By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
The first month of action in the Basketball Champions League has brought thrilling games and many clutch shots and five players managed to come up on top to make up the Team of October.
ERA Nymburk’s Jerrick Harding, MHP Riesen’s Jonah Radebaugh, Galatasaray‘s DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell, Pinar Karsiyaka’s Bonzie Colson and Treviso’s Henry Sims gained entry with their spectacular performances in October.
Per championsleague.basketball:
One of the two backcourt spots goes to Jonah Radebaugh, a 24-year-old guard from MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg. He describes himself as “sneaky athletic,” which is, of course, perfect for the plays coach John Patrick likes to run offensively, and allows the former Northern Colorado Bear to stand his ground defensively, promoting him into Ludwigsburg’s go-to guy this season.
In October, he had 16.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.7 steals, while shooting 60 percent from beyond the arc on more than three three-point attempts per game.
The other guard on the Team of the Month is Jerrick Harding, even younger than Radebaugh. The 23-year-old out of Weber State is in his second season with ERA Nymburk, completely taking over as the star of the perennial Czech champions.
Harding scored 20 or more in all three games this season, his averages are 24.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.3 steals per game, including a buzzer beating game winner against PAOK mateco on the road.
DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell is one of the reasons why Harding and ERA Nymburk are not at 3-0. Galatasaray Nef defeated Nymburk in Istanbul, and their forward has been brilliant since arriving from Tofas Bursa.
He has also scored 20 or more in each game, and got to 31 points on 11-of-15 shooting against Igokea. Akoon-Purcell is 28, his 25.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.7 steals per game got Galatasaray to a 2-1 record in Group E.
Bonzie Colson is the reigning MVP of the season, and the switch from SIG Strasbourg to Pinar Karsiyaka allowed him to become a strong candidate for back-to-back MVP awards. This time around, he ended up in the Team of the Month.
The 25-year-old had 16.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game, and already delivered not one, but two game-winners this season, hitting clutch triples against Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem and Arged BM Stal Ostrow Wielkopolski over the first two Gamedays. His shots took Pinar Karsiyaka to 2-1.
Henry Sims is the most experienced member of the Team of the Month. The 31-year-old center is the only player selected to the October squad with just two games played, helping Nutribullet Treviso to a 2-0 record in their inaugural BCL campaign.
Over those two games, Sims had 51 points on 21-of-28 shooting, with 19 rebounds and 6 blocks in just 50 minutes played this season. Not only is he a legit Team of the Month member, he is also a strong contender in the MVP of the Season race.
Photo: BCL