By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Behind 25 points by Bojan Dubljevic, who scored them in less than 23 minutes, Valencia Basket got the easy 105-77 win over KIROLBET Baskonia Victoria Gasteiz. The two teams are now tied at 6-8. However, the final score can be more than valuable in a possible tie.
After a tied first period (19-19), Valencia jumped to a 46-36 halftime lead and never looked back.
As Dubljevic said: “We had a really, really good game. We were really good on offense and improved a lot. We are growing up, but we don’t have much time to celebrate because we go to Milan tomorrow and have a game in two days. It is going to be really tough because you don’t have too much time to prepare the game, and it is a road game, but we need to play like today”.
The winners made 17 out of 37 threes, and they dished 27 assists while making just six turnovers. It was an offensive clinic, and even though Baskonia won the rebounding battle with 37 against 26, they couldn’t react.
“I think the reaction came in the first quarter, in a moment when we were down 7 points. We took a timeout and talked about being more aggressive and that the loose balls had to be ours. From that moment, we changed the pace of the game altogether”, said Valencia guard Sam Van Rossom.
Alberto Abalde added 16 points for the winning side, while Shavon Shields had 22 for Baskonia, but nor he or his teammates were a factor in the game.
“The team gave 100%.”
Winning coach Jaume Ponsarnau was understandably more than satisfied: “Baskonia has great defense, very uncomfortable defense, and today we found a good rhythm on offense, played smart and read the concepts well on defense, especially in pick-and-roll situations. I am happy, especially because of our defensive level. We understood that we have to fight for every ball, and the team gave 100%. We moved the ball with patience, looking for an advantage, and once we found it, we were aggressive and dynamic. We passed the ball efficiently for three-point shots, and due to that, we won the game.”
Photo credit: EuroLeague