive end. We allowed them to do a lot of easy things. They were playing aggressive basketball. Then came the second half, in which the mindset was changed and I have to congratulate my players for that. We had a great defensive second half. We challenged shots, contested the opponent and didn't give them second chances. We forced turnovers and shared the ball well with 16 assists despite not moving the ball that much in the first half. We managed to bring that to the end with a lot of quality and it is another lesson: there are no easy games, especially on the road. Gran Canaria had character, they wanted to react and played aggressive basketball so congratulations to them. I wish them the best of luck."

"In EuroLeague there are no easy games, each game for different reasons. We did travel, but everyone else will travel. We said we have to change things up defensively in the second half. They were shooting 7 of 10 in first half from behind the arc, but it came down to 1 out of 14 in the second half, which is a low percentage. So, defensively we set the tone in the second half, and they scored 36 points in the second half, which is a great result for us. What I say at halftime stays between me and my players. I congratulate them, they changed the mindset for the second half. They are ready to accept criticism. We built a strong trust among us, and I am there just to help them. They are the stars, they run the game offensively and defensively."

Players

STRAWBERRY, DJ
Herbalife Gran Canaria
"We played a solid, tough game for three quarters. In the fourth they made some big shots, they are a tough team. In the fourth quarter you have to make shots and put the game away, and we didn't do that. But overall we played a good game against a great team."
RODRIGUEZ, SERGIO
CSKA Moscow
"It was a great victory. I knew it would be difficult. Gran Canaria plays good here, plays with a lot of confidence at home, like it showed in the first half. We came ready, especially in the second half. We have a lot of talent, people who can get to the basket very easy. Nando played great tonight, Cory, Will, and Alec Peters was key. He made a few shots that opened up everything. It is still early in the season, it is a long marathon and we have to keep getting better. For me is not possible not to enjoy it here in Gran Canaria. The atmosphere is great, I always love to play here. The fans are very intense and it is always special when I come to Gran Canaria."
DE COLO, NANDO
CSKA Moscow
"It was very difficult to come in and win this game, but we did it. EuroLeague is a tough competition, we have to be ready. It was a long trip but we finally got the win, and that is good for us. We said during halftime that we had to play better defense. We did it a little bit better in the second half, but we need to keep working on it."