PGE Turow Zgorzelec crowned TBL champs
PGE Turow Zgorzelec has won the Polish TBL for the first time in its history after gunning down reigning champs Stelmet Zielona Gora. The winners picked up a 60-72 road win to claim a 4-2 series victory and dethrone a Gora team that defeated Turow in the final last season.
The win was paced more by a huge defensive game than offensive prowess as PGE Turow kept tight inside the perimeter in the first half. That was highlighted by restricting Gora to just 7 points in the second frame, and through the game the new champions took 31 balls off the board at the defensive end.
Stelmet Zielona Gora vs. PGE Turow Zgorzelec, 60-72
Both teams started in a solid fashion, and the hosts got off to the better start as they tried to keep the series alive. Turow’s defensive edge was starting to show by the end of the first quarter though, and the visitors claimed the first 10 minutes 17-19. The second stanza all but won the game as PGE Turow put on a defensive master class and simply snuffed out Gora, stopping the hosts at 7 points through the 10 minutes. That brutish display at the back was matched by consistent scoring in the offensive arc as PGE sent home 22 points to lead 24-41 at halftime. The second frame had hurt the hosts and silenced the crowd inside the Hala Widowiskowo Sportowa. Stelmet Zielona Gora improved in the third quarter, but still the home team could not match a rampant PGE Turow outfit. The visitors won the period 14-16 to extend to 38-57 after 30 minutes on the court. It would need a monumental fourth quarter display from Gora to reel in the 19 point difference, and while the hosts tried, it was simply not enough. Gora won the fourth quarter by nailing 22 points and halting Turow at 15, but it was too little too late.
Filip Dylewicz was named finals MVP, although he only had a solid night with a modest 9 points and 11 rebounds. Nemanja Jaramaz paced PGE Turow Zgorzelec with 16 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Lukasz Koszarek topped a frustrated Gora with 16 points and 6 assists, while Vladimir Dragicevic had a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.