Just three days after they saw Bitci Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz get away with a 80-79 win in Fonteta, Valencia Basket bounced back and responded with a 89-82 (20-21, 26-20, 21-18, 22-23) road triumph at the Fernando Buesa Arena in Vitoria for the Spanish league quarter-finals.
Bitci Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz / Schedule
Valencia Basket
Bitci Baskonia Vitoria-GasteizThe Basque side still have a slight edge, since they will be hosting Game 3 as well.
Jasiel Rivero led all scorers, finishing with 27 points. For the Basques, their top scorer was Alec Peters, with 18 points.
Thanks to Jasiel Rivero's scoring success and his 11 points in the first quarter, the Taronja managed to reduce the deficit and closed the first ten minutes with an even score (21-20).
From the second quarter onwards, Valencia took the lead largely thanks to Jasiel Rivero who scored 8 points over that span. While the hosts had fought their way back into the game (54-60), Olivier Hanlan came in and drained two long-range shots.
In the last quarter, Sam Van Rossom helped the guests maintain the lead thanks to his outside shot. Coach Joan Peniarroya knew how to control the scoreboard, slowing down the pace and keeping his team out of harm's way.
Valencia Basket: Jasiel Rivero 27 (8/12 FG, 7/10 FT), Martin Hermansson 16 (6/8 FG, 1/2 FT, 4 REB, 4 AST), Sam Van Rossom 13 (4/7 FG, 2/3 FT, 6 AST), Olivier Hanlan 13 (4/5 FG, 2/4 FT).
Baskonia: Alec Peters 18 (5/8 FG, 6/6 FT, 9 REB), Simone Fontecchio 14 (3 REB, 3 TO), Matt Costello 13 (3/6 FG, 5/8 FT, 7 REB), Wade Baldwin 12 (5/10 FG, 1/2 FT, 8 AST).
