EWE Baskets edge Juventus Utena to stay in hunt for second place in Group A
UTENA (Basketball Champions League) - EWE Baskets Oldenburg left it late but eked out a 77-73 triumph at Juventus Utena to boost their chances of a second-place finish in Group A.
Already assured of a spot in the Round of 16 but trying to beat Pinar Karsiyaka to second spot by the end of the Regular Season, the German club early on rode the back of Rickey Paulding, who scored 15 of his game-high 27 points in the opening quarter.
.@RPaulding23 scores 27pts, including the game-clinching free throws with 16 seconds left in the game, as @EWE_Baskets climb to 8-5 in Group A! #BasketballCL
— #BasketballCL (@BasketballCL) January 30, 2018
📊https://t.co/v3vtY6BgaI pic.twitter.com/0Ks9MWLl13
With his team trailing 67-65 and less then 4:00 remaining, Paulding was fouled for the second time in the game while attempting a shot from behind the arc and he made all three free-throws.
Arvydas Siksnius, who was outstanding for the hosts, answered with a lay-up to put his team back in front, 69-68.
The game had five more lead changes, with Philipp Schwethelm's 3-pointer in the final minute making it 75-73 and putting the visitors in front to stay.
Following a miss from Anthony Ireland, a big call was made at the other end with the shot clock winding down. Paulding put the ball on the hardwood and drove and was fouled by LaRon Dendy. Paulding made both free-throws to stretch the lead to 77-73.
The visitors won despite playing without big men Rasid Mahalbasic and Maxime De Zeeuw.
EWE Baskets would not have won without the terrific contribution of small forward Armani Moore, who had 5 of his 6 steals in the first half and also ended up with 15 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists and a block. Mickey McConnell was also crucial, hitting timely shots and finishing with 11 points and 9 assists.
"I'm very happy for the win here and I'm very proud for the team how it worked on the court," EWE Baskets coach Mladen Drijencic said.
"Now in the next game at home, we have a chance to make second place in our group, a very, very hard group and get home-court advantage in the Play-Offs. I'm very, very proud of my guys."
EWE Baskets are at home next week to UNET Holon.