This is what the protagonists of the game had to say after such a close deal down the stretch.

Post-Game Quotes: Metropolitans 82-89 Partizan


### Zeljko Obradovic, Partizan NIS Belgrade
“29 points [allowed in the second half] is different than 53 [allowed in the first half]. So we changed the defense and played much better defense, and because of this, we won the game. Almost everywhere we go we have our people [the fans]. Thanks to them, amazing support and good atmosphere. Congratulations to [Metropolitans], they played a very good game.”


Hornsby with monster first half

Hornsby’s production slowed down in the second half as Partizan increased its defensive pressure. Still, he finished with 5 rebounds and 4 assists for a PIR of 25. He set new career-highs in points, rebounds and index rating in the game.

Nemanja Dangubic - Partizan NIS Belgrade (photo Olivier d'Almeida - Metropolitans) - EC21

While Kevin Punter led Partizan in scoring with a career-high 28 points, Zach LeDay helped out with some great all-around play. He made 5 of 11 shots and 4 of 5 free throws for 15 points and grabbed 5 rebounds. 

Zach Leday is Partizan’s Mr. Do-It-All

LeDay also dished out 3 assists while collecting 1 steal and 2 blocks and drawing 7 fouls. Also noteworthy was playing 37:37 minutes and not committing a single turnover. All that gave him a performance index rating of 21.

Zach Leday - Partizan NIS Belgrade (photo Olivier d'Almeida - Metropolitans) - EC21

Partizan NIS Belgrade used a big fourth-quarter surge to collect an 82-89 victory at Boulogne Metropolitans 92 and hand the French side its first home loss of the season. Partizan wrestled away control with a 4-15 surge late to improve to 5-1 in Group A. 

Partizan wears down Metropolitans late for road win, 82-89

Kevin Punter paced Partizan with a career-high 28 points while Zach LeDay poured in 15 points, Alen Smailagic scored 14 points and Aleksa Avramovic added 12 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in the win. Metropolitans dropped to 3-3 despite five players scoring in double figures. Keith Hornsby led the way with a career-high 22 points with David Michineau and Vince Hunter both scoring 16 points, Will Cummings adding 13 and Steeve Ho-You-Fat picking up 11 points in the loss.

Avramovic opened the game for the guests from long range while Hunter scored Metropolitans’ first points. Back-to-back three-pointers from Hornsby gave the hosts their first lead, 8-6. Punter responded with 5 points and Partizan led 8-13. LeDay added a triple of his own and Punter free throws had the Serbian side ahead 17-21. Metropolitans finished the first quarter strong with Michineau converting a three-point play in a 9-0 run to pull ahead 26-21 and it was 28-23 after 10 minutes.

Punter opened the second quarter with a three-pointer only to see Hornsby continue his strong game with a layup and triple to increase the lead to 33-26. Partizan got back into the game with Punter free throws and a Yam Madar triple trimmed the deficit to 35-34. Cummings scored 4 points to keep Metropolitans ahead before Dallas Moore hit free throws to give Partizan the lead and Smailagic made it 43-46. Hunter answered with his first three-pointer of the season to tie the game and Hornsby’s free throws had Metropolitans up 53-50 at the break.

Hunter’s basket started the second half to increase the lead to 5 points. Smailagic brought Partizan back ahead with a pair of three-pointers to make it 58-60. The back and forth continued as Metropolitans answered with 5 straight points to go up 63-60. It remained close with Ho-You-Fat scoring 4 points and Avramovic adding 4 at the other end. The game was even 68-68 after 30 minutes.

Smailagic started the final frame to put Partizan ahead and Nemanja Dangubic hit a three-pointer and Balsa Koprivica picked up two inside scores as the guests’ lead grew to 71-79. Cummings managed a big three-pointer to keep things close. Punter followed with a big block and 2 free throws and LeDay added a block and fastbreak dunk as the advantage grew to 74-85 with less than 3 minutes to play. After scoring just one basket in more than 7 minutes, Michineau drained a triple with 72 seconds left to trim the gap to 77-85. But the hosts could not muster a comeback.

Kevin Punter 2- Partizan NIS Belgrade (photo Olivier d'Almeida - Metropolitans) - EC21

The biggest stat in the game was 29 - as in the number of points that Metropolitans scored in the second half after totaling 53 in the first half. The guests did a great job getting easy points with a 16-1 advantage on points off turnovers and 21-4 on fastbreak points. 

Partizan offensive efficiency complements defense

On top of that, Partizan shot 61.8% on two-pointers as compared to 51.1% for Metropolitans. Partizan also committed only 3 turnovers in the whole game. The team’s combined PIR of 117 ranked third all-time for the club in EuroCup history.

Aleksa Avramovic - Partizan NIS Belgrade (photo Olivier d'Almeida - Metropolitans) - EC21

Alen Omic and Yogi Ferrell joined Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana during the recent break. Ferrell made his 7DAYS EuroCup debut in Round 6 against Virtus Segafredo Bologna, in what was Omic's 100th game in the competition. 

Ferrell, Omic thrill Cedevita fans

Ferrell impressed Cedevita fans with a double-double of 24 points and 11 rebounds, making 5-of-9 three-pointers and 7-of-7 free throws for a PIR of 38. Omic had 18 points on near-perfect shooting, hitting 7-of-8 attempts inside the arc and burying the first three-pointer in his legendary EuroCup career. He added 3 rebounds for a PIR of 19. 

Yogi Ferrell - Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana - EC21

Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana v Virtus Segafredo Bologna (2021-12-08T19:00:00.000Z)

Turk Telekom’s top scorer, Aaron Harrison, finished with double-figures in points in all games but the opener this season, and against Morabanc Andorra he proved again he is a real threat for any team in the 7DAYS EuroCup. 

Harrison excels from long range

Harrison completed a 20-point performance, showing incredible accuracy from deep. He drilled 6 triples, which is his personal high and tied for the second-best this season, just one shy from Gediminas Orelik’s 7 against Hamburg Towers in Round 4.

Aaron Harrison - MoraBanc Andorra (photo Martin Imatge - Andorra) - EC21

MoraBanc Andorra v Turk Telekom Ankara (2021-12-08T19:00:00.000Z)

In addition to a terrific three-point shooting display, the hosts completed a magic scoring night by signing off on a season-high 98 points against their opponent. That milestone was based on a nicely distributed contribution by all Andorra players, as each one who stepped on the court scored. 

Strong scoring helps Andorra remain unbeaten at home 

The ones who did it the most were Codi Miller-McIntyre and Clevin Hannah, with 14 points apiece, while Babatunde Olumuyiwa had just 3. Between them, nine more players filled the box score. That balanced contribution helped Andorra improve its home record to 3-0 after it got past Dolomiti Energia Trento, 85-73, in Round 2, and Partizan NIS Belgrade, in Round 4. 

Gal Mekel - MoraBanc Andorra (photo Martin Imatge - Andorra) - EC21

Morabanc Andorra found no trouble to collect another home win when it defeated Turk Telekom Ankara 98-75 at Poliesportiu D’Andorra on Wednesday night. The hosts used a 15-0 run bridging the first and the second quarters to build a 40-18 margin that the visitors never threatened. 

Andorra rips Turk Telekom to stay perfect at home, 98-75

Codi Miller-McIntyre paced the winners with 14 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals for a PIR of 25. Clevin Hannah followed with 14 points and 5 assists and Conor Morgan and Nacho Llovet scored 12 and 10 points, respectively, for Andorra, which improved to 4-2. Turk Telekom, whose record dropped to 3-3, was led by Aaron Harrison, who provided 20 points on 6-of-8 shooting from behind the arc. Anthony Clemmons added 13 points and 6 boards and Octavius Ellis posted 12 points and 6 rebounds in the losing effort.

The hosts displayed a terrific offensive performance in the early going, succeeding in every offense while hitting 3 threes without a miss to get an 18-11 lead midway through the first quarter. The visitors survived thanks to their long-distance shooting, as they only attempted once from two over the first 6 minutes. The scoring slowed down a bit after a Turk Telekom timeout, but Andorra found another offensive spark behind three-pointers from Amine Noua and Miller-McIntyre, a layup by Babatunde Olumuyiwa plus a tap-in buzzer-beater by the former to lead 29-18 after 10 minutes. 

Things didn’t improve for the visitors when the game resumed, as they were held scoreless for a 4-minute span that Andorra exploited to ignite an 11-0 run that raised the difference to 40-18. The guests found some relief from the foul line to reduce it to 44-29, but Hannah stepped up with a long three that revitalized the home team and froze the rally. Mario Nakic followed with a contested baseline layup and Morgan finished a fastbreak to return the 20-point margin to Andorra right before Harrison drilled a three that sent the game to the locker room with a comfortable 51-34 advantage for the hosts. 

A three-pointer by Berk Demir and free throws by Clemmons allowed Turk Telekom to come within 51-39 right after the break. Andorra held on and found some points by its frontcourt players to retain a 57-41 edge, but a three-pointer by Clemmons and a dunk by Ellis forced an urgent timeout by the hosts at 57-46 midway through the third quarter. An inside bucket by Victor Arteaga and free throws by Drew Crawford helped Andorra stay calm, and even though the visitors managed to trim the deficit to 61-51 soon after, Oriol Pauli showed up big to score a layup, assist Hannah for a triple and provide a couple of free throws that allowed his team to enter the last period in front 68-55.

Hannah took the reins going into the last stanza, contributing a three-point play, hitting from behind the arc and finishing a fastbreak to restore a 20-point margin, 76-55, for the hosts. Andorra’s defense stepped up too, as the guests needed almost 4 minutes to score until Harrison ended the drought with a triple. It proved worthless, though, because Morgan took over with 6 points in a row soon after to make it 82-60 and put the game to sleep with still 5 minutes remaining.

Codi Miller-McIntyre - MoraBanc Andorra (photo Martin Imatge - Andorra) - EC21