Canadians in Europe: 29th October - 1st November
Weekly roundup of all the action across Europe where players from Canada took to the court.
EuroLeague
Canadian international Kevin Pangos started for Barcelona and contributed 7 points and 6 assists against Maccabi Tel Aviv. Barcelona led by six early on, only for Maccabi Tel Aviv to close the gap to one just before halftime. Barcelona then pulled away in the third, outscoring their opponents 25-7, creating a gap that the visitors from Israel could not come back from. Victor Claver led all scorers with 14 points for Barcelona, who got the win by 74 points to 58.
EuroLeague Women
Starting for Belgium's Castors Braine, Ruth Hamblin finished with 8 points and 7 rebounds against Villeneuve-d'Ascq. Castors trailed by 21 points in the first half, but as the game progressed they managed to narrow the gap and Mariona Oritz made it a two-point game in the final minute. Castors Braine missed their last-minute chances to tie or win, and suffered a narrow, two-point loss which puts them in a middling position in Group A.
Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe had 13 points and Katherine Plouffe contributed eight points and rebounds for Bourges in their come-from-behind victory against Nadezhda. The Russian team led by as much as 11 in the first half, but with a game-high 18 points from Marine Johanes, 53.8% field shooting and 22 points from turnover, Bourges went on to win the game 74-59 and they remain unbeaten in Group A.
EuroCup
Trae Bell-Haynes failed to score for Skyliners Frankfurt against UNICS Kazan, but his team mate Brady Thomas Heslip led everyone on the floor with 25 points. Despite that, Frankfurt were playing catch-up throughout the game. A late unbeaten run saw the scores tied going into the final minute of play, but double-teamed Pierria Henry somehow made the pass to Jamar Smith, who put up game-winning three for UNICS in the last second of the game. This last-minute loss for the Skyliners saw them move to fourth in Group D.
Aaron Doornekamp had only a small part in Valencia’s 87-66 win over Trento, with 2 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists. Trento led by four after the first quarter, but Valencia responded in the second quarter, outscoring the Italian team 28-16 and keeping up the pressure from close range. Will Thomas and Bojan Dubleljevic both had 15 points apiece for Valenica, and their win here keeps them in second place in Group C.
Kyle Wiltjer had 17 points for Malaga, after Jamie Hernandez's 19 the second highest scoring total for the team, who led Turin comfortable for three quarters before the Italians made a late comeback. Turin took a one-point lead with seconds left, but a cool layup from Hernandez would make all the difference for Malaga in this one. They won the game 105-104, and move into second place in Group D.
Philip Scrubb had 13 points and 5 assists off the bench for Zenit St Petersburg against ASVEL, but the Russian club could not save themselves from defeat. After a tight first half, ASVEL outscored Zenit 50-30 in the second half, with Mantas Kalneitis scoring 22 for the French team. Zenit's 89-68 loss sends them to third in Group C, while ASVEL move up to first.
EuroCup Women
Nirra Fields had a game-high 17 points for Polish club Energa Torun, and her teammate Laura Svaryte had 12 points and 11 rebounds as they completely dominated Galatasaray. They led the defending EuroCup champions by as many as 28 points, out-rebounding them 54 to 36, on the way to their first win of the season by a margin of 77 points to 55.
Michelle Plouffe came off the bench and put up 13 points and 7 rebounds for ASVEL Lyon, who started to take control over Hungarian team Cegled in the third quarter of their game. Cegled saw a game-high 18 points from Jovana Popovic and the team shot 55.9% from the field, but let the game get away from them. ASVEL are off the mark in Group I with a 76-62 win.
17 points and 8 rebounds from Miranda Ayim would not be enough for Landes to overcome compatriots Tarbes. Four points in the final minute from Tarbes’ Cierra Bravard gave them a comfortable buffer, and Landes could not find another chance to win the game. Dropping this one 71-69, Landes fall to 1-1 in Group J.
FIBA Europe Cup
A close, back-and-forth game between Alba Fehervar and Pallacanestro Varese saw Thomas Scrubb scoring 8 points off the bench for the Italian club, who had 56 points from their bench players. Alba Fehervar started to break away in the final quarter, and they went on to win by 85 points to 77. Marko Filipovity had 17 points, one of five Alba Fehervar players to score in double digits Varese’s first loss of the campaign, whlie undefeated Alba go top of Group F.
Kiefer Douse had 10 points for the Leicester Riders in their closest game yet against Szolnnoki Olaj. Conner Washington led all scorers with 21 points off the bench for Leicester, who also put up eleven threes and led in rebounds. Szolnoki’s greater depth and slight edge from short range, though, would lift them to the narrow win:
Leicester's Group H opponents Dinamo Sassari dominated Falco Vulcano, even with Evan Bruinsma putting up 24 points for the Hungarian club. Every Sassari player made the scoresheet, with five from Dyshawn Pierre, in what was an entirely one-sided victory, 104-69. Sassari remain undefeated in the group, while conversely Leicester are still looking for a win.
Kataja’s transition play, ball movement and shooting accuracy saw them victorious at the end of a tight encounter with BC Dnipro. Daniel Mullings had 16 points, while his team mate Vincent Simpson led all scorers with 19 off the bench against the Ukrainians. Kataja's 84-77 win here takes them up to second place in group G.
