By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul defeated Zenit St. Petersburg 73-68 in Round 23 of Turkish Airlines EuroLeague to move forward with its third straight victory.
Leo Westermann led the winning side with a team-high of 13 points. At the same time, Kostas Sloukas came in clutch in the fourth period and finished the game with 12 points, four assists, and three rebounds. The Greek guard placed his team ahead 71-64 with 1:14 remaining in the game, while the hosts couldn’t make their comeback in the final minute.
Jan Vesely also did his part in the first half, posting 11 points, four rebounds and three assists for Zeljko Obradovic‘s team, including the craziest of shots!
On the other side of the court, Gustavo Ayon finished the game with a 16-point performance, along with five rebounds for a PIR of 20. Austin Hollins drilled the final three-pointer of the game to exit the floor with 16 points as well.
Fiesty Zenit can’t hold Fener back
Fenerbahce led the first half 41-32 with Vesely stepping up big time for the visiting side, though the tables of the game turned in the third period. Zenit kept their visitors low at scoring and managed to reduce the deficit to 54-50 after 30 minutes.
Despite missing key players like Alex Renfroe and Colton Iverson from its rotation, Zenit remained competitive until the end, though Fenerbahce’s depth and experience turned out to play a crucial role in crunch time. Sloukas made sure to keep the visitors on track, as they improved to an 11-12 record.
“It’s an important victory. Let’s say that our defense was on the level we want it to be, but offensively we played very bad. Lots of turnovers without reason. This was the main problem we had, plus their offensive rebounds. We need to continue to play well if we want to be in the playoffs”, commented Fenerbahce coach Zeljko Obradovic after the game.
Photo: EuroLeague