Buducnost VOLI Podgorica was outstanding from the free-throw line in its 86-89 victory over Frutti Extra Bursaspor and the Montenegrin champion needed that strong shooting to get the win.

Telling numbers: Perfection from the line aided Buducnost

Buducnost came into the game averaging 80.2% from the foul line and the team actually improved that percentage by converting 19 of 19 from the charity stripe in prevailing on the road. It was the second-best free-throw shooting night in club history. Buducnost made 22 without a miss in an 82-68 victory over Spirou Charleroi in November 2004.

Telling numbers: Virtus sky-rocketed in the second half

Milos Teodosic and Daniel Hackett both nailed buzzer-beating threes at the end of the first and the second quarters to keep Virtus breathing when Bourg seemed to be ready to escape. As such, the Italian champs trailed 47-37 at halftime and were down 51-40, early in the third. But Virtus reacted in style with a 4-24 run, turning the tables in less than 8 minutes. 

Virtus shot 9 for 13 on two-pointers (69.2%) and 9 for 17 (52.9%) from behind the arc while dishing 19 assists in the last 20 minutes. The visitors committed just 4 turnovers - after having 9 in the first half - and also outrebounding the hosts 12-24, which led to a PIR of 83 against Bourg’s 8 in the second half.

Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse v Virtus Segafredo Bologna (2022-04-05T18:00:00.000Z)

Isaia Cordinier - Virtus Segafredo Bologna (photo Jacques Cormareche - Bourg) - EC21-RS18

Virtus Segafredo Bologna pulled out a convincing win at the Ekinox in defeating Mincidelive JL Bourg en Bresse 68-90 on Tuesday night. 

Virtus rallies past Bourg, 68-90

The visitors trailed 51-40, but a 0-16 run in the last 4 minutes of the third quarter flipped the coin for good. Virtus improved to 11-7 and locked in a top seed in the eighthfinals, while already-eliminated Bourg dropped to 6-12. The winners were led by Daniel Hackett, who finished with 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting from behind the arc. Jakarr Sampson followed with 15 points and 7 boards, Kevin Hervey scored 13 and Mam Jaiteh contributed 11. C.J. Harris Jr. was Bourg’s top scorer with 12 points, Pierre Pelos posted 10 points and 5 rebounds and Axel Julien added 10 points and 5 assists in the losing effort.

Hackett got the visitors going with a three-pointer and a couple of free throws for an early 2-5 edge. Bourg reacted thanks to its multiple Virtus turnovers, which allowed a 7-0 run capped by a dunk off-a-steal by Jalen Jones. Hugo Benitez and Harris extended the hosts’ lead to 16-10, but Virtus managed to hold on, getting some offensive momentum once Milos Teodosic stepped on court. Julien showed up from the line first, then nailed a three to make it 21-16, as Teodosic closed the first quarter with a half-court buzzer-beating three that got the visitors within 23-20. 

 

Bourg didn’t get discouraged by that and had a strong reaction early in the second quarter. Maxime Roos chained together a couple of triples and a steal-plus-assist play for Julien that built a 34-22 advantage. Despite a quick Virtus timeout, the hosts managed to keep the visitors out of reach, 40-28, behind consecutive baskets by Pelos. Sampson and Tornike Shengelia tried to revitalize Virtus from inside, but Rasheed Sulaimon answered from outside with a jumper and a contested three to help the hosts head to the locker room with a safe double-digit margin, 47-37.

Benitez ran the show for Bourg right after halftime, but Hackett responded quickly with back-to-back threes, followed by another by Cordinier that tightened things to 51-48. The home team stopped the game with a timeout and that also stopped the Virtus offense for a while. It didn’t last for long, though, as Mam Jaiteh scored a three-point play and Hervey contributed 5 consecutive free-throws that turned the game upside down, 55-56. The rally continued, with Hervey providing a triple and a reverse layup to cap a 0-16 run and close the third quarter with the visitors leading 55-64.

 

Isaia Cordinier extended it to 55-66 right before Pelos ended a 5-minute scoring drought for Bourg with a tap-in. Cordinier hit again from downtown to make it 57-69, turning on Bourg’s alarms with 8 minutes remaining. Alexandre Chassang and Harris set the tone offensively for the hosts, but Teodosic was already pulling the strings, both scoring and feeding his teammates. An open three by Alessandro Pajola dug it deeper, 64-80, midway through the last quarter, but the punishment didn’t end there. Two more threes by Hackett and Kyle Weems capped a 0-13 boost that widened the gap to 64-88, sealing the outcome with 3 minutes to play.

Maxime Roos 2- Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse (photo Alexia Graziani - Bourg) - EC21-RS18

Valencia Basket never trailed and set a club record with 33 assists in beating visiting ratiopharm Ulm 103-71 on Tuesday night in the regular-season finale for both teams. 

Valencia crushes Ulm, 103-71, to clinch second place

Valencia improved to 12-6 and clinched second place in Group B, while Ulm, which entered the game locked into eighth place, finished the group stage with a 7-11 record and will play on the road against Joventut Badalona in the eighthfinals. Valencia knocked down 3 triples in a game-opening 17-4 run and never looked back. The hosts made 17 three-pointers and led by as many as 41 points on a couple of occasions in the second half. Bojan Dubljevic paced Valencia with 19 points on 5-for-6 three-point shooting, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. Mike Tobey had 16 points, Jaime Pradilla collected 15 points plus 9 rebounds, Louis Labeyre netted 14 points and Guillem Ferrando set a club record with 13 assists. In the losing effort, Karim Jallow scored 19 points, Fedor Zugic added 13 and Moritz Krimmer had 11 for Ulm, which was without its four top scorers Jaron Blossomgame, Semaj Christon, Sindarius Thornwell and Cristiano Felicio.

Valencia stormed out of the gates. After Tobey and Pradilla scored inside, Victor Claver and Josep Puerto hit back-to-back triples to make it 10-2. Zugic hit a jumper, but another three from Claver and a dunk from Tobey opened a 17-4 lead. Zugic answered with a three-pointer and Jallow scored 4 points to cut it to 19-11, but Tobey's three-pointer and 5 points from Dubljevic, including a triple extended the lead to 29-13 before Marius Stoll made it 29-16 after 10 minutes.

 

Jallow opened the second quarter with a layup and a fastbreak dunk, but Ferrando and Dubljevic knocked down back-to-back three-pointers to restore a 15-point margin. Michael Rataj hit a baseline jumper before Nat Diallo and Zugic scored from close range to make it 37-26. Martin Hermannsson had a three-point play and, after Per Guenther answered with a triple to cut it to 42-29, Tobey scored twice inside to spark a 9-0 run, capped with a triple from Pradilla. Valencia went into halftime up 52-30.

Jallow opened the second half with a corner three-pointer, but Hermannsson also hit one from long range and Labeyrie scored twice from close range to help open a 61-35 margin. Moritz Krimmer had a triple for Ulm, but Jasiel Rivero's put-back was followed by back-to-back threes from Dubljevic for a 13-2 run. Labeyrie also made a pair of threes, with Dubljevic nailing his fifth in between, as Valencia surged to 82-45 heading into the fourth quarter.

 

A fastbreak dunk from Pradilla broke the 40-point barrier, 86-45 in the opening 30 seconds of the fourth quarter. Nicolas Bretzel and Tobey traded alley-oop dunks. Thomas Klepeisz had a three for the visitors, but Millan Jimenez made it 93-52 with a three of his own. Ulm scored the next 10 points, a run capped by a triple from Bretzel, to cut into the deficit. However, the game was long decided as Valencia cruised to a victory, but not before Alejandro Bellver hit a three-pointer in his EuroCup debut.

Valencia Basket v ratiopharm Ulm (2022-04-05T18:30:00.000Z)

Martin Hermannsson - Valencia Basket (photo Miguel Angel Polo - Valencia) - EC21-RS18

This is what the protagonists had to say after the Round 18 showdown between Valencia Basket and ratiopharm Ulm.

Post-game quotes: Valencia vs. Ulm

### Joan Penarroya, Valencia Basket head coach:

"It is an important victory. Second place is important for us. Ulm tonight had important players out, but I think my team played a serious game, with concentration with energy and we passed the ball well. I am happy for the game. A club record 33 assists? Nice, but it is not the most important. The most important is the victory."

### Jaka Lakovic, ratiopharm Ulm head coach:

"It was a tough night. We played against Valencia and with the circumstances we had, the game was totally on their side. I want to congratulate Valencia for the win, for the second place and wish them all the best in the playoffs. For us, it is a good lesson, especially for the young guys who did not get so much opportunity during the season to see what it takes to play at this level. I hope this loss will not affect us against Joventut \[in the eighthfinals\]. We have to put all the things in perspective, we have to realize how we went into the game. We first have German League, that game in Badalona is in two weeks, still a long time until then."

### Bojan Dubljevic, Valencia Basket center:

"We showed tonight we are ready. I think Ulm is a really really good team, but they did not play with the best players, they rested a lot of players. For us, it was a really important game for second place. Now we are focused on the playoffs. We don't have a preference. We have a home-court advantage, which is really important for us because we have a sixth player in our fans."

Joan Penarroya - Valencia Basket (photo Miguel Angel Polo - Valencia) - EC21-RS21

Buducnost VOLI Podgorica will go into the playoffs on a high note after defeating Frutti Extra Bursaspor 869-89 on the road on Tuesday. 

Buducnost edges Bursaspor, 86-89, on the road

Buducnost fended off every Bursaspor comeback in the closing minutes to finish Group B action with a 10-8 record after having lost six of its last eight games. Buducnost will have to wait for later results to see what its final placing in the standings is going into the eighthfinals. Justin Cobbs poured in 21 points and Kendrick Perry scored 19 points to grab the victory. Edin Atic chipped in 14 points and Zoran Nikolic had 11 points in the win. Bursaspor had its four-game winning streak snapped to fall to 8-10 despite Andrew Andrews's 26 points. Onuralp Bitim and Omer Utku Al both tallied 14 points, David Dudzinski scored 13 points and Derek Needham contributed 11 points in the losing effort.

Kevarrius Hayes scored first in the game for the hosts before Atic netted 4 points at the other end in opening a 2-6 lead. Bursaspor responded with the next 6 points to reclaim the lead only to see Buducnost mount a 2-13 surge, including a three-pointer and 3 free throws from Cobbs and 5 points from Danilo Nikolic, to make it 10-19. David Dudzinski’s score had the hosts within 12-19 after 10 minutes.

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Bursaspor could not get defensive stops early in the second as Perry scored 4 points and the lead grew to 16-27. Andrews answered with a three-pointer and Omer Utku Al added free throws to cut the margin to 22-29. An Onuralp Bitim three-point play made it 27-33 only to see Perry answer from deep. Al knocked down 2 three-pointers and Bursaspor was within 37-38. Marko Jagodic-Kuridza responded with a triple and Zoran Nikolic’s three-point play made it 37-44. Andrews converted a three-point play and the advantage was 40-44 at the break.

After Cobbs’s free throws to start the second half, Bitim hit a three-pointer for the home side. Perry knocked down a triple at the other end in a 0-8 surge to push the lead to 43-54. Bursaspor used the long ball to get close with Dudzinski and Needham draining triples to pull within 49-54. Cobbs converted a three-point play and Atic hit a three-pointer, but Needham knocked down 2 more three-pointers and Bursaspor trailed just 58-62. But Atic punched back from deep and DJ Seeley’s free throws extended the gap back to 8 points. The Bursaspor barrage continued with Al and Bitim draining triples and Al free throws made it 68-70. Seeley converted twice from the free-throw line and the score was 68-72 after 30 minutes.

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Bursaspor finally knotted the game at 72-72 on Andrews’s jumper. Buducnost responded with 4 points each from Perry and Zoran Nikolic and led 75-80. Cobbs added a jumper to increase the lead to 6. Cobbs added another basket and Perry hit a three-pointer to put Buducnost ahead 80-87. Andrews responded with a three-pointer and three-point play to make it 86-87 with 76 seconds left. Both teams committed turnovers before Andrews’s three-point shot went in and out with 18 seconds to play. Perry finished it off with 2 free throws with 10 seconds left for an 86-89 lead. Dudzinski appeared to hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to tie the game but the ball was ruled out of bounds first.

Edin Atic - Buducnost VOLI Podgorica (photo Bursaspor) - EC21-RS18

This is what the protagonists had to say after the Round 18 showdown between Frutti Extra Bursaspor and Buducnost VOLI Podgorica.

Post-game quotes: Bursaspor vs. Buducnost

### Aleksandar Dzikic, Buducnost VOLI Podgorica head coach:

“We were focused and in the last 2 minutes, we controlled the rebounds. They’re so tough, they’re so tough. Every time you think you break them, they come back, they come back. Congrats to the home team, and the fans are great, great. I like noise. They were probably supporting their team, but this is a basketball atmosphere. And I hope that COVID is over.”

### Dusan Alimpijevic, Frutti Extra Bursaspor head coach:

“Buducnost was better and they deserved it more than us. I want to thank our fans for coming and supporting us the whole EuroCup season. This was probably our last home game in the EuroCup. I want to congratulate everybody in the club and the players for reaching the playoffs stage. It’s a big success for us and we have to be proud of that. We need to prepare the next game better.”

### Kendrick Perry, Buducnost VOLI Podgorica guard: 

“\[The team’s energy\] was great. In a rowdy environment like this, it would be hard to stay focused. But I think we did a good job most of the game staying focused and sticking to the game plan. We had a little extra motivation to win this one for Willie \[Reed\], our teammate that went down last week. I’m proud of the way we fought tonight.”

Kendrick Perry - Buducnost VOLI Podgorica (photo Bursaspor) - EC21-RS18

Game Night: Last round of regular season starts

### [Frutti Extra Bursaspor 86-89 Buducnost VOLI Podgorica](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2021-22/frutti-extra-bursaspor-buducnost-voli-podgorica/U2021/177/)

Buducnost will go into the playoffs on a high note after defeating Frutti Extra Bursaspor 86-89 on the road. Buducnost fended off every Bursaspor comeback in the closing minutes to finish Group B with a 10-8 record after having lost six of its last eight games. Justin Cobbs poured in 21 points and Kendrick Perry scored 19 points to grab the victory. Bursaspor had its four-game winning streak snapped to fall to 8-10 despite Andrew Andrews's 26 points.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">.<a href="https://twitter.com/kendrick3perry?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kendrick3perry</a> is CLUTCH 🔥<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/7DAYSMagicMoment?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#7DAYSMagicMoment</a> <a href="https://t.co/KOLZRrqYE1">pic.twitter.com/KOLZRrqYE1</a></p>&mdash; 7DAYS EuroCup (@EuroCup) <a href="https://twitter.com/EuroCup/status/1511428369870512131?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 5, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

### [Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse 68-90 Virtus Segafredo Bologna](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2021-22/mincidelice-jl-bourg-en-bresse-virtus-segafredo-bologna/U2021/178/)

Virtus captured a convincing win at the Ekinox when it defeated Bourg 68-90 on Tuesday night. The visitors trailed 51-40, but a 0-16 run in the last 4 minutes of the third quarter flipped the coin for good. Virtus improved to 11-7 behind 17 points from Daniel Hackett and locked in home-court advantage in the eighthfinals. C.J. Harris scored 12 for already-eliminated Bourg, which finished with a 6-12 record. 

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Daniel Hackett beats the buzzer to close the half💥<a href="https://twitter.com/Virtusbo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Virtusbo</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/7DAYSMagicMoment?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#7DAYSMagicMoment</a> <a href="https://t.co/uzgoFy94kg">pic.twitter.com/uzgoFy94kg</a></p>&mdash; 7DAYS EuroCup (@EuroCup) <a href="https://twitter.com/EuroCup/status/1511418244086652931?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 5, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

### [Valencia Basket 103-71 ratiopharm Ulm](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2021-22/valencia-basket-ratiopharm-ulm/U2021/176/)

Valencia never trailed and set a club record with 33 assists in beating visiting Ulm 103-71 in the regular-season finale for both teams. Valencia improved to 12-6 and clinched second place in Group B, while Ulm, which entered the game locked into eighth place, finished the group stage with a 7-11 record. Bojan Dubljevic paced Valencia with 19 points on 5-for-6 three-point shooting, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. Karim Jallow led Ulm with 19 points. 

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Beautiful ball movement by <a href="https://twitter.com/valenciabasket?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@valenciabasket</a> to find Louis Labeyrie for the dunk!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/7DAYSMagicMoment?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#7DAYSMagicMoment</a> <a href="https://t.co/Xyg6ZD4Hcw">pic.twitter.com/Xyg6ZD4Hcw</a></p>&mdash; 7DAYS EuroCup (@EuroCup) <a href="https://twitter.com/EuroCup/status/1511416889448181762?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 5, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Here are the first duels of the last round of the 2021-22 Regular Season!

Game Night: Valencia clinches second in Group B; Buducnost, Virtus win

Valencia Basket celebrates (photo Miguel Angel Polo - Valencia) - EC21-RS18

This is what the protagonists had to say after the Round 18 showdown between Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse and Virtus Segafredo Bologna.

Post-game quotes: Bourg vs. Virtus

### Virtus Segafredo Bologna head coach Sergio Scariolo:

“We had a great defensive third quarter. We put the game back on the right track. We didn’t change one inch of our game plan, but of course, players changed big time their energy, their intensity, their concentration. We did everything the same from the tactical point of view, but completely different from the real actual point of view. From then, we could run, then Teodosic had some of his magic passes and put everybody in rhythm. We had a very good second half.”

### Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse head coach Lurent Legname:

“In the second half, we were pushed out by their defense. And after all, when the game is on a decision stage, they made their shots and we missed the open shots. After that, we relaxed a bit on defense. We had good 20 minutes, but after that, it was very difficult for us to stay and win the game.”

### Virtus Segafredo Bologna guard Daniel Hackett:

“The fact that we gave up only 21 points in the second half speaks a lot about the defensive effort we had in the second half. First half we were kind of sloppy, slow, we allowed their guards to kind of dictate the game and they got us in trouble. 47 points is too much. But in the second half, our defense gave us the boost to play better on offense. We started making shots and we clamped down on defense.”

Sergio Scariolo - Virtus Segafredo Bologna (photo Alexia Graziani - Bourg) - EC21-RS18