20 October, 2020
09 May, 2021
0 Devaughn Akoon-purcell (TOFA), 3 Omar Prewitt (NYMB)
19/01/2021
Game Report
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Tofas, Nymburk and Nizhny progress to Play-Offs - Week 11 Tuesday roundup

MIES (Switzerland) - Tofas Bursa clinched first place in Group B and a Play-Offs berth in their maiden BCL campaign after claiming their second big road win in a row on Tuesday, this time around at ERA Nymburk.

Nymburk also qualified to the Play-Offs, at the expense of JDA Dijon, while Nizhny Novgorod prevailed against Falco Szombathely in a do-or-die clash at home and picked up the remaining ticket to the Play-Offs from Group D.

Here's a closer look at the final day of action in Group B and in Group D:

ERA Nymburk 97-103 Tofas Bursa -- Group B


DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell and Tomislav Zubcic combined for 50 points to power Tofas Bursa to a 103-97 win at ERA Nymburk, the Turkish team's third victory in as many road games in Group B, that earns the BCL debutants a trip to the Play-Offs.

Nymburk will also progress to the next stage as they have the upper hand over JDA Dijon in the three-way tie which involved the Czech champions, Tofas and the French team all finishing at 4-2 at the conclusion of the Regular Season.

Tofas trailed the hosts for almost the entire first half and by as many as 10 points but, midway through the third frame, Zubcic hit back-to-back triples on Akoon-Purcell assists to cut the deficit to just one point, 66-65 with 4:33 left to play in the period.

Akoon-Purcell intercepted a bad pass and finished with a dunk in transition to give the visitors their first lead since the opening minute and the two teams traded blows the rest of the quarter and late into the final stanza.

But Zubcic drilled his fourth triple of the night with 1:55 remaining on the clock to give the Turkish side a 96-92 cushion and Semaj Christon stretched it to five points with a layup 17 seconds from time, sealing the big win for the visitors.

Tofas put in an impressive defensive effort down the stretch and came up with 11 steals and forced 22 Nymburk turnovers, off which they scored 23 vital points.

Zubcic led the way for the Turkish team with 27 points and 3 rebounds while Akoon-Purcell had a near double-double of 23 points and 9 boards, also adding 3 assists and 3 steals. For Nymburk, Omar Prewitt had a team-high 24 points and added 5 rebounds in a losing effort.

Nizhny Novgorod 73-68 Falco Szombathely -- Group D


Nizhny Novgorod started off the final quarter on a 12-0 run and held on to prevail 73-68 over Falco Szombathely in the Group D win-or-go-home battle for a ticket to the Play-Offs.

The Russian team finished in second place in the group at 4-2 and will accompany Group D winners Casademont Zaragoza in the next stage while the Hungarian side finish third on a 3-3 record.

Nizhny led by double digits in the second frame but Falco held their hosts to just 10 points in the third quarter and jumped ahead 49-48 on two Kyan Anderson free-throws at the end of the period.

Evgenii Baburin however knocked down a triple right with the start of the final stanza and sparked a 12-0 burst which Luke Petrasek capped off with another three-pointer 6:43 from the final buzzer, giving Nizhny a 60-49 lead.

Falco threw everything at the hosts in the final stretch and Evan Bruinsma drilled a triple with just 8 seconds left on the clock to reduce the deficit to just two points, 70-68, but Artem Komolov drew an unsportsmanlike foul and sealed Nizhny's win from the stripe.

Nizhny hit 6 of their 12 triples in the final quarter and shot 43 percent from beyond the arc, while Falco finished with 5 three-pointers and shot 29.4 percent from downtown.

Komolov paved the way for Nizhny with his 21 points on 7 of 12 shooting from the floor, 3 rebounds and 3 assists, while Petrasek finished with a near double-double of 13 points and 9 rebounds. Akos Keller, Benedek Varadi and Zoltan Perl finished with 11 points apiece for Falco in defeat.

Keravnos 44-79 JDA Dijon -- Group B


JDA Dijon cruised to a 79-44 victory at Keravnos but will miss out on the Play-Offs as Tofas Bursa's win at ERA Nymburk means the French team finish below the Turkish and the Czech teams in the three-way tie at 4-2 in the Group B standings.

The French team went on a 16-3 run during a six-minute stretch bridging the two middle quarters to pull away from the Cypriot side and put the game beyond reach.

With Dijon leading by a relatively fragile 34-26 right before the three-minute mark in the second quarter, David Holston drilled a triple to instigate the burst.

The American point guard capped it off himself with a layup 7:24 from the end of the third frame, stretching the lead to 50-29. Keravnos had no energy left to attempt a comeback and Dijon kept their foot on the gas in the final stanza.

The visitors score 20 points off Keravnos' 18 turnovers and held the hosts to just 15 percent three-point shooting.

Hans Vanwijn paced Dijon with a double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds, also adding 5 assists, and Chase Simon chipped in with 14 points. Brandon Rozzell was the only Keravnos player to score in double digits and he finished with 12 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists.

Casademont Zaragoza 94-82 Pszczolka Start Lublin -- Group D


Group D winners Casademont Zaragoza concluded the Regular Season on a high note after finishing strong to outscore Pszczolka Start Lublin 94-82 at home.

The Spanish team topped the group standings on a 5-1 record, while the Polish team lost all six games in what was their first ever BCL campaign.

Zaragoza led by as many as 14 points shortly before the end of the opening quarter, but Lublin were hoping not to wave goodbye to the competition without tasting victory and cut the deficit to just two points in the third frame.

But with the hosts leading 71-67 and just over nine minutes remaining to the final buzzer, Tryggvi Hlinason converted a three-point play to give Zaragoza some breathing space.

The big man's play sparked a 10-2 Zaragoza burst which Nicolas Brussino capped off with a triple right before the seven-minute mark to stretch the hosts' lead to 81-69, and Lublin run out of gas.

Brussino finished with a double-double of 14 points and 10 assists while Rasheed Sulaimon and Javier Garcia also had 14 points apiece for Zaragoza. Lublin's Yannick Franke had a game-high 28 points in a losing effort.