Avtodor claims first win in a resounding fashion
Avtodor Saratov registered its first-ever Eurocup win, and has done it in style, going on the road and beating Besiktas Sompo Japan Istanbul 79-103 on Wednesday. Both teams now stand at 1-1 record in Group E. Avtodor used five triples during 4-19 first quarter run that gave it a double-digit lead, and the visitors never looked back. Margin reached 20 points before halftime, and 30 points midway through the third quarter, as Avtodor cruised to a resounding win. Malcolm Armstead paced the winners with 17 points and 7 assists, Travis Peterson collected 16 points plus 9 rebounds, and Jeff Brooks also scored 16. In double figures for Avtodor also were Jeremy Chappell with 14, and Artem Zebelin with 12 points. Maciej Lampe had 21 points and 11 rebounds for Besiktas, Nate Wolters scored 13, and Trammell Darden 11 points in defeat.
In the early going, Darden and Lampe gave Besiktas 8-7, but that turned out to be the only advantage the hosts had during the night. Armstead nailed one from long range, Zabelin hit a triple of his own, and Peterson followed with a fastbreak basket for 11-17. After Dogan Senli and Peterson traded threes, margin continued to grow with back-to-back threes from Chappell and Deny Lukashov for 14-26. Lukashov finished the quarter with back-to-back baskets for 16-30, and Alexey Nesterov and Artem Klimenko grabbed important rebounds - and scored baskets - early in the second period, as lead got to 20-41. Engin Atsur hit a triple for Besiktas, but Chappell scored 6 more points before halftime, and with help from Peterson and Alan Makiev, Avtodor held 34-56 after 20 minutes.
Darden scored four points to help the hosts offensively at the start of the third quarter, but back-to-back threes from Armstead and Brooks made it 42-67, then Zabelin hit a triple and a two-pointer that helped the margin break 30-point barrier. A three-pointer from Peterson extended it to 46-79 with 3 minutes to go in the third quarter with Avtodor firmly in control. Lampe, Darden and Wolters scored for Besiktas, and a fastbreak basket from Kartal Ozmizrak cut the deficit to 60-83 late in the third, but Brooks, Klimenko, Chappell and Armstead with a triple extended it back to 64-94 with 4 minutes to go in the fourth quarter, as the visitors cruised to a historic win.
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Eurocupbasketball.com