A strong third-quarter defensive stretch opened the gap for Erdem Can's squad
Strong defense carries Turk Telekom to victory in Chemnitz
Report partita
3 Minuto di lettura
Regular Season
Round 9 of 18
Regular Season
group b
NINERS ChemnitzNIN
6387
Turk Telekom AnkaraTTA
group b
Overview
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Turk Telekom Ankara took control on the road, claiming a convincing 63-87 win over NINERS Chemnitz to move to 6-3 in Group B.
‘‘We are improving. We have good chemistry, I think that’s one of the most important points,’’ Coach Erdem Can said after the game. ‘‘Our guys really enjoy playing together and they do the things on the court for each other.’’
The blue-and-whites’ chemistry showed through, with a strong defensive effort carrying the team to a road win. After a balanced first half, Turk Telekom took firm control in the third quarter, using strong defense to dictate the pace and steadily extend their lead.
Turk Telekom’s main offensive plan focused on attacking the paint, and the visitors established an edge on both ends throughout the game. Struggling from beyond the arc much of the season, Turk Telekom received a boost from Jaleen Smith, who poured in 17 points, grabbed 4 rebounds, and hit 3 timely three-pointers.
Kris Bankston made his mark in the paint for Turk Telekom, finishing with 12 points and 6 rebounds, while Michael Devoe sparked the offense with 13 points and 7 assists.
Coach Erdem Can reflected on the team’s performance: ‘‘At the beginning of the game, we started a little bit flat. But after that, we picked up our pace defensively and offensively. And to be honest, we really reacted well and in the first half, giving up 10 offensive rebounds was the biggest minus for us. But after that, we started to control our board. We won a very important game.’’
Despite a strong effort on the offensive boards, Chemnitz struggled to convert second-chance opportunities. Turk Telekom’s tough defense held the German side to just 63 points, forcing Chemnitz to rely on perimeter shooting, but the home team could only manage 7-of-38 from beyond the arc.
‘‘I think it’s the first time in this EuroCup that we found ourselves in a situation which the opponents control the game as much as they did outside of the first 5 minutes. I was very satisfied with the level of energy defensively and offensive execution that we were showing. But everything went out as soon as we started missing some wide-open threes.’’ said Coach Rodrigo Pastore after the game.
‘‘On the other side, they did a very good job creating shots, especially paint shots… In certain moments when we felt like we could make a run, they were executing at a high level to get the shots they wanted to get.’’
In Round 10, Turk Telekom will once again hit the road to face another German team, ratiopharm ulm, while NINERS Chemnitz will host Panionios Cosmoroma Travel Athens.
