CSKA rallies past Darussafaka, gets third win
CSKA Moscow stayed undefeated in the EuroLeague by rallying past Darussafaka Tekfen Istanbul 79-75 in the Russian capital on Thursday. CSKA improved to 3-0 in the standings while Darussafaka dropped to 1-2. Cory Higgins led the winners with 14 points, Nikita Kurbanov added 13, Sergio Rodriguez 11 and Nando De Colo scored 10 for CSKA. Michael Eric and Stanton Kidd led Darussafaka with 15 points apiece. Eric added 11 rebounds for a double-double. And Ray McCallum netted 14 points for the guests.
Kidd and Jeremy Evans shined early and a layup by McCallum gave Darussafaka an 8-9 lead. Kurbanov rescued CSKA with a triple, free throws and a put-back basket, for a 19-17 edge after 10 minutes. A fast break layup by Muhammed Baygul and a triple by Markel Brown restored a 22-24 Darussafaka lead early in the second quarter. A triple by Kidd and a fast break dunk by Zanis Peiners made it 27-36, which De Colo cut to 31-38 at halftime. Higgins took over after the break, joining forces with Alec Peters to bring CSKA back to life at 40-42. Peters insisted from downtown and a jumper by Rodriguez completed CSKA's comeback, 47-46. Higgins and Rodriguez kept pushing CSKA as they raced to get a comfortable lead, 57-48, after 30 minutes. CSKA kept excelling on defense and a reverse layup by Will Clyburn made it 67-54. Eric and McCallum gave Darussafaka hope at 70-65 with four minutes left. Rodriguez fed Othello Hunter for an alley-oop slam and sank a jumper that helped CSKA seal the outcome.
Pivotal performer
Cory Higgins was held scoreless in the first half, but had 10 points in the third quarter to bring CSKA back to life. With his team trailing 33-42, Higgins made sure his team took the lead for good. He finished the game with 14 points.
Game-changing moment
Darussfaka led 33-42 early in the third quarter but Peters, Higgins and Rodriguez fueled a 27-6 run that gave CSKA full control of the game, 60-48, with eight minutes remaining. Darussafaka was unable to mount a serious challenge the rest of the way.
Stellar stat
CSKA pulled down 17 offensive rebounds in this game. It had 10 in each of the previous two games. Kyle Hines led his team in that category with 4 offensive boards.
Did you notice?
CSKA got more points from its bench than from its starting lineup. Its reserves scored 46 points, which was 58.2% of CSKA's points.
Next game
CSKA visits Herbalife Gran Canaria on Friday, October 26 at 21:30 CET. Earlier on that day, at 19:15 CET, Darussafaka hosts FC Barcelona Lassa.

Thursday, October 18, 2018
Euroleague.net