UNICS Kazan (2-0) hosted AS Monaco (0-2) in a rematch of last season's Eurocup final. However, the first victory in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague for the Russian club will to wait.
| Player of the Game | |
|
EFF
21
|
| Donta Hall | |
| Points | 16 |
| Accuracy | 7-9 |
| Rebounds | 8 |
| Assists | 0 |
In a duel, which required overtime, UNICS lost 80-88 (15-18, 20-21, 23-11, 16-24, 6-14).
During the overtime, the game remained extremely close. But with just under two minutes left on the clock, Monaco gave a strong push to the victory with a 5-0 run (83-78), thanks to a Mike James' two-pointer and Paris Lee's three.
An emphatic put-back dunk by Donta Hall gave Monaco a nine-point lead (87-78), ended the game for good.
For Monaco, Hall was the top scorer with 16 points (7/9 2PTS, 2/2 FT), 8 rebounds, 2 turnovers, 2 blocks,1 steal, and 21 PIR. Meanwhile, Mike James added 14 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 turnovers, 1 steal, 10 PIR.
Monaco's head coach Zvezdan Mitrovic commented on the win in this way: "First, it is like some destiny. We finished our European season here and now we start our first EuroLeague trip in Kazan.
I am really happy because we won, especially in overtime. It is the beginning of the season and I think the teams are new".
UNICS entered the final quarter with an eight-point lead. Monaco began to cut down the lead in the final quarter and with two consecutive baskets from Leo Westermann, they tied the game with less than 7 minutes on the clock (61-61).
Paris Lee's three-pointer gave Monaco a one-point lead with 1:45 left on the clock (71-70). But the two teams kept trading baskets, John Brown gave the lead back to UNICS, and immediately after Donta Hall scored for Monaco (73-72).
Mario Hezonja, who had a great second half, gave the lead back to UNICS with a basket right after the inbound (74-73).
UNIKS Kazan / Schedule
UNIKS Kazan
Monaco Basket
FC Bayern Munich
Fenerbahce IstanbulWith only 2.1 seconds left on the clock, though, Mike James was fouled and had the opportunity to snatch the victory. However, he made only one free throw and sent the game to the overtime.
Hezonja was the top scorer for UNICS with 17 points (4/11 2PTS, 2/6 3PTS, 3/4 FT), 5 rebounds, 3 turnovers, 1 block, and 8 PIR.
Monaco's star James stressed how tough is to win on the road in EuroLeague.
"We won, and that is what we wanted to do. Getting a win on the road in the EuroLeague is always tough, so I am happy that we could do it, really. Defense".
"We started buckling down and sharing the ball, too, getting better shots, better looks. Basically, we starting getting stops and sharing the ball. We played together, as a team; it creates nice energy and that leads to good things", he finished.
The second half started with a bang from UNICS, who started the third quarter with a 13-4 run (48-43), behind the 9 points in 5 minutes of Mario Hezonja. Monaco struggled to find the offensive rhythm.
Isaiah Canaan had a fantastic sequence to finish the period, first blocking Mike James on the defensive end and then scoring in transition at the buzzer to give UNICS an eight-point lead (58-50).
UNICS: Mario Hezonja 17 (5 REB), John Brown 14 (7 REB), Lorenzo Brown 13, Isaiah Canaan 10, Andrey Vorontsevich 10
Monaco: Donta Hall 16 (8 REB), Mike James 14 (7 REB), Paris Lee 12, Brock Motum 11, Danilo Andjusic 10
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