By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Galatasaray Nef held on to secure the win, 92-86, versus ERA Nymburk Wednesday.
DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell went for 20 points, seven rebounds, and two steals at Kralovka Arena. Also in double-digits for the winning team of the Gameday 6 fixture, Kerry Blackshear Jr. with 15 points, Dee Bost with 14 points, Sadik Emir Kabaca with 12 points, and Melo Trimble with 11 points. Okben Ulubay was out.
The Turkish side, 8-5 at the domestic level, had already secured the top seed in Group E and the attached direct ticket to the Basketball Champions League Round of 16. Wrapping up the Regular Season by improving to 5-1 included knocking out the Czech Republic champions, thus pushing both PAOK mateco and Igokea m:tel to the Play-Ins, scheduled to continue the 2021-22 campaign in January.
Vojtech Hruban got the game-high 21 points falling only four points short of becoming the first player with 1,000 points in the Champions League at the conclusion of Nymburk’s season.
His side led for about six minutes in the first half but was forced to play catchup after the break and failed to come back from a 13-point deficit and avoid the early exit. The BCL original did not survive the Regular Season for the second time after the similar 2018-19 experience.
Sterling Gibbs was sidelined with a knee injury for the team coached by Aleksander Sekulic.
After finishing 2-4 in FIBA’s premier European club competition, Nymburk will focus on its domestic league looking to keep building on its current 17-1 W-L tally in the NBL.
Postgame press conference:
Photo Credit: Basketball Champions League