By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Two late daggers by Carsen Edwards boosted his best individual performance of the 2022-23 campaign and also powered Fenerbahce Beko to the win, 93-87, versus Bahcesehir Koleji in Ulker Sports Arena Sunday.
Edwards, 24, improved his season-high to 31 points behind 11/16 field goals, including 6/10 from beyond the arc. Following up on Devin Booker’s go-ahead bucket with two minutes on the clock, the Purdue product drove in the last four points of Turkey’s BSL Regular Season Round 16 contest.
Canadian import Dyshawn Pierre logged 24 points, also a new personal best for the season, to go with seven rebounds and three assists. To the losing end, another season-high showing belonged to Fenerbahce youth product Berkay Candan sharing a team-high 17 points with Jerry Boutsiele and Muhammed Baygul.
Erupting for a significant lead was not the case for either side, but the hosts led for most of the middle quarters and settled in catchup down the stretch. The 2022-23 FIBA Europe Cup champions fell to 8-8 allowing the team coached by Dimitris Itoudis to jump to a league-high 14-2.
Johnathan Motley, Nigel Hayes-Davis, and Marko Guduric all sat out along with injured Fenerbahce teammates Ismet Akpinar (right ankle), Nemanja Bjelica (calf), Tarik Biberovic (right hamstring), and Tonye Jekiri (groin). Foreign player restrictions and injuries shortened the lineup to 11 active players.
The Red Dragons missed Kartal Ozmızrak. The Turkish point guard was set for a long spell on the injury list after suffering a serious knee injury in Game 3 of the Basketball Champions League Play-In best-of-three series opposite Filou Oostende.
European challenges
Both sides are now heading to key fixtures, beyond the domestic league to European club continental competitions. Fener is scheduled to visit LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne Thursday in Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season Round 21. Also, the team coached by Erhan Ernak will start the BCL Round of 16 Group J six-game slate with a battle opposite Telekom Baskets Bonn in Telekom Dome Wednesday.
Photo Credit: Fenerbahce Beko Twitter