Regal FC Barcelona bested Fenerbahce Ulker 69-75

An epic battle in Istanbul between Group C Top 16 qualifiers fell on the side of the guests as defending champs Regal FC Barcelona defeated hosting Fenerbahce Ulker by 69-75 on Thursday night. The win allows Barcelona to improve to a 6-2 record to match Fenerbahce's mark, even though the Turkish team stays second due to a larger margin in the first win against Barcelona in the first leg. Barcelona dominated throughout the first half thanks to a great first quarter. However, the hosts stormed on court in the second hald to threaten the supremacy of Barcelona until the very last plays, but could never complete the comeback and free throws kept Barcelona ahead for good. Boni N'Dong led the winners with 14 points, Fran Vazquez and Erazem Lorbek posted 11 apiece and Ricky Rubio had 10 plus 10 assists. For the hosts, Roko Ukic had 13 points, Kaya Peker 12, Marko Tomas 11 and Tarence Kinsey 10.

The game started with the reigning champs totally plugged in: great defense for steals and fastbreaks allowed Regal FC Barcelona to soon build a 2-6 lead thanks to fast offense. Fenerbahce tried to reply through Darjus Lavrinovic, but the Barcelona big men, Fran Vazquez and Erazem Lorbek, were the go-to guys for a quick 4-12 run with a 6 of 6 from the field that forced the first Fenerbahce timeout. The hosts were struggling big time in offense while Lorbek hit a three for his 11th point and a 7-17 Barca lead. When the guests missed shots, they usually pulled the offensive board and thanks to Kaya Peker and Tarence Kinsey on the other end, Fenerbahce was surviving at this point, 11-19. The hosts improved their defensive effort a notch and managed to put the guests in trouble, but it was only through Oguz Savas free throws that Fenerbahce managed to leave things at 14-21 after 10 minutes.

The second quarter didn't show much change. Barcelona tried to run as often as it could and they also did a good job of isolating Roko Ukic in offense. Jaka Lakovic and Kosta Perovic started the period scoring for the guests while Fenerbahce seemed only to be able to draw fouls inside for free throw points, 18-25 after Tarence Kinsey's trip to the stripe. With both teams missing a few open shots now, four straight points by Morris and a three by Lakovic allowed the guests to pull away to 19-32 for another Fener timeout. The hosts came out with a little boost after the instructions with Sean May getting some protagonism, but Ricky Rubio dished two straight assists for respective baskets that kept Barca out of reach, 23-36. A monster block by Vazquez didn't stop Ukic from scoring his second basket in the next play as the quarter entered the las minute with a 26-36. There was still some time bor Boni N'Dong to hit a personal 0 -4 run and then get a Lavrinovic reply to close the first half with a 28-40 Barcelona edge.

Fenerbahce Ulker stormed into the third quarter with a 7-0 run capped by Ukic's three and Kinsey free throws that quickly forced a Barcelona timeout with 35 -40. Three straight Fener fouls seemed to kill the momentum as Lakovic killed the scoring burst with a three for 35-43. Ukic attacked the basket for the three-point play as a wake-up call for the guests. The game entered a frenzy phase with both sides committing mistakes in offense but Barcelona never panicked, and Vazquez appeared inside for more points. When it looked like things were settling down a bit, coach Xavi Pascual was called for a technical foul which allowed the hosts to hit two free throws, but Barca ran again to find Morris for the easy layup and make it 40-48. A 5-0 capped by Tomas' three put Fenerbahce closer than ever at 45-48 while big men like Vazquez and Peker traded easy layups to keep things going. The fast tempo of the game made it appealing for the roaring fans in Istanbul who saw how their team was getting closer, but N'Dong scored free throws to keep the guests at a safe distance for now, 49-54. When Lynn Greer hot free throws to close the third quarter with a 51-56 however, most things were still yet to be decided.

The last period started in the frenzy mode again. Both teams attacking fast and Fenerbahce eating up deficit points little by little. N'Dong was the man for Barcelona keeping the guests alive while Tomas buried five straight points to make it 58-60. N'Dong and Onan traded baskets as time went by, and with 60-64 the game entered the last six minutes. Both teams managed to find good shots again, but defenses never allowed the ball to go in that easily as Rubio went to the line for three free throws that made it 60-67. A travelling violation called on Turkcan and a clean jumper by Rubio made it 60-69 for the Fenerbahce timeout. A 6-0 Fener burst capped by Peker made it a 3-point game again, until Roger Grimau used his cold blood to hit a shot that gave Barca some air. When Peker slammed again, the stands caught fire as it was obvious that Fenerbahce still had a lot to say in the game. Great Barca defense including a Morris block on Kinsey saved the guests once more, and Lakovic hit free throws to make it 68-73 entering the last minute. Ukic missed one of two free throws and then Morris did the same, but after Kinsey's steal he was called for a foul and Rubio sealed the deal with another free throw to make it 69-75 at the end of the game.