By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Sek Henry scored 24 points on 7-7 triples (six in the first half), Amath M’Baye had 17 points, including some key contribution down the stretch, as Pinar Karsiyaka beat Zaragoza 84 – 79 to become the first team that advances to the 2021 Basketball Champions League Final.
This is a historic qualification for Karsiyaka that will compete in the BCL championship game for the first time ever and will be in a continental Final for a second time after the 2013 Eurochallenge.
Karsiyaka made a key 8-0 run in the final minutes that propelled them to victory. With the score 72 – 71 for Zaragoza and 4:24 to play, M’Baye made a spectacular 3-point play after dunking the ball while winning the foul and then Raymar Morgan (14 points, six rebounds) hit a jumper to increase his team’s lead. He then added a pair of free throws for the 72 – 79 with 1:54 remaining.
Baskets by Nicolas Brussino (18 points, seven assists six rebounds) and Dylan Ennis (13 points) put Zaragoza back to a one-possession distance but a bad pass by Zaragoza top scorer (21 points) Jacob Wiley with the score 79 – 82 proved to be fatal since, on the other end, Henry dropped two free throws to secure his team’s win.
Karsiyaka was up even by 17 points in the first half thanks to Henry’s hot hand. Zaragoza rallied to come back after the break and even got a 64 – 57 advantage early in the fourth period. The Spanish side was ultimately betrayed by consecutive error and bad shot selection in the final lap while their opponents were finding ways to the basket.
Tony Taylor added 12 points and six assists for Karsiyaka while Zaragoza’s Elias Harris had 15 points.