Gran Canaria featured several players who, despite having 7DAYS EuroCup veterans for a long time, never lifted the trophy. That circumstance came to a dramatic an end on Wednesday night when Gran Canaria edged Turk Telekom Ankara 71-67. All of the Gran Canaria players can now called themselves EuroCup champions.
Most of those veterans played a major role in the victory as Gran Canaria relied on its most experienced players to win.
John Shurna earned EuroCup Final MVP honors with 18 points on 4-for-6 two-point and 3-for-5 three-point shooting. He hit a big bomb from downtown to stop Turk Telekom's fourth-quarter comeback and put Gran Canaria back on track to win the title. Shurna lifted the trophy in what was his 111st game in the competition, more than all but 13 other players in EuroCup history, over seven seasons.
A.J. Slaughter had 12 first-quarter points and allowed Gran Canaria to build a 46-24 margin near halftime. Slaughter finished the game with 16 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and a PIR of 15. Like the other Gran Canaria veterans, Slaughter's first EuroCup title was a long time coming. This was his ninth EuroCup campaign. He ranks seventh in games played (124), third in scoring (1,418 points) and second in three-point shots made (224) all-time. He is also tied for 10th in assists (348).