By Stefan Djordjevic/ info@eurohoops.net
Bobby Dixon put on a near-perfect game and led Fenerbahce Beko to a 99-82 road win over Zalgiris Kaunas winning the series 3-1 and advancing to the EuroLeague Final Four.
Dixon nailed 25 points on 9-10 shooting (5-5 triples) while adding four assists, three steals and a rebound. Kostas Sloukas notched a double-double with 15 points and ten assists in addition to Jan Vesely’s 12 points.
For Zalgiris, Brandon Davies logged 25 points (9-12 FG) and seven boards while Nate Wolters scored 18 points.
Dixon was on fire from the start as he nailed 13 points in the first quarter without a miss and propelled Fener to a 30-16 lead after ten minutes and 49-41 at halftime as Zalgiris stayed close thanks to Nate Wolters’ 11 points.
“It was a tough game. Zalgiris is a really good team and it was a great atmosphere. First half we got a rhythm offensively and it continued in the second half. We let them score a little bit but we were able to maintain the lead by scoring with them. It is hard to beat us when we are scoring like that, but our defense was not where it should be tonight. We are just happy we won and that we are advancing”, Dixon said.
Davies helped Zalgiris cut the gap to just four points (52-48) after the break but Dixon kept pushing Fener as they quickly responded to go ahead 72-56 and held on for the win.