
Orleans Loiret Basket did its job on Wednesday night and managed to route Dinamo Sassari on the road by 71-95 in Group H. However, this result made the French team hope for a Cajasol Seville loss at Crvena Zvezda that did not happen, therefor, Zvezda and Cajasol emerged as the Last 16 qualifiers from Group H. The guests started rolling and only foundsome opposition from Sassari in the first quarter. Brian Greene led the winners with his 23 points, Caleb Green added 15 and Chris Hill nailed 13. For the hosts, Drake Diener led the way with 27 points and Travis Diener added 21. Orleans finishes with a 2-4 record and Sassari with a 3-3.
Mael Lebrun hit a bucket to give Orleans Loiret an early 2-8 lead capping a 0-8 for the guests, but Dinamo Sassari was soon back on its feet as Drake Diener
blasted a three for 7-9 and later tied the game at 11-11. The duo of Diener cousins had scored 13 of Sassari's first 19 points but Brian Greene had 9 for
himself as Orleans resisted and stayed ahead, 19-21 after Caleb Green's points. The Dieners kept scoring for Sassari but it was Green who, with a layup, put
an end to the firs quarter with a 25-26 Orleans edge. In the second quarter, Greene and Green pulled Orleans in the offensive end while the hosts stayed
alive thanks, of course, to the Dieners. A starting 0-7 allowed the guests to make it 25-33, but Sassari had its own 6-0 to pull within 31-33 in minute 16.
The 11 assists by Orleans however, proved that the collective effort of the guests was paying off as Jahmar Young scored his 6th point to send the teams to
the lockerroom with a 34-42 for Orleans.
Greene started a barrage of baskets that piled up to a 2-7 Orleans starting run to the second half, making it a double-digit game, 36-49. Fernando Raposo
joined in on the party while, for Sassari only Drake Diener was scoring now. Mael Lebrun hit it wher it hurt the most with another Orleans three, the team's
seventh, to make it 39-54. A half-hidden Bootsy Thornton appeared to score from the line, but Green's new three allowed Orleans to increase the lead to 17 points, 44-61. With 36 of the total 48 Sassari points so far scored by the Dieners, the team was in bad need of a more collaborative effort, which is precisely what Orleans offered, as Young stood up for five points of his own, 53-66, and then another three for the 55-69 after 30 minutes. The last period started with another 4-11 storm by Orleans as Chris Hill nailed a new three for 59-80 and five minutes to go. The outcome was clear was the guests rolled to a final blowout win. This result left, however, both teams out of the Last 16, because combined with Cajasol's win at Crvena Zvezda, it put the Spanish team in the next phase.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
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