Unics Kazan edged Asseco prokom 68-72
Unics came from behind in the fourth quarter of an intense seesaw battle against Asseco Prokom to pull out its second road win of the season 68-72. Henry Domercant came up big again with 15 fourth-quarter points, including a clutch three-pointer with 36 seconds on the clock to lead the winners. Unics improved its record to 2-2 in its first Turkish Airlines Euroleague season. Prokom, despite leading by 5 midway through the fourth quarter, fell to 0-4. Domercant led all scorers with 23 points. Kelly McCarty added 13 and Aleksey Savrasenko had 10 for Kazan. Donatas Motiejunas paced Prokom with 19 points, while Michael Kuebler knocked down 15 and Oliver Lafayette 14.
Domercant drilled a three to answer early foul shots by Jerel Blassingame. Unics stayed ahead on a Petr Samoylenko layup on a fast break, but Lukasz Seweryn filled the net from downtown as Prokom pulled to 4-5. Domercant split free throws, which was the only scoring by either team for more than two minutes. The score moved ahead on points in the paint as Motiejunas and Lafayette both scored for the hosts and then Terrell Lyday knotted the game at 8-8. Savrasenko put in a layup and Lyday knocked down 2 free throws, but Prokom kept pace on Pior Szczotka’s running hook and a jumper by Lafayette. Unics opened a lead again behind Domercant's triples and a Savrasenkko layup, ending the quarter at 12-17.
Samoylenko opened the quarter from downtown as Unics started to pull ahead, 12-20. After the two teams exchanged split free throws, Prokom fought back. Motiejunas scored spinning into the lane and Lafayette layed it in to cut the lead to 17-23. Lynn Greer nailed a jumper and converted a foul shot to push the lead to 17-26, the largest of the game. Michael Kuebler threw up a running one-hander at the buzzer that dropped in, to keep the hosts within striking distance. After splitting free throws, Lafeyette buried another jumper, 22-27, answered by Greer, who hit from inside the foul line, 22-29. Then Kuebler found the hot hand and scored 8 consecutive points on two thre-pointers and a mid-range jumper as Prokom stormed back for a 30-29 halftime lead.
Savrasenko hit a layup, then McCarty added three more from the corner to extend the visitors’ lead t0 30-34. A seesaw battle ensued as Prokom retook the lead on a Motiejunas layup, followed by Adam Lapeta’s three-point play. McCarty and Motiejunas exchanged baskets, then Kuebler knocked down 3 of 4 free throws as Prokom added to its lead. The offensive pace quickened as Petr Gubanov drained a jumper from corner, followed by an exchange of three-pointers from Lafayette and Lyday to push the score to 43-41. Savrasenko scored two consecutive baskets on identical plays, as Lyday fed him down low on the right side for two bank shots as Unics reclaimed the lead at 44-45. Seweryn tied the game at the end of the quarter on a fast break, 45-45.
Seweryn scored the first points of quarter, 49-45, but Domercant answered with hitting his first points of the second half, 49-47. Szczotka put in a layup on a feed from Blassingame. Then Domercant showed signs of heating up again, scoring the next 5 points, including a three-pointer, to edge out front 51-52. After Motiejunas responded in kind, Domercant hit yet another triple, 54-55. Motiejunas scored the next four, followed by Adam Hrycaniuk's bank shot off the glass as Prokom took the largest lead of the second half, 60-55. After free throws from Motiejunas, Domercant hit again, 62-57. Gubanov converted on a basket-and-foul to cut the lead to 62-60 as the torrid pace continued. Blassingame countered, then McCarty hit from the baseline and converted a foul shot, 64-63. Kuebler drove down the lane to stay ahead, 66-63, but McCarty came up with 4 consecutive points on a bank shot off the glass, followed by 2 foul shots, as Unics regained the lead at 66-67 with under two minutes left. Motiejunas spun into the paint to give Prokom a 68-67 edge, which it quickly relinquished to the visitors on Domercant’s clutch three-pointer with 36 seconds on the clock, 68-70. Motiejunas missed a wide-open look from beyond the arc; Prokom fouled Gubonov on the next possession and he hit both to seal the game, 68-72.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Euroleague.net