By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Barcelona survived a very tough Darussafaka Dogus in Palau Blaugrana 82-77. Halfway through the regular season, the hosts improved their record to 7-8, forcing the Turkish team to 8-7.
With Ante Tomic leading the way with 16 points, 5 rebounds and Aleksandar Vezenkov and Tyrese Rice adding 13 each, the hosts managed to stand strong against their opponents. Justin Doellman added 11 more for the Blaugranas.
For Darussafaka, James Anderson’s 21 and Scottie Wilbekin’s 19 points weren’t enough to save the team in the end. Adrien Moerman followed with 11 more.
David Blatt’s team was in charge of the game in the first quarter, after getting a 6-13 advantage early on. However, Barcelona reduced and the score after 10 minutes was 19-22. The two teams were head to head for the rest of the game, with Darussafaka only managing a short 5-point lead at halftime, 35-40.
Barcelona got back on track after the break with the third period being its most productive one in the game. Still, the visiting team was close, trimming the deficit, getting the lead and then again being trailed. After 30 minutes, Georgios Bartzokas’ team was up 59-57.
Halfway through the final period, Wilbekin ties the game at 65 points, then soon enough Rice expands to 3 for the hosts. The former drills a two pointer with 15 seconds left! Koponen gave his team a breather with a pair of free throws and eventually the win.