Joyce sparks Limoges over Reggio Emilia

Limoges CSP rallied for its first win of the Top 16, an 80-71 come-from-behind victory over Grissin Bon Reggio Emilia on Tuesday evening. Down 10 in the second quarter, Limoges rallied to trail by only 4 at halftime and Dru Joyce erupted with 15 third-quarter points as the hosts stormed ahead for good. Despite the victory, Limoges remains last in Group H with a 1-4 record. Reggio Emilia fell to 3-2, but can advance to the quarterfinals as soon as Wednesday if ASVEL Villeurbanne beats UNICS Kazan or next week with a home win over ASVEL. Joyce finished with 17 points on 3-of-4 three-point shooting for the winners, Kenny Hayes scored 13 points, Josh Carter and Tautvydas Lydeka netted 12 points apiece and William Howard added 11. Limoges outrebounded Reggio Emilia 33-23, which helped make up for its 15 turnovers. The competition’s leading scorer, Amedeo Della Valle, paced Reggio Emilia with 18 points and Garrett Nevels scored 11 in defeat.

The teams traded shots early with Howard free throws giving Limoges a 7-5 lead. Reggio Emilia scored the next 5 points, but Carter’s triple tied the score at 10-10. Della Valle came off the bench for a three-point play and James White helped the visitors remain in front. Julian Wright scored the last 3 points of the first quarter, including a high-flying dunk, to make it 19-24 after 10 minutes. Della Valle nailed a three and then set up Wright for a reverse alley-oop slam as Reggio Emilia surged ahead 22-31. Carter’s second triple kept Limoges close, but soon Nevels gave the visitors their first double-digit lead, 27-37. Limoges hung around with free throws by Hayes and Carter, however a three by White kept Reggio Emilia cruising. Late in the half, Lydeka scored twice and Hayes converted a four-point play for an 8-0 run. Della Valle beat the halftime buzzer with a jumper to make it 39-43 at the break.

Joyce erupted with the first 8 points of the second half – including a pair of three-pointers – to give Limoges its first lead since the opening minutes. Della Valle tried to get his team going, but another Joyce triple made it 52-45. Joyce added a floater and Hayes made a runner in the lane to stretch the lead to 8. Nevels countered with a triple, but Axel Bouteille hit a jumper and blocked a shot in the last minute of the third quarter, which ended with Limoges in control 63-55. The momentum remained with Limoges as Lydeka scored inside and Danny Gibson nailed a triple to put the hosts up 71-60 midway through the fourth quarter. The Limoges lead peaked at 13 and Reggio Emilia’s final charge would prove to be too little, too late.