By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
After starting the game with a 16-2 run, ASVEL Villeurbanne kept the lead for the rest of the encounter in Round 21 of the EuroLeague, getting the upset 91-77 win against Fenerbahce.
Nando De Colo, who played under head coach Dimitris Itoudis in CSKA Moscow and spent three years with Fener, ended the game with 26 points, 5 assists, and 30 of PIR against his former team.
Dee Bost, who arrived recently in France, still has the Galatasaray fire in him, as he almost had a double-double with 15 points and 9 assists against his former Istanbul rivals. “Fenerbahce wins are always special for me, my biggest Cimbom. I’m from Galatasaray, so I want to win every game I play against Fenerbahce”, he said after the game.
The 17-year-old Zaccharie Risacher had his EuroLeague career high with 10 points.
“We know it’s a tough team to play, they play really strong. But from the beginning, we showed what we have to do and we managed to keep it for 40 minutes. We know Dee Bost is a good player for our team, he’s got experience, and it’s easy for him to understand our game and play together”, Nando De Colo said after the win.
“Happy for the guys, it’s still a long season. We’ve been consistent on defense. When the assists and turnovers ratio is always positive, it’s a better chance to win”, TJ Parker said in the post-game press conference.
For the Turkish side, Carsen Edwards found one of his best offensive performances of the season. The former G-League superstar had 22 points and 6/10 from the perimeter off the bench.
Nigel Hayes-Davis and Scottie Wilbekin followed, combining for 22 points. It wasn’t surely Johnathan Motley’s night: one of the best rookies of the season had only 9 points and 1 rebound.
“It’s a game to remember because we played very badly. We need to remember that. We need to watch and we need to analyze. I can say a lot of things but congratulations to ASVEL for that win. We couldn’t match the way they opened the game, it hurt us a lot”, Dimitris Itoudis said after the loss.
The Turkish team got the first loss after three wins in a row. ASVEL, instead, remains on the winning side after finding an away victory against Milan in Round 20.
Dimitris Itoudis didn’t have Tonye Jekiri, who has undergone groin surgery and is not set to return until March, and Nemanja Bjelica, who has not played this season.
The Greek coach also had to do without Tarik Biberovic, who is out with a hamstring injury until at least early February, and Ismet Akpinar, who is sidelined with a sprained ankle until late January.
TJ Parker, instead, didn’t have Joffrey Lauvergne, out indefinitely due to a torn ACL.
In Round 22, Fenerbahce (13-8) will come back to Istanbul to face Olympiacos on January 31 at 18:45 CET. On the same day, ASVEL (8-13) will travel to Belgrade to face Partizan at 20:30 CET on the same day.
PHOTO CREDIT: Turkish Airlines EuroLeague