Eurocup: Bilbao crushes Panionios

Bilbao Basket crushed Panionios Athens 93-62 at home as Round 2 of the Eurocup Last 32 got underway on Tuesday. The game in Spain was the only one held on the night as the remaining 15 clashes will be played out on a packed Wednesday.

The win maintained Bilbao´s good home record in the Eurocup this season as the team has only slipped to defeat once, way back in November to Sassari. The Spanish team now sits second in Group L with a 1-1 record and will at least share that position tomorrow regardless of what happens in the game between Nizhny Novgorod and Crvena Zvezda Telekom. Things are not looking as good for Panionios as the Greek team slips to 0-2 and sits bottom of the Group L standings.

Roger Grimau paced Bilbao with 18 points and was joined by five other players in double figures. Gabriel scored 15, Pilepic 14, and Zoran Vrkic grabbed 11, while Bertans and Damir Markota collected 10 apiece. Errick McCullom had a fantastic game high 28 points for Panionios, scoring 45% of the teams haul on the night.

First quarter

The hosts took early command of the game with a 7-0 run at the start of the first quarter that came courtesy of Dairis Bertans with a three pointer and two pointers from German Gabriel and Axel Hervelle. The visitors were not kept off the score board for much longer as Marc Carter put Panionios in business, with the Athens club clawing back to 9-8. The rest of the quarter stayed tight as both team jostled for supremacy, but a buzzer defying slam from Bertans gave Bilbao the lead after the first period at 21-19.

Second quarter

Bilbao started the second much like they had the first, only this time the team took a 6-0 advantage at the start of the 10 minutes. Zoran Vrkic from outside the arc and Raul Lopez from within it extended the home team´s advantage at 32-31 with five minutes left in the first half. Despite a Mario Batis three pointer and more pressing from Panionios, the visitors couldn´t cut the deficit by much and trailed after the first half with the score at 40-30.

Third quarter

There were signs in the second quarter that Bilbao had too much for the away team, and so it proved in minutes 20 to 30 as the Spanish team pulled away. Early in the period the home team found themselves 47-33 in front and the game was all but won even at that early stage. Roger Grimau, Damir Markota, and Fran Pilepic all contributed to a 25-3 run for Bilbao as the Spaniards clicked in attack and got tough in defense. Errick McCullom scored in the paint and from the free throw line for Athens to put the score at 67-39 with just 10 minutes to play.

Fourth quarter

The impressive McCullom opened the last period with six unanswered points for the visitors, while Kevin Langford hit from distance. It was clear Panionios had improved and in fact the Greek team scored 23 points in the 4th, but Bilbao kept scoring too and put 26 on the board in the same period. The hosts saw out the quarter to record a comfortable 30+ point victory in Group L.