7DAYS EuroCup: Round 4 recap
Round 4 of the 7DAYS EuroCup was played out on Wednesday, with action across all four groups and across the continent. The big story of the week is that three teams remain unbeaten, with Darussafaka Istanbul, Bayern Munich, and Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar all maintaining their perfect records.
Group A
Cedevita Zagreb went big in a 94-74 home cruise over Unics Kazan. Victory moved the Croatian champs to 2-2 and left Unics on the same record. The hosts trailed after the first act, but took the second 29-20 for a 44-39 lead during the long break. Cedevita dominated from there, taking the third period 25-14 before wrapping the contest with a handy 24-21 closing frame.
Darussafaka Istanbul easily took out FIAT Turin on the road, claiming a victory that puts the club at 4-0 at the top of Group A and leaves Turin on 3-1. This was a game where one club would lose its 100% record and Darussafaka took advantage of an awful second half from the Italian hosts. Turin managed just 18 points in the second half, allowing the Turkish club an open path to the win.
Group B
2016 7DAYS EuroCup champs Galatasaray Istanbul fell at home 73-78 to Lietkabelis Panevezys to remain without a win this season. As for the Lithuanian visitors, they move to 2-2 in Group B. The hosts actually led by 11 points (43-32) through halftime, but Panevezys rallied in the third act with a 18-26 run and bured the game with a 12-20 fourth quarter. Darjus Lavrinovis secured 18 points in the win.
In a contest between two unbeaten teams, Bayern Munich extended its 100% record to 4-0 with a cruising 60-76 road win over Buducnost Voli Podgorica. The loss is Buducnost’s first of the EuroCup campaign. The teams were locked 11-11 through 10 minutes, but the German guests secured a 11-23 second quarter and never looked back. Bayern dominated the remainder of the game and eased to success.
Group C
Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar extended its unblemished record to 4-0 with a 102-86 win over Bilbao. The Russian club had to score big to see off the Spanish team in Krasnodar, breaking a century of points to get the job done. The hosts led by 15 (40-55) at the long break and mostly kept that advantage through the second half. Trevor Lacey was the attacking architect with 20 points and 7 assists for Lokomotiv.
ALBA Berlin nestled into second place behind Lokomotiv with a 93-86 win over Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius in the German capital. ALBA is now at 3-1 in the standings, while the Lithuanian club is sitting on 1-3. It was a close game through thirty minutes, with the hosts leading 69-63 courtesy of a 27-18 third quarter run. ALBA Berlin had the momentum and carried it to victory.
Group D
Tofas Bursa leapfrogged ASVEL Lyon by beating the French team 82-81 at home. The win puts Bursa on 3-1, while ASVEL drops to 2-2. As the score suggests, this was a close contest, although the hosts led 42-34 through halftime. ASVEL rallied back into the game and even threatened to win it late on. However, Raymar Morgan won the game for Tofas Bursa with 5.4 seconds on the clock. Morgan finished with a double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds.
Elsewhere in Group D, Zenit St. Petersburg travelled to Germany and plundered an 93-95 win off Ratiopharm Ulm. A high-scoring game, the result leaves both clubs on 2-2 records. Zenit drained 53 points in the second half to win the game, reversing a 2-point deficit from halftime. Demonte Harper dropped 23 points in the win, followed by Sergey Karasev and Marko Simonovic with 17 points apiece.