By Stefan Djordjevic/ info@eurohoops.net
Mornar Bar had managed to qualify for the 2019-20 Basketball Champions League but their start was anything but good. They lost the first six games in Group C, however, the chance of advancing to the playoffs has been kept alive by two straight wins.
With six Gamedays left, Mornar (2-6) has Brose Bamberg (4-4) as well as Peristeri winmasters (5-3) and Nizhny Novgorod (5-3) in front of them and they’ll have to ‘outrun’ at least two of those squads in order to advance.
Slim chances, true, but the Montenegrins have one of the most experienced squads in BCL this year and have the skills and mentality to make it happen.
Especially with Jacob Pullen leading the charge. The 30-year-old America-Georgian guard has been averaging 19.1 points on 42.4% from deep in BCL this season and he banked 23 and 27 points in the last two games.
It seems that as he gains momentum, so does the team and that will be crucial in their effort to surprise the world.
Taking over Kansas State
After Proviso East High School, Pullen went to Kansas State and immediately found his place on the Wildcats squad. He banked 18 points on 7-11 shooting in his debut foreshadowing the future success.
The young guard continued improving year by year as did the team and in Pullen’s junior year, the Wildcats made it to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight. Pullen averaged 19.3 points and was selected into the All Big-12 Team. He finished his tenure at Kansas as the University’s all-time leading scorer with 2,132 points.
Pullen was also ‘rocking’ a beard while playing at Kansas State which sparked a trend on their games as the fans would come wearing fake beards just like his. He became ‘The Beard’.
Playing all across Europe and ‘lighting up’ Spain
Pullen wasn’t selected at the 2011 NBA Draft and decided to start his professional career in Europe with his first destination being Italy and Pallacanestro Biella.
He then moved on to Israel joining Hapoel Jerusalem with which he also gained EuroCup experience. Pullen returned to Italy for a short while to finish the season with Virtus Bologna and later that year, he was granted Georgian citizenship which made it easier for him to play all around Europe. He played for the Georgian national team at the 2015 EuroBasket.
For the 2013-14 season, Pullen went to Spain joining Barcelona with which he won his first title. He played 58 games with Barca split between Spanish League, Spanish Cup and EuroLeague and in one of them, Pullen entered history books.
On March 8, 2014, Pullen banked 12 (out of 15) shots from deep on his way to career-high 42 points against Valladolid setting the new record for most three-pointers made in a single game. The record still stands.
Pullen was supposed to start the next season in China with Liaoning Flying Leopards but he wanted to get back home for the birth of his daughter and parted ways with the club.
He ended up playing with Real Betis in Spain and Brindisi in Italy that season before moving to Croatia the following year. With Cedevita, Pullen won the Croatian League, Croatian Cup and was selected into the All-ABA League Team.
Pullen then joined Khimki Moscow on a one-month deal but the Russian team decided on keeping him for the remainder of the season. The next season, he finally got a chance at the NBA, signing with the Philadelphia 76ers.
His contract was converted to a two-way deal a month later as he split his games between the 76ers and the Delaware Blue Coats. He averaged 15.7 points and 4.4 assists in G-League while he appeared in three games for the Sixers before parting ways with the team in January.
Iran was Pullen’s next destination. He played ten games with Mahram Tehran before moving to Turkey where he helped Afyon Belediyespor win the promotion to the first tier.
Last season, Pullen got back to Cedevita with which he once again won the Croatian League and was for the second time named into the All-ABA League Team.
For his eighth country and 11th team to play for in Europe, Pullen chose Mornar and although they had a somewhat slow start to the season, they’ve got the experience, they’ve gained momentum and there’s still enough time to turn it all around.
Photo Credit: Basketball Champions League