

Dolomiti Energia Trento kept its hopes of reaching the 7DAYS EuroCup Playoffs alive with a crucial 79-76 home win over Buducnost VOLI Podgorica on Tuesday night. However, the Italian team had a nervy end to the game after it had thrown away a 23-point lead it had built early in the second half.
The outcome left Trento on a 3-13 record in Group B, two games back of Veolia Towers Hamburg (5-11), who missed a chance to seal a playoff berth after suffering an 85-91 setback at Hapoel Vegan Friendly Tel Aviv. Trento visits Hamburg next week and only a win will see it avoid an early exit.
Diego Flaccadori paced Trento with 16 points, Andrejs Grazulis scored 14, Matteo Spagnolo netted 12 and Darion Atkins had 11 points and 8 rebounds. However, it was the hosts' guard Trent Lockett who was named the player of the game after he racked up 9 points, 8 rebounds and 5 steals. At the other end, Trae Bell-Hayes led Buducnost and all scorers with a game-high 24 points. Erick Green had 18 and J.J. O’Brien netted 10 for the visitors.
Trento produced one of its best EuroCup performances of the season in the first half, as it steamrolled the more heralded Buducnost. The Montenegrin outfit, who had already booked its place in the playoff, looked lethargic as Trento tore it apart with sound shooting and superior rebounding, having also taken good care of the ball.
Trento grabbed 30 rebounds in the first half, 12 of which on the offensive end, while Buducnost only managed 18 boards and shot 0-of-10 from three-point range, with the hosts netting 5-of-12 from deep. The home team also had 7 assists compared to the visitors' grand total of 1, resulting in a 49-28 Trento lead at halftime.
Few would have predicted a spirited Buducnost fightback in the second half when the home side netted the first bucket of the third quarter, but that’s exactly what happened. The visitors roared back with a 14-5 streak early in the period, followed by an 8-0 run late on, as it slashed Trento’s lead to 62-53 ahead of the final 10 minutes.
Bell-Haynes, who had a quiet first half, fired on all cylinders after the break and Buducnost looked like the more likely winner after the visitors nosed ahead 68-69 with four minutes left, having turned the game on its head as Trento went ice-cold from the floor.
However, the hosts dug deep when the chips were down and a Flaccadori layup followed by a pair of free throws from Atkins with 6.8 seconds left on the clock sealed its win in a dramatic climax, as Buducnost came up short on the buzzer in an effort to force overtime.