By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Anadolu Efes got a big overtime 97-96 road win over Crvena Zvezda with five players scoring in double digits. The Turkish side made a decisive step toward potentially securing a spot in the Top 6.
The guests improved to a 19-14 record, and the Serbs at 18-15 are tied with Paris between the 9th and the 10th spot of the Turkish EuroLeague Airlines.
Elijah Bryant, with 17 points, was the first among equals, as Efes had four more scorers in double digits. Vincent Poirier had 14 points plus four assists.
Shane Larkin, coming off an injury, scored seven points, while Rodrigue Beaubois scored 10 points before getting injured.
“We fought until the end, and we stayed in the game. That’s always hard here with the fans,” Poirier said. “Proud of the team and the way we are competing so far. One more for the regular season.”
On the other side, Filip Petrusev had 23 points and Isaiah Canaan scored 21, but it was not enough with Codi Miller McIntyre losing the chance for the win with the last shot of the overtime.
“I’m very proud of the way we played,” Zvezda coach Giannis Sfairopoulos said. “We fought really hard. We had our absences, but we showed we could win this game.”
An overtime show
Zvezda opened the game leading 24-16 after the first period, with Petrusev scoring 11 points. However, things changed in the second with Efes trailing by two points (34-32).
The Turkish side completed an 8-0 run, building a 40-36 cushion with Dozier also reaching the 11-points mark, still Zvezda wasn’t rattled and got the lead back (47-40), having also an 11-0 run.
Efes was trailing by seven at halftime (51-44) after a buzzer-beating three by Yago Dos Santos. The Turks got the lead back again (54-53) with a 10-2 run to start the second quarter, making things interesting again.
The momentum changed, and Efes, with a 10-2 run, built a nine-point advantage (64-55), but the really bad news was the injury of Rodrigue Beaubois with two minutes left.
The two teams entered the last period with Efes up by two (66-64), and the Turks pushed the lead back to 12 (78-66), starting the quarter with a three by Larkin and completing their 12-2 run with a three by Jordan Nwora.
Zvezda tried to fight back and made it a four-point game (82-78) after a three by Canaan. Bryant’s answer was a goal-foul (85-78), but still, Zvezda managed to make it a two-point game (85-83).
With 14 seconds left, Dozier gave to Efes a four-point cushion (87-83), Canaan scored a big three (87-86), Elijah Bryant had one made free throw, and Dos Santos tied the score at 88 with two seconds on the clock.
Efes had one last chance, but Bryant missed a three, and Vincent Poirier couldn’t score with a tip-in, leading the game to overtime.
However, Efes opened the extra time with a 7-2 run (95-90), and that cushion proved to be enough. Miller-McIntyre trimmed the deficit to one point for Zvezda with a huge three but missed the jumper to win the game in the last second, after Bryant also missed the chance to extend the lead to three points again.
“We overcame all of our troubles in this game,” said Efes coach Luca Banchi. “Missing one of our most inspired players (Rodrigue Beaubois) in this game. I want to congratulate both teams. We approached the third quarter like a top team. I’m so proud of my players. Despite our frustration, we came back in overtime with great focus and energy.”
Photo credit: EuroLeague