
PBC Lokomotiv Kuban punched its ticket to the Last 16 and became Group E champion with a 70-87 win over Trefl Sopot on Wednesday. Lokomotiv finished regular season with a 4-2 record and atop of the group after learning Donetsk downed Galatasaray after overtime in the other Group E game. Meanwhile, Sopot finishes its Eurocup campaign at 1-5 and in fourth place after running out of mathematical chances to advance even before this game. Lokomotiv never trailed against Trefl Sopot, building a commanding 22-point halftime lead behind 22 first-half points from Derrick Brown. The host used a huge third quarter, including a 13-2 run at the end of it, to come within 61-66, but Simas Jasaitis and Nick Calathes quickly pushed the lead back into double figures and paved the path to victory for Lokomotiv. Brown finished the game with 34 points, Aleks Maric had 14 and Calathes scored 12 points while dishing out 14 assists and grabbing 8 rebounds. Filip Dylewicz and Sime Spralja each scored 14 for Sopot, while Frank Turner had 12 points in defeat.
Lokomotiv got off to a quick start with Brown’s fastbreak layup. Brown also hit a jumper before Adam Waczynski opened Sopot's account with a triple, but Jimmy Baron hit a jumper and a triple and Brown made another jumper of his own to open a 5-13 Lokomotiv lead. The hosts answered with couple of baskets from Frank Turner and with a three-pointer from Przemyslaw Zamojski, however Brown stayed hot hitting another jumper and another three before Maxim Sheleketo's dunk made it 12-21. Michal Michalak and Filip Dylewicz kept Sopot in range, but Nick Calathes scored 5 points in the finale 30 seconds of the first quarter and Brown scored at the very start of the second for 16-28. Sime Spralja and Michalak each hit a three-pointer for the hosts, but Lokomotiv converted on the first four possessions of the second quarter, including a triple from Sheleketo. Back-to-back triples from Maxim Grigoryev and Brown gave the visitors a 28-43 lead before they went on a 0-10 run that extended the lead to 30-53 and put Lokomotiv in absolute control. Before the end of the half, the margin reached 24 points. Spralja and Turner each scored to make it 34-56 at the break.
Sopot had a better start into the third quarter, with Turner hitting a jumper and Waczynski sinking a triple. Maric and Jasaitis scored for Lokomotiv, but Dylewicz hit a jumper and a triple, and Zamojski added a layup cutting the deficit to 48-60. Calathes and Brown answered with layups to snap the run, but Michalak and Spralja hit back-to-back triples, and Mateusz Jarmakowicz added one of his own before the end of the quarter to help Sopot come within 61-66. Jasaitis and Calathes, however, created a 0-6 run at the start of the fourth quarter to push the lead back into double figures. Dylewicz hit a triple to keep alive hosts’ hope for a comeback, but Maric and Brown made jumpers for 64-76 and some breathing room. Even after Dylewicz and Spralja scored inside, the visitors did not come closer than 9 points as Maric and Brown sealed the deal for the Group E champions.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Eurocupbasketball.com