2018-19Regular SeasonRound 1
October 12, 2018 CET: 19:45
Local time: 20:45 ULKER SPORTS AND EVENT HALL

Fenerbahce cruises past newcomer Gran Canaria

Fenerbahce Istanbul led from start to finish en route to a 97-72 win over Turkish Airlines EuroLeague debutant Herbalife Gran Canaria at its Ulker Sports and Event Hall on Friday night. The hosts opened a double figure lead in the first half, and never lost the grip of the game. Jan Vesely starred with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 3 assists in less than 22 minutes, to lead the reigning EuroLeague runner-ups in this victory.

Fenerbahce took control from the start behind its defense, holding the visitors to only 2 points in the first 7 minutes, and a basket-plus-foul from Jan Vesely opened a 13-2 lead. The visitors’ 40-year old Albert Oliver stopped the bleeding, scoring 6 points and making history by becoming the oldest scorer in the competition this century, but Fenerbahce did not allow its opponents to come much closer. A pair of alley-oop dunks from Vesely put the hosts up 28-14 early in the second before Christopher Evans got it going for Gran Canaria, scoring 9 points in the second quarter. However, a three from Nikola Kalinic midway through the second (the first three-pointer of the game) followed by a triple-plus-foul from Kostas Sloukas helped Fenerbahce keep the margin in double figures, and go into half-time up 49-35. After the break Anzejs Pasecniks single-handedly cut the deficit to 50-41, but a pair of threes from Luigi Datome and a three-point play from Joffrey Lauvergne opened a 59-43 margin. Vesely continued to be hard-to-stop for the visitors, not only scoring but also dishing assists for his teammates. The hosts held a 75-58 edge after three quarters, and Marko Guduric’s corner triple made it 82-58 early in the fourth as Fenerbahce continued to cruise the rest of the way.

Game-Deciding Effort

Even though Fenerbahce missed its first 6 three-point attempts, all wide open, they made it up by corralling those long rebounds and pulling down 8 offensive boards in the opening 9 minutes. Also, Fenerbahce allowed only 2 points in the opening 7 minutes. It spoke volumes about the home team’s approach to the game, which certainly paved the road to victory.

Pivotal Performer

Jan Vesely was everywhere on Friday night. Coming off the bench he had 15 points and 8 rebounds before half-time, getting his way inside, while also living up to his Czech Helicopter nickname by finishing a pair of alley-oop dunks after passes from Nikola Kalinic and Melih Mahmutoglu. In the second half Vesely added some nifty passing to his repertoire, finishing the game with 19 points, on 7-of-8 from two-point range, 11 rebounds and 3 assists.

Movers and Shakers

Nikola Kalinic finished with 16 points for Fenerbahce, while Luigi Datome and Joffrey Lauvergne scored 12 apiece. Most of Kostas Sloukas’s production – 8 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds – came in the first half. Christopher Evans scored 9 of his 13 points in the second quarter to lead Gran Canaria, and Anzejs Pasecniks added 12 points in the losing effort.

Hidden Stat

The two teams started the game by combining to miss their first 17 three-point attempts. Fenerbahce was 0-for-6 and Gran Canaria 0-for-11 before Kalinic made a shot from long range midway through the second quarter. Fenerbahce then made 6 of its next 9 three-point attempts, finishing 6-for-17. The visitors shot 6-for-31.

Next Game

Tuesday will be an historic day for Gran Canaria (0-1) when in Round 2 it hosts fellow Spanish side FC Barcelona Lassa (0-1). A day later, Fenerbahce (1-0) stays at home to welcome Khimki Moscow Region (0-1).

Fenerbahce Istanbul celebrates - EB18
Friday, October 12, 2018
Euroleague.net
Referees: CHRISTODOULOU, CHRISTOS; PATERNICO, CARMELO; ROCHA, FERNANDO
Attendance: 8081
By Quarter1234
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul22272622
Herbalife Gran Canaria10252314
End of Quarter1234
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul22497597
Herbalife Gran Canaria10355872
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul
  Rebounds Blocks Fouls
# Player Min Pts 2FG 3FG FT O D T As St To Fv Ag Cm Rv PIR
4 MELLI, NICOLO 16:40 4 2/4 0/2   2 3 5 1   1     5    
10 MAHMUTOGLU, MELIH 16:12 2 1/3 0/2         1         1   -2
11 ENNIS, TYLER 12:32 5 2/3   1/2       1 1 1     3 1 2
12 KALINIC, NIKOLA 21:52 16 4/4 1/1 5/6 1 2 3 3 2 1     3 5 24
16 SLOUKAS, KOSTAS 21:26 8 2/4 1/4 1/1   5 5 7   2     1 5 17
23 GUDURIC, MARKO 18:37 8 1/2 1/3 3/4   2 2 1   2     3 3 5
24 VESELY, JAN 21:30 19 7/8   5/5 4 7 11 3   1     1 4 34
32 GULER, SINAN 12:45 7 3/4 0/1 1/2       1   1   1   1 4
35 MUHAMMED, ALI DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
44 DUVERIOGLU, AHMET 13:07 4 2/4     3 1 4 2         2   6
70 DATOME, LUIGI 21:24 12 2/3 2/3 2/2 1 3 4   1 1     1 3 16
77 LAUVERGNE, JOFFREY 23:55 12 3/6 1/1 3/3   4 4 3 2   1   2 2 19
Team             1 1               1
Totals 200:00 97 29/45 6/17 21/25 11 28 39 23 6 10 1 1 22 24 126
        64.4% 35.3% 84%
Head coach: OBRADOVIC, ZELJKO
Min: Minutes played; Pts: Points; 2FG M-A: 2-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); 3FG M-A: 3-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); FT M-A: Free Throws (Made-Attempted); Rebounds: O (Offensive), D (Defensive), T (Total); As: Assists; St: Steals; To: Turnovers; Bl: Blocks (Fv: In Favor / Ag: Against); Fouls: Cm (Commited), Rv (Received); PIR: Performance Index Rating
Herbalife Gran Canaria
  Rebounds Blocks Fouls
# Player Min Pts 2FG 3FG FT O D T As St To Fv Ag Cm Rv PIR
4 OLIVER, ALBERT 13:15 7 1/3 0/1 5/5       1           2 7
5 HANNAH, CLEVIN 22:48 7 1/3 1/6 2/2 1 1 2 6 2       2 5 13
8 ERIKSSON, MARCUS 2:41     0/1                       -1
12 BALVIN, ONDREJ 14:39 4 2/3   0/2 2 4 6 1         3 1 6
13 BAEZ, EULIS 22:02 2 1/2 0/4   2 2 4     1   1 3   -4
14 PASECNIKS, ANZEJS 15:22 12 6/8 0/1   3   3     2     4 2 8
21 PAULI, ORIOL 20:33 7 1/3 1/2 2/2 2 3 5 2   1 1   3 1 9
22 RABASEDA, XAVIER 21:47 3 1/2 0/2 1/2 1 3 4   1 2     3 2 1
23 EVANS, CHRISTOPHER 17:06 13 3/10 1/3 4/5 3 1 4 1 1 2     3 4 8
24 STRAWBERRY, DJ 22:03 8 2/3 1/5 1/2   2 2   3 1     1 2 7
40 FISCHER, LUKE 9:46   0/1     1 1 2           1    
41 TILLIE, KIM 17:58 9 0/1 2/6 3/4 3   3 1   1     1 2 7
Team           2 1 3     1         2
Totals 200:00 72 18/39 6/31 18/24 20 18 38 12 7 11 1 1 24 21 63
        46.2% 19.4% 75%
Head coach: MALDONADO, SALVA

Head Coaches

OBRADOVIC, ZELJKO
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul

"We played a good game and we deserved to win. We controlled the game from the beginning to the end. I am very happy all the players got their contributions in victory, and thank you to the people for creating a good atmosphere once again. Gran Canaria always plays the same, they like to run and take a lot of three-point shots, like today. We started EuroLeague by playing good basketball in the first game. I will not talk about individual players. All of them are important and have quality to be on our team. There is a long trip in front of us."

"We played against a team that deserves to be in the EuroLeague, and we knew it would not be an easy game for us. We scouted them, they are the team that always play the same way, play in high rhythm offensively and defensively, and everything was like we expected it to be. They shot a lot of three-point shots, and go for offensive rebounds, and that stats support that as they tried 31 triples and got 20 offensive boards. The good thing is they did not score a lot from those, that was the key to keeping their three-point shooting in low percentages. I think we controlled the game from the first to the last quarter. I am sure you will see Gran Canaria will be a very good team during the season, they have quality, and that makes me very satisfied with the first game of the season. Congratulations to the players, and thanks to the fans for a good atmosphere."

MALDONADO, SALVA
Herbalife Gran Canaria
"First of all, I want to congratulate Fenerbahce for the win. They played very well, physically and with a high rhythm. We played well in the second and third quarter, but in the first quarter we had many problems with their offensive rebounds. After that, we moved the ball well to find open shots, but we missed them. And in the last quarter, Fenerbahce played very well. It was our first game in the EuroLeague, and it was against a great club like Fenerbahce .We don’t have the experience, but we have a motivation and a goal to play better in future games in this competition."

Players

VESELY, JAN
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul
"That was a team win, and I am happy that we started strong at home. We just have to keep going, now we have to get rest for the double-week. It is going to be tough, but we have to play our game like today. It is fun to play with Lauvergne. We keep talking that we can help each other under the basket, getting rebounds, scoring. It is fun to play with him and I am looking forward to the games that follow."
LAUVERGNE, JOFFREY
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul
"We started in a good way. I am very glad about the way we played tonight. I cannot wait for next week. Jan Vesely is a big man who can pass the ball, we find each other, and I like to play with him a lot."
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