By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Playing against the wunderkind from France provided extra motivation for Turkish Alperen Sengun on Tuesday evening. A brilliant showing fueled a 114-101 victory against the San Antonio Spurs in Toyota Center.
Sengun, 21, tallied 45 points, a new career-high. Shooting 19/32 from the field included multiple dancing moves around Victor Wembanyama in the paint. He added 16 points, five steals, three assists, and one block over 37 minutes. “I did not play that good last game against him,” he commented, “I did not see that many double teams today. They just left me one-on-one with Wemby, so I just did what I do.”
Serbian teammate Boban Marjanovic stayed on the bench as the team coached by Ime Udoka jumped to 27-34 in the 2023-24 NBA Regular Season. At a distance of 5.5 games from the Play-In zone of the Western Conference, a late run can make a postseason berth possible.
On the opposite end, the Spurs falling at 13-49 are nearing official elimination from the Playoffs. Dealing with left shoulder soreness, Wemby posted a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double alongside seven blocks and three assists. Lasting 31 minutes, the French prodigy connected 4/10 field goals and committed six turnovers.
More European action in Houston as Polish Jeremy Sochan ended up with 15 points, eight rebounds, and three assists. Turkish Cedi Osman dropped six points, four rebounds, and one steal. Georgian Sandro Mamukelashvili did not play and French Sidy Cissoko was on assignment with the Austin Spurs.
Losing efforts for Doncic and Jokic
The Indiana Pacers overpowered the Dallas Mavericks, 137-120, in the American Airlines Center. Despite playing with a sprain in his right ankle, Slovenian Luka Doncic recorded a fourth straight triple-double. Piling up 39 points, 11 assists, and ten rebounds was not enough for a win. German teammate Maxi Kleber was dealing with left knee soreness and was limited to one rebound over 15 minutes.
In Ball Arena, the Phoenix Suns snatched an overtime win, 117-107, versus the Denver Nuggets. Starting center, Bosnian Jusuf Nurkic was cleared to play after right calf tightness and chipped in seven points, 12 rebounds, six assists, two blocks, and two steals, lasting 30 minutes. French Theo Maledon was waived before the game.
On the wrong end of the nail-biter, Serbian Nikola Jokic produced a 25-point, 16-rebound double-double and dished out five assists over 44 minutes. Slovenian Vlatko Cancar (left knee surgery) was out.
More games and European showings
Charlotte Hornets – Orlando Magic 89-101 (Vasilije Micic 21pts, 5reb, 4ast, 2stl, Davis Bertans 14pts, 6reb, 1ast, Aleksej Pokusevski DNP – Moritz Wagner 11pts, 4reb, 2ast, Franz Wagner 8pts, 3reb, 2ast, 1stl, Admiral Schofield 0pts, Goga Bitadze DNP)
Brooklyn Nets – Philadelphia 76ers 112-107 (Dennis Schroder 20pts, 8ast, 2reb, 1blk – Nicolas Batum 2pts, 7reb, 4ast, 1blk)
Cleveland Cavaliers – Boston Celtics 105-104 (Kristaps Porzingis 24pts, 9reb, 3ast, 3blk, 2stl, Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk DNP, Neemias Queta INJ)
Miami Heat – Detroit Pistons 118-110 (Nikola Jovic 8pts, 4reb, 2ast, 2stl – Simone Fontecchio 22pts, 4reb, 2ast, 1stl, Evan Fournier 7pts, 2reb, 1ast, Tosan Evbuomwan INA)
New York Knicks – Atlanta Hawks 100-116 (Bojan Bogdanovic 19pts, 3reb, Isaiah Hartenstein 5pts, 6reb, 2ast, 2blk, 1stl, O.G. Anunoby INJ – Clint Capela 13pts, 9reb, 3ast, 1blk, Bogdan Bogdanovic 5pts, 4ast, 2stl, 1reb, 1blk, Vit Krejci INA)
Toronto Raptors – New Orleans Pelicans 98-139 (Jakob Poeltl INJ – Jonas Valanciunas 10pts, 10reb, 1ast, 1blk)
Standings
Eastern Conference
1. Boston Celtics 48-13
2. Milwaukee Bucks 41-21
3. Cleveland Cavaliers 40-21
4. Orlando Magic 36-26
5. New York Knicks 36-26
6. Miami Heat 35-26
7. Philadelphia 76ers 35-26
8. Indiana Pacers 35-28
9. Chicago Bulls 29-32
10. Atlanta Hawks 27-34
11. Brooklyn Nets 25-37
12. Toronto Raptors 23-39
13. Charlotte Hornets 15-47
14. Washington Wizards 9-52
15. Detroit Pistons 9-52
Western Conference
1. Minnesota Timberwolves 43-19
2. Oklahoma City Thunder 42-19
3. Denver Nuggets 42-20
4. Los Angeles Clippers 39-21
5. New Orleans Pelicans 37-25
6. Phoenix Suns 36-26
7. Sacramento Kings 34-26
8. Dallas Mavericks 34-28
9. Los Angeles Lakers 34-29
10. Golden State Warriors 32-28
11. Utah Jazz 28-34
12. Houston Rockets 27-34
13. Memphis Grizzlies 21-41
14. Portland Trail Blazers 17-43
15. San Antonio Spurs 13-49
-Teams ranking first through sixth advance directly to the Playoffs
-Teams ranking seventh through tenth compete in the Play-Ins