EuroLeague Women: Week 13

Close encounters, high-scoring individual performances, competitive match-ups between compatriots and blowouts were the order of a heated week in the EuroLeague.

Brionna Jones had a great game for Nadezhda with 8 rebounds and 21 points, missing only one shot, against Avenida. Along with teammate Sandra Ygueravide, who had 20 points, they helped Nadezhda to a blow-out first half, at the end of which they were ahead 55 points to 28. Avenida responded well in the second half, where an increased defensive effort saw them lead Nadezhda in steals and make 27 points from turnovers. Despite outscoring Nadezhda two-to-one in the fourth quarter, Avenida could not catch up in time, and Nadezhda finished ahead by eleven.

Two games took place in Istanbul this week. After a close opening against Galatasaray, it didn’t take long for Dynamo Kursk to take control of the game, thanks to Sonia Petrovic leading a big scoring performance in the second quarter. Angel McCoughtry led all scorers with 22 points for Kursk, who had 38 points in the paint. In short, anything Galatasaray had paled in comparison as they fell 92-67 to Kursk. At the same time and in the same place the advantage switching back and forth between Fenerbahce and Yakin Dogu, though Fenerbahce were the team playing catch-up. Despite good team play from Fenerbahce, by the third quarter Yakin Dogu’s strength, accuracy and composure had them in the driver's seat. Anastasiya Verameyenka led all scorers with 19 points for Fenerbahce, while Yakin Dogu’s Courtney Vandersloot was one rebound shy of a double-double as they stay top of Group B with an eleven-point win.

Polkowice were led by forward Alysha Clark, who had 28 points, as they put on an outstanding show against Castors Braine. Great field play from Temi Fagbenle and uperb shooting from Weronika Gajda kept the spotlight on Polokwice, outshining Anete Steinberga’s 20 for Castors, as Polkowice took the win 80 to 66. While in the Czech capital, Marta Xargay was outstanding from close range, but her game-leading 21 points for USK Praha would be for nothing unless they could also capture the win. They faced tough competition in Sopron, and though the first quarter was close, a ten-point run from the Hungarian club in Q2 gave them a comfortable buffer for the remainder of the game. Sopron’s low-post play and five players scoring in double figures helped them to a comfortable victory, 77 to 61 over Praha.

The game of the week came went two of France's biggest teams met on Thurday night. Bourges were dominant in the early stage of the game, after which Marielle Amant, Johanne Gomis and Johannah Leedham erupted for Villeneuve d’Ascq, putting them up by four at half time. A high-energy and highly accurate showing from both teams’ shooters kept the scoreline tight for the remainder, with Valeriane Ayayi the individual standout, but both Bourges and Villeneuve d’Ascq kept themselves in the game through great team cohesion. The pressure started to show as the game started to wind down, with shots coming few and far between. Kristen Sharp and Marine Johannes combined to take Bourges from one down to six up halfway through the fourth quarter, and despite Villeneuve D’Ascq hitting shots from three-point territory, Bourges fought hard to win and keep possession, and continuing to play well from close range ensured they will continue to play Euroleague basketball, their 64-60 win here ensuring their spot in the quarter finals.

Also in France, Lattes and Wisla both played well in the paint, though one managed to get more shots to drop. Wisla had a big advantage in this game, out-scoring Lattes by ten points in three of four quarters, as well as making 10 steals over Lattes' four. Courtney Hunt had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Lattes, but that would be enough to stop the rampaging Wisla. Katarzyna Suknarowska-Kaczor made half of all of Wisla’s three point shots and Cheyenne Parker was one rebound shy of a double-double as Wisla keep themselves alive in pan-European basketball this season with an 85-57 win. Finally, Isabelle Yacoubu put Schio up by two after a close first quarter against Ekaterinburg, but in the second quarter they flatlined. Two scoring runs of six and nine points from Ekaterinburg put them ten points clear, and with their shooting off Schio's attempt to claw their way back into the game looked harder and harder. For Ekaterinburg it was business as usual; they played well on all spots on the floor, in particular the team’s top scorer Maya Moore with 15 points to go along with eight rebounds, as her team won 68-55.

For more on the EuroLeague Women, including news, updates and full details on all games, visit the official website.