By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
FC Barcelona ends this week in a perfect fashion after taking down visiting Baskonia 71-57 in Round 28 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague to continue their reign in the standings and become the first team to register 20 wins.
After an awkward 25-4 start in favor of the hosts, Baskonia bounced back and eventually covered the 21-point deficit to take the lead in the third quarter. Nikola Mirotic helped Barca to get on track in the fourth period and finished the game with a double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds, as the team has one more reason to celebrate on coach Sarunas Jasikevicius’ birthday.
“Congratulations to our fans, congratulations to our players. We knew coming in that Baskonia is playing excellent basketball. They won nine of their last 10 games and are fighting for their lives in the EuroLeague”, said Jasikevicius following the win, though he focused on the team’s room for improvement. “It is important to close the week well but we have to rest a little bit. We have to start to think of how we can lower the number of turnovers we are having. I think that a team with our talent cannot pick up more than 15 turnovers per game”.
Cory Higgins tapped 13 points for Barca and Adam Hanga posted 9, as the team ended the double-game week with two victories.
Baskonia who slipped its first game after five consecutive wins also lost Luca Vildoza at the 27-minute mark as his knee clashed with Cory Higgins in an attempt to score.
Youssoupha Fall paced Dusko Ivanovic’s squad with 12 points and Rokas Giedraitis had 11 points, as the Vitoria-Gasteiz side now slips to a 14-14 record.
Photo: EuroLeague