By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Anadolu Efes Istanbul dominated hosts FC Barcelona Lassa and with a 102-68 victory in Game 3 they got ahead in the playoffs series with 2-1.
Shane Larkin put on a phenomenal performance for the Turkish side, with his second-highest performance of the season – the first one being his 37 points against Barcelona in the regular season – and was the key to this victory.
He counted 30 points tonight, on 11-12 FG shooting, along with three rebounds and two assists in 23 minutes on the court.
With Larkin’s impressive tempo, the visitors got ahead with a 25-point lead by the end of the third period (81-56) and never looked back since, as Barcelona kept struggling in the final quarter.
As Barcelona’s point guard Kevin Pangos admitted the Catalans after such a result simply have to look forward: “You never want to lose like that, but we have another game coming up soon. In Game 4 we have to do the opposite of what we did today. We have to do a lot better. We have a chance to look at the film and do a lot better in the next game. We just ask the fans to stay with us. The series isn’t over yet. Let’s come back and get a big win.”
Game 4 will be decisive for both parts and will be played this Friday in Barcelona.