By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Markus Howard scored 26 points including the dagger from downtown to lead Baskonia past Gran Canaria 101 – 97 in overtime. Thanks to this win, the Basque side remains tied with Barcelona at 26-5 and in first place in the standings.
Howard drained a triple to make 101-97 with 38 seconds to play and both teams failed to score in the remaining moments. The ACB rookie had also scored the last four points of Baskonia in regulation and made a tough layup to tie the score at 91 – 91 while getting fouled with 41 seconds remaining. He misfired in the free throw to put his team up and also the shot to win the game after a missed shot by Andrew Albicy but he more than made up in the extra period.
Matt Costello contributed 18 points, nine rebounds and five assists for Baskonia. Rokas Giedraitis posted 11 points plus 10 rebounds and Darius Thompson had 11 points plus seven assists.
Some days after winning the 2023 EuroCup and punching a ticket for next season’s EuroLeague, Gran Canaria came very close to getting a major road win. They were up in the score for most o the second half but didn’t manage to close the game successfully. Nicolas Brussino scored 18 points, Damian Inglis notched 16 points plus eight boards, Khalifa Diop had 15 points and eight rebounds while AJ Slaughter dropped 15 points as well.
On Saturday (6/5), Real Madrid beat Malaga despite the absences of Edy Tavares, Rudy Fernandez, Sergio Rodríguez, Adam Hanga, Vincent Poirier and Mario Hezonja ahead of Game 5 of the EuroLeague playoffs vs. Partizan Belgrade. The series is tied at 2-2 after the Blancos registered two wins at Belgrade.
2022-23 ACB Round 31 Results:
Obradoiro – Granada 88 – 83
Real Betis – Bilbao 86 – 78
Zaragoza – Joventut Badalona 87 – 77
Girona – Lenovo Tenerife 72 – 88
Rio Breogan – UCAM Murcia 60 – 65
Real Madrid – Unicaja Malaga 102 – 90
Barcelona – Fuenlabrada 101 – 64
Baskonia – Granaaria 101 – 97
BAXI Manresa – Valencia 87 – 82
Standings: 1. Barcelona 26-5, 2. Baskonia 26-5, 3. Real Madrid 25-6, 4. Tenerife 23-9….