In an exciting game in the French capital that came down to the final minute, Gran Canaria knocked down 10 second-half triples and overcame a huge night by Kyle Allman to pull out an 81-89 win over Paris Basketball on Wednesday night. Gran Canaria, which finished with 13 three-pointers, improved to 3-1, while shorthanded newcomer Paris, missing half-a-dozen players due to injuries and illness, dropped to 2-2.
Gran Canaria holds off Allman and Paris, 81-89



AJ Slaughter scored 19 of his 24 points in the second half, shooting 6-for-11 from long range. John Shurna had 14 points plus 7 rebounds and Damien Inglis scored 12 in the victory. Allman finished with 30 points. 8 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks for Paris. Axel Toupane scored 18, while Dustin Sleva and Juhann Begarin scored 12 apiece in a losing effort.
Game Videos
Both teams played with pace from the start. Allman had his way early, scoring the first 9 points for the hosts, and his alley-oop connection with Begarin made it 11-7. But Gran Canaria pulled down 8 offensive rebounds in the first quarter to stay close then used triples from Ferran Bassas and John Shurna early in the second to go up 19-24. Toupane had a pair of fastbreak baskets before Begarin and Denis nailed a three apiece, but Gran Canaria stayed in front thanks to Inglis and Shurna. A triple from Slaughter helped make it 31-38 at halftime.
The visitors increased it to double digits in the third quarter with a help of transition triples from Andrew Albicy and Shurna, 39-49. But Toupane and Allman ignited Paris again with a triple apiece before Begarin had a fastbreak dunk and a triple to give Paris a 54-53 edge. Slaughter finished the third quarter with back-to-back threes to make it 56-59. The fourth quarter was a high-scoring affair where the teams kept trading blows. Allman hit a pair of triples, but Ferran Bassas helped Gran Canaria stay close. After Salvo and Toupane traded threes to make it 75-75, Bassas and Slaughter hit back-to-back from downtown to give Gran Canaria a 6-point cushion with 3 minutes left, an advantage they did not relinquish.