2008-09 EuroLeague Update Vol. 4

Vol. 4 - Dec. 10, 2008 (Vol. 1 // Vol. 2 // Vol. 3.1)

- 2008-09 EuroLeague Results
- Select USA Basketball Players: 2008-09 EuroLeague Stats
- Official EuroLeague Site
- Have a comment or suggestion? Let us know!

Stat of the Day
Essence Carson had a 33-point output today and is currently averaging a EuroLeague second-best 19.1 ppg. She went 13-of-21 from the field, including a whopping 7-of-9 from 3-point range, while also grabbing eight boards and being credited with a block and a steal. Sadly for Carson and her TTT Riga squad, her team lost 83-76.

Terrapin Tandem
They were murder on other teams when they played together at Maryland. No longer teammates, something I'm sure other teams have other teams breathing collective sighs of relief, Laura Harper and Crystal Langhorne are still tearing apart the opposition. (They also won a number of gold medals together with USA Basketball ... anyone thinking about 2012? ... yes, IS a little far off to start talking about, but ...). Ok, back to the EuroLeague. They continue to be the only two players averaging double-doubles in their inaugural EuroLeague season. Harp, at 11.3 rpg. is the top rebounder and Lang is averaging 10.2 rpg. in a league that includes the Russian giant Maria Stepanova, who is pulling in a paltry 5.0 rpg. On the scoring side, Lang ranks fifth at 18.4 ppg., while Harp is sixth at 17.9 ppg. Unfortunately it looks like just Langhorne will be advancing to the next round this season. Harper's Besiktas Cola Turka squad is 2-7 with no hope for advancement.

Group A
You've got to hand it to Laura Harper and Besiktas Cola Turka (2-7), even being in the basement of Group A, they don't give up. However, Wisla Can-Pack (6-3), with the help of a massive double-double from Candice Dupree, simply outlasted Harper's club 68-63. Dupree's 18 points and 18 rebounds pushed her side to the victory, while Harper had another top performance with 19 points, 16 boards and a pair of dishes. Additionally, Alexis Hornbuckle contributed five points, four rebounds and three assists to Besiktas Cola Turka.

Bourges Basket (6-3) leveled the Group A standings today with a 76-51 win over Halcon Avenida (6-3) in France. With three teams standing at 6-3, next week's Group A games will be very competitive as the top three squads will look to gain the upper hand heading into the next round. Bourges held Michelle Snow to just eight points and four rebounds.

MiZo Pecs 2010 - Nadezhda (Thursday game)

Group B
Tamika Whitmore posted a double-double of 22 points and 10 boards to lead Gambrinus (4-5) to an 83-76 victory over TTT Riga (3-6), increasing the Czech club's chances of securing a EuroLeague playoff spot. Despite her club's loss, the performance of the game came from Essence Carson, who nailed 7-of-9 of her attempts from beyond the arc, poured in 33 points and added eight rebounds.

MKB Euroleasing (5-4) handed CSKA Moscow (5-4) a 77-68 loss Wednesday afternoon. Katie Douglas (13 points, 7 rebounds) and Janel McCarville (4 points, 6 rebounds) combined to shoot just 6-of-21 from the field in CSKA's loss, which will likely hurt the team come playoff time. Yes, CSKA should still advance to the next round of EuroLeague action, but the Russian club might find itself facing some tough competition in the next round by finishing in the third or fourth spot. And CSKA faces the top team in the group next week. That forfeit might hurt the team more than originally thought.

ESB Lille Metropole (3-6) stunned Umana Reyer (7-2) in a 76-70 road game as Jolene Anderson scored nine points in the victory. The French club was bolstered by Brazil and WNBA star Izi's 25 points.

Group C
After suffering its first loss of the EuroLeague season last week to Ros Casares, UMMC Ekaterinburg (8-1) came back with a vengeance against ZVVZ USK Prague (3-6), throttling the Czech club 103-57. The Russian club went up early, owning a 27-11 advantage after the first quarter and 52-35 at halftime, and never looked back. Had there been any doubt after half the game was played as to who would collect the victory, by the end of the third quarter the game was in the bag, 71-39. Yes, you read that right, UMMC clamped down in the third quarter and outscored Prague 19-4. Olympic gold medalist Cappie Pondexter scored 15 points and dished out seven assists, while Asjha Jones helped the Russian club to victory with 14 points and six rebounds. 2004 Olympic gold medalist Swin Cash posted 13 points and eight rebounds for the Czech club.

LOTOS PKO BP (4-5) clinched its playoff berth by virtue of a 79-72 overtime win over Jolly JBS Sibenik (2-7). The Polish club was aided by Alana Beard's 21 points, five rebounds and three assists. Interestingly, the game was played in Sibenik, where AB has some winning history. She was a member of the 2001 USA U21 World Championship Team that captured the gold medal in that very city.

Coming off a huge victory over UMMC Ekaterinburg last week, Ros Casares (7-2) continues to roll along, notching a 91-61 victory over Union Hainaut Basket (3-6) on the road Wednesday. The only two losses Ros Casares suffered came early in the season, their second and third games, against Prague (87-72) and Ekaterinburg (89-81). The Valencia team received 17 points from two-time Olympic gold medalist DeLisha Milton-Jones and 13 points from Roneeka Hodges.

Group D
Sylvia Fowles scored Spartak's (8-1) first six points inside in a 100-50 crushing of Broker Kosice (5-4) as Spartak clinched the top spot in Group D. The Russian side also doubled the Slovak team's rebounding efforts, cleaning the glass for a 40-20 margin. Fowles finished the contest with 12 points and five boards in 17 minutes, while 2008 Olympic teammates Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi contributed 12 and 15 points, respectively. Bird missed out on a double-double by an assist after passing off for nine, while Taurasi also added six caroms and four assists. Sidney Spencer scored eight points for Broker Kosice.

Beretta Famila (2-7) gave its fans something to cheer for today, picking up its second win of the year, an 88-69 defeat of TEO Vilnius (5-4). Tasha Humphrey had 14 points for the winning side, while Crystal Langhorne scored 15 for the Lithuanian team.

Fenerbahce (6-3) used a 21-9 third-quarter run to pull away from the upset-minded Lattes Montpellier (1-8) for an eventual 70-61 win. Recent Washington Mystics draftee Matee Ajavon scored 22 points for Fenerbache in the win, while Sheana Mosch had 23 points and five boards in her French club's losing effort.