Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse hosts Gran Canaria on Thursday night in a make-up game from Round 13.
Keys to victory: Bourg vs. Gran Canaria



Guard play could make the difference for Bourg
Bourg has committed the second-fewest turnovers (11.7 per game) and leads the EuroCup in three-point shooting (41.6%) this season. Those are both the strengths and the weaknesses of the Gran Canaria defense. While Gran Canaria leads the competition in steals with 9.3 per game, it has allowed opponents to shoot 37.6% from behind the arc. Those numbers help map out a game plan against the islanders, who are playing their second road game in three days.
Hence, the keys for Bourg sit with its guards. If the likes of Axel Julien, Hugo Benitez, C.J. Harris and Rasheed Sulaimon can handle the Gran Canaria pressure and orchestrate good looks from downtown for themselves and others, it could help the hosts capture a valuable victory that would shoot it higher into the standings.
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Energy will be key for Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria comes into this game with plenty to play for, but also on the heels of its first road loss of the season, just 48 hours earlier, in which it scored a season-low 59 points and committed 25 turnovers, which tied for the most in club history. Coach Fisac’s men must shake that loss in Venice off and find the energy to compete in Bourg knowing that a victory sends it atop Group B and clinches its place in the knock-out stages.
When Gran Canaria beat Bourg 78-49 in Round 4, it overwhelmed its opponents in the paint, making 23 of 33 two-pointers (69.7%) and controlling the boards 37-27. Big men Artem Pustovyi and Ilimane Diop combined for 21 points on 8-of-9 two-point shooting and if they, together with John Shurna and Khalifa Diop, can take charge inside, it would be a big boost for the visitors.









































































































