Poirier takes Baskonia past host Efes

In an outstanding showdown that went down to the last seconds, Baskonia Vitoria Gasteiz rallied from an nine-point deficit in the final 5 minutes to edge host Anadolu Efes Istanbul 81-82 on Friday. Baskonia improved to 6-6 in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague regular season standings while Efes dropped to 4-8. Toko Shengelia led the winners with 17 points. Matt Janning and Vincent Poirier each added 16 while Jayson Granger dished 10 assists for Baskonia. Poirier added 12 rebounds and 5 blocks. Errick McCollum led Efes with 21 points. Bryant Dunston added 14, Zoran Dragic, Vladimir Stimac and Ricky Ledo each had 10 while Krunoslav Simon got 8 assists for Efes. Stimac added 17 rebounds, a EuroLeague season high. Poirier had an early dunk, a jumper and an alleyoop layup, getting help from Janning to lead Baskonia to a 7-16 lead. Efes found a go-to guy in Ledo but Shengelia and Kevin Jones kept the guests in charge, 19-24, after 10 minutes. Simon led a 7-0 run that gave Efes its first lead, 28-27. Shengelia and Poirier kept pacing Baskonia to a 42-45 edge at halftime. Janning hit back-to-back triples in a 0-10 run that gave the visitors their only double-digit lead, 47-57. An unstoppable McCollum answered with 11 points in an 19-4 run that put Efes ahead, 68-65, after 30 minutes. A dunk by Dunston gave Efes a 76-67 margin but Poirier, Janning and Shengelia brought Baskonia within 81-80. Poirier rounded out his great game by hitting the game-winning free throws with 3.1 seconds left.

It took Janis Timma six seconds to get Baskonia going with a three-pointer. Poirier followed a dunk with a jumper and Janning sank a jumper but Dragic and Stimac kept Efes within 7-9. Shengelia and Poirier fueled a 0-7 Baskonia run that Janning capped with a slam. Ledo stepped up for Efes, joining forces with Josh Adams and Derrick Brown to bring the hosts within 17-20. Jones rescued Baskonia with a jumper and a layup but a jump hook by Stimac got Efes closer, 19-24, after 10 minutes. Rodrigue Beaubois bettered McCollum's jumper with a triple early in the quarter. Simon had 5 points and an assist in a 7-0 run that gave Efes its first lead, 28-27. Johannes Voigtmann and Jones stepped up for Baskonia and a coast-to-coast layup by Beaubois restored a 31-36 lead. Shengelia took over with a huge dunk and Poirier added an alley-oop slam but Adams and an unstoppable Dunston – with 8 points in 4 minutes – kept Efes within 42-45 at halftime.

A corner triple by Ledo and a fast break layup by Brown tied the game, 47-47, soon after the break. It didn't last long, however, as Janning nailed back-to-back three-pointers in a 0-10 run that Granger capped with a layup, good for a 47-57 Baskonia lead. Ledo and Simon tried to change things for Efes, then McCollum and Stimac fueled a 10-0 surge to put the hosts ahead, 61-60. Jones struck from downtown but McCollum followed a jumper with a triple and a layup by Dunston made it a five-point Efes lead that Beaubois cut to 68-65 after 30 minutes. Stimac and McCollum led a 6-0 Efes run early in the fourth quarter and a dunk by Dunston ignited the crowd at 76-67. Baskonia did not panic, however, as Poirier had 6 points and Janning added a three-pointer in a 2-11 run that made it a one-point game, 79-78, with 2 minutes left. McCollum hit a jumper, Shengelia made free throws and Baskonia got the ball back with 20.7 seconds remaining. Poirier drew a foul and both attempts to win it for Baskonia, as Simon picked up a turnover in Efes's final possession.