Not enough: despite big comeback in the second half, ALBA lose against Baskonia / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: Regina Hoffmann/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images Credit Regina Hoffmann/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images

ALBA Berlin (1-3) lost their home match against Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz (2-2) with the final score of 76-80 (15-21, 14-31, 18-10, 29-18). Despite the close score, it could have been worse for ALBA, which were down by 26 points in the first half.

Player of the Game EFF 18 Simone Fontecchio Points 17 Accuracy 6-12 Rebounds 4 Assists 1

In the final quarter, ALBA continued their comeback, which was mostly led by Oscar Da Silva and Luke Sikma. Despite being down by 14 points at the beginning of the quarter, ALBA were able to cut down the lead to just 4 points (70-74).

But in the end, Baskonia kept their composure at the free-throw line and sealed the victory with Jayson Granger and Rokas Giedraitis.

"I think that in the first 20 minutes we played with patience, we played good defense and we were good on offense. But we didn't start well in the second half. Their aggressiveness in the defense was a big problem for us", explained coach Ivanovic after the game.

"We could not play our system, we only played simple pick-and-roll. But finally, we won, this is an important victory for us", he added.

The first half was dominated by Baskonia. In the second quarter, the visitors were able to build a 24-point lead (26-50).

Simone Fontecchio was the top scorer for Baskonia with 17 points (3/6 2PT, 3/6 3PT, 2/2 FT), 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, 1 turnover, and 18 PIR.

"The key was definitely our approach in the first half. We played really aggressively on defense and we were able to run and play our offense", said Simone Fontecchio, the MVP of the night.

"In the second half, we struggled a little bit, let them come back. Of course, they are a very good team. We made a good effort staying in the game and got away with a win", he finished.

For ALBA Berlin the top scorer was Luke Sikma with 19 points (5/7 2PT, 2/3 3PT, 3/4 FT), 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, and 29 PIR.

ALBA: Luke Sikma 19 (8 REB), Oscar Da Silva 15 (6 REB)

Baskonia: Simone Fontecchio 17, Jayson Granger 15 (6 AST), Matthew Costello 10.

Highlights

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