By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
A scoring drought lasting nearly eight minutes slowed down Anadolu Efes but did not stop the back-to-back Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champions. Blowing out Zalgiris, 86-60, secured the fifth win in a row Friday.
Five made three-pointers by Rodrigue Beaubois supported the game-high 20 points. The French guard also recorded six assists, four rebounds, and one steal in Regular Season Round 12. Making additional distance with seven points in the last ten minutes, Will Clyburn finished with 17 points.
“In the first half, they gave us a lot of trouble, they fought very hard, and they competed very well,” said red-hot Beaubois following his latest brilliant display attached to the third straight win on the road after falling short in the first three away contests of the 2022-23 season, “We needed to stay together and fight. We did a great job in the second half, we made shots, and we were able to win the game.”
Extending the individual streak, Vasilije Micic surpassed the 12-point mark for the 25th consecutive EuroLeague showing. The former Zalgiris player logged nine in the first quarter and overcoming a scoreless second period ended up with 19 points.
“I think we had more patience in the second half. We made smart decisions in the offense. We did not rush,” noted the Final Four MVP of the last two seasons and 2020-21 season MVP, “They started a pretty strange defense on the switch but we dealt with it better than the first half.”
The lone double-digit scoring effort for the team coached by Kazys Maksvytis was Tyler Cavanaugh registering 15 points. Tomas Dimsa (illness) and Karolis Lukosiunas (illness) were sidelined alongside Lukas Lekavicius (rib). Also, Kevarrius Hayes picked up a foot injury early in the first quarter and returned but was held to four points in 17 minutes.
Without points for nearly eight minutes in a 13-0 run for the hosts, Efes fell behind, 37-33. Replying with a 21-4 sprint restored a double-digit lead. A fourth straight win against Zalgiris and improving to 7-5 in Europe’s top-tier club continental competition was the positive outcome, on the heels of losing a couple of BSL games Sunday and Tuesday and dropping to 6-3 in the Turkish league.
“Anadolu Efes happened,” losing head coach Maksvytis described how the game slipped out of reach, “First of all, terrible efforts defensively. Thirty points in the third quarter with only one team foul. We need to work harder. We don’t have as much talent as Efes.” His side is now 6-6.
The team coached by Ergin Ataman finally went to the free-throw line early in the fourth quarter. Over the first 30 minutes with streaks being exchanged between both sides, shooting over 50% from beyond the arc highlighted the offense also silencing the Zalgirio Arena crowd. Connecting a total of 17/29 triples knocked out Zalgiris.
“The key was defense. We had perfect defense the whole game,” pointed out Ataman explaining how his side got the job done in Lithuania.
“We start well in the first quarter, but in the second we had a lot of turnovers, especially against the switching defense. In halftime, we discussed attacking with a better organization to the switching. In the second half, we found a good shot selection, inside and outside. We moved the ball well. And we got a very important victory,” he added.
Following the latest setback, Shane Larkin sat out but is expected to return to action next week with two EuroLeague games packing the schedule. “I believe next week he will play in EuroLeague,” mentioned Ataman on Larkin’s season debut. Other registered players scratched were captain Dogus Balbay, Erten Gazi, Egemen Guven, and Egehan Arna.
Going into a domestic Istanbul derby opposite Besiktas Emlakjet Sunday, Efes will be at home against Cazoo Baskonia Wednesday and on the road against Partizan Mozzart Bet Friday. As for the Kaunas outfit, it will visit Crvena Zvezda mts Tuesday and welcome Real Madrid in Zalgirio Arena Thursday.
Photo Credit: EuroleagueBasketball.net