By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
In what was marked as a derby match of the Basketball Champions League Round of 16 Week 4 for a reason, Lenovo Tenerife emerged victorious.
After a spectacular 40 minutes filled with excitement, jaw-dropping moves, and nail-biting drama near the end, the Spanish side delivered Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem’s first loss of the Round of 16 with a 95-92 home victory.
The maestro who orchestrated a huge Tenerife win was, as expected, Marcelinho Huertas, who led the two-time BCL champions with 24 points and six assists, but he had a great sidekick in Joan Sastre, who made it rain from beyond the arc (5/7) and finished the match with 22 points. Kyle Guy scored some crucial points in the final minutes to collect 15 points for the winning side.
On the other side, Levi Randolph, who missed the shot for overtime, finished the game as the top Hapoel scorer with 20 points, while Chris Johnson followed him with 17, and Speedy Smith added 12 points with seven assists. JaCorey Williams was on the verge of a double-double with nine points and seven rebounds.
Txus Vidorreta’s side was in control for most of the time, taking over late in the first period and leading 46-34 at halftime. They extended the lead to 53-37 early in the third quarter, but Hapoel refused to go down and turned the score around in the final quarter.
However, Kyle Guy found his rhythm in the crucial moments, and with the help of Joan Sastre and Marcelinho Huertas, put Tenerife in a position to win. Levi Randolph fought until the last moment, giving his side a chance to go to overtime, but eventually missed a difficult game-tying shot at the buzzer. The hosts are now tied with the Israeli team at the Group K standings with a 3-1 record but remain behind in the head-to-head matchup.
Postgame press conference
Photo: fiba.basketball