The home team used a big third quarter to grab the game by the horns and held off Reyer's late rally.
Besiktas holds on to beat Reyer, 74-68



Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul bounced back from its first loss of the season with a 74-68 triumph over visiting Umana Reyer Venice on Wednesday night at BJK Emlakjet Sports & Event Hall. Coach Dusan Alimpijevic's men remaining unbeaten at home this season as they improved to 4-1 in Group A of the BKT EuroCup.
Matt Mitchell led a balanced Besiktas attack with 15 points and Derek Needham produced 13 points and 6 assists for the winners. Leyton Hammonds also scored 13, Angel Delgado posted 12 points and 8 rebounds and Jonah Mathews contributed 11 points. Marco Spissu paced Reyer with 15 points and 4 assists and Kyle Wiltjer added 10 points. The loss dropped Reyer's record to 1-4.
Besiktas controlled the early action
It was all Besiktas at the start with two great defensive stops in jumping to a 5-0 lead, prompting a Reyer timeout after just 58 seconds. Amedeo Tessitori got Reyer on the board, but the hosts remained in control thanks to Delgado and Mitchell, who pushed the difference to 17-9. Wiltjer and Barry Brown helped Reyer trim the deficit, however, a Hammonds triple made it 25-16 after 10 minutes.
Reyer rallied with a big second quarter
Reyer scored the first 5 points of the second quarter and clawed its way to within 27-24 on an Andrea De Nicolao three-pointer. Spissu completed the comeback with a triple for Reyer's first lead of the game, 29-30. The teams traded shots for several minutes as Reyer maintained a slim advantage. A Tessitori jumper gave Reyer its biggest lead of the half before Mitchell answered with a three to end the first half with the visitors up 40-42.
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Mathews fueled the hosts after the break
The visitors scored the first 5 points of the second half before Hammonds connected from behind the arc. Besiktas had several shots to tie it and then did on a jumper by Needham with 4 minutes left in the quarter, 49-49. After a timeout, Berkan Durmaz's hook shot put the hosts ahead. Mathews then took over with a triple, a steal and a layup, and a jumper to lead 58-52. Alexander O'Connell made a jumper for Reyer, but a three by Hammonds made it 61-54 through three quarters.
Reyer's late push fell short
Despite a slam by Simms to begin the quarter, Reyer could not gain any real momentum. Besiktas scored the next three baskets as Needham's pull-up jumper made it 67-56. Baskets by Brown and Jeff brooks kept Venice afloat. Brown sank free throws to make it 70-64 with less than 4 minutes remaining. Point became harder to come by down the stretch. Wiltjer got the visitors within 4, but a costly turnover by De Nicolao led to a Mitchell layup to lead 74-68 with 41 seconds left and Besiktas held on the rest of the way.