Asseco Prokom bested Union Olimpija 67-52

Asseco Prokom registered its first win of the season by thrashing Union Olimpija Ljubljana 67-52 on Wednesday night in Group D, in Gdynia, Poland. A 23-3 third quarter made the difference for the home team after the guests led 27-30 at halftime. Fourteen baskets from downtown by Prokom proved too much for the visitors to overcome. Lukasz Seweryn, Przemyslaw Frasunkiewickz and Jerel Blassingame scored 12 points apiece for the Polish champs, while Donatas Motiejunas nailed 11 and added an all-time Euroleague single-game record of 18 defensive rebounds. Boris Rothbart amassed 16 points and 11 boards for Olimpija, Deon Thompson and Aleksandar Capin drained 11 apiece and Sasu Salin had 10.

Blassingame scored 5 points in a row to open the scoring for Prokom, before Capin hit from mid range to stop a two-and-a-half minute scoreless drought for Olimpija. Rothbart scored a pair from the foul line to make it 5-4. Thompson’s mid-range jumper gave the first advantage to the guests and Capin increased it from downtown a few seconds later. Michael Kuebler hit a three from the corner to beat the Ljubljana zone defense, answered again by Rothbart with 2 free throws and a layup to go on 8-13. A Motiejunas put back and another basket from downtown of Kuebler tied the score at 13-13, but Rothbart remained an unstoppable weapon and dunked to keep Olimpija in front 13-15 after 10 minutes.

Jaka Blazic and Oliver Lafayette scored free throws, then Thompson dunked for a 14-19 margin for the guests. Prokom continued to struggle against the zone. It was Frasunkiewickz with back-to-back triples who found the key to open the box and put Prokom ahead 20-19. A turn-around jumper by Thompson exchanged the lead and he then scored a jumper from the top of the key before Sasu Salin completed a 7-0 run from long distance to make it 20-26. Motiejunas kept Prokom close with a triple. Big man Adam Lapeta added a pair from the foul line. Rothbart scored a layup, then Lapeta dunked, and finally Salin scored from mid range to fix a 27-30 advantage for the visitors at halftime.

Blassingame started the third quarter as he did the first to tie the game at 30-30 and Seweryn also hit from downtown for a 33-30 advantage. Blassingame finished a fast break to cap an 8-0 run for the hosts. Salin answered with a reverse layup, and then scored another acrobatic basket to give a 37-32 lead to his side. Coming off a timeout, Szeweryn drained another three-pointer from the right corner, which was copied by Frasunkiewicz to get a double digit lead, 43-32, with less than three minutes left in the quarter. Thompson scored just 1 of his 2 free throws. Adam Hrchanyuk finished off the glass and converted an offensive rebound and while Seweryn beat the buzzer from the three-point land to make it 50-33 through three quarters.

A jumper from Salin opened the last quarter, then a Rothbart put back made it 50-37. Lapeta grabbed an offensive board to score 2 easy points, but Salin hit a three coming off a screen to stay within 52-40. Capin drilled free throws, Lapeta just 1 of 2, but nailed a layup. Thompson answered from mid range. Motiejunas fueled his side with another free throw. Capin scored from mid range, then added 1 from the foul line to be back within double figures at 56-47. Motiejunas scored a left hook and then three consecutive three-pointers drained by Frasunkiwickz, Motiejunas and Seweryn closed definitively the game, going on 67-48 with time to spare.