2010-11 EuroLeague Action Continues

November 11, 2010

• USA EuroLeague Updates: 11/5
• 2010-11 EuroLeague Schedule & Results
• Select USA Basketball Players -- EuroLeague Stats
• EuroLeague Links: Teams || Players || Stats || Results & Standings

Leader of the Pack
Diana Taurasi led all EuroLeague scorers last season from the first game through the championship. While she missed out on that distinction after not having the high-scoring game in the 2010-11 opening contest (she ‘only’ had 24), Taurasi jumped back on top last week and remains there after three games. Taurasi is averaging 28.0 ppg. and her Turkish club teammate Penny Taylor, also a Phoenix Mercury teammate, is ranked No. 4 at 19.3 ppg. It’s no wonder their team is 3-0 to start the year.  Quanitra Hollingsworth and Cheryl Ford lead the league in rebounding with 11.3 rpg. apiece, however, Candice Dupree and Sylvia Fowles are close behind at 10.7 rpg. each. Also worth noting, Angel McCoughtry’s 3.3 spg. ranks No. 2 among league leaders.

Status Quo
There have been no real upsets so far this season. The only big change seen is with Spartak, which is missing a few key pieces to its four-time EuroLeague championship puzzle in Sue Bird (joining the team later), Sylvia Fowles (transferred to Galatasaray M.P.) and Diana Taurasi (transferred to Fenerbache S.K.). The big winners in the Spartak moves have to be Halcon Avenida Salamanca, which is now 3-0, and Galatasaray, which is 2-1, both of which are now ahead of Spartak in Group C standings. For the remaining teams and pools, it’s still a little too early to tell what will happen later in the season with regards to who will advance and who won’t.

Rookie Sensation
Much like Angel McCoughtry did last season, Tina Charles has produced early for her Russian team, Nadezhda. Unfortunately, Charles’ team-highs of 17.0 ppg. and 10.3 rpg. aren’t enough to propel the young squad to victory after three games back in EuroLeague action after a season in the EuroLeague. The team currently lists nine players on its game-day stats and needs to fortify its roster with some help for Charles, who is shooting 51.2 percent from the field, soon.

GROUP A
Good Angels Kosice 77, TTT Riga 60
Good Angels Kosice (2-1) collected a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds from Candice Dupree as it upped its record to 2-1 with a 77-60 victory at still-winless TTT Riga (0-3).  The Good Angels took a 10-point, 29-19, lead after the first quarter and headed into the locker room up 43-28 and never looked back. Charde Houston pitched in 27 a game-high 27 points for Good Angels, while Quanitra Hollingsworth and Shavonte Zellous each had 17 points for the Latvian side.

“I am satisfied with the outcome of the game, because the whole team played well,” Houston told FIBAEurope.com. “This is a massive win for us, we still had our first game (the loss in Taranto) in our minds. And we got momentum from our first home win against USO Mondeville. Once we come together and play hard, we can show some really good basketball.”

Cras Basket Taranto 63, Wisla Can-Pack 57
Cras Basket Taranto (3-0) now sits alone at the top of the group after defeating Wisla Can-Pack (1-2) 63-57 behind a double-double from Brooke Smith (17 points, 10 boards).

USO Mondeville 70, Pécs 2010 58
In Hungary, USO Mondeville (2-1) stayed in the top half of the bracket with a 70-58 win over Pécs 2010 (1-2). The French squad was led by 30 points from Lenae Williams, while former DePaul standout Allie Quigley posted 18 points and 10 rebounds for Pécs.
 
GROUP B
Fenerbache S.K. 89, MKB Euroleasing 72
Fenerbache S.K. (3-0) remained undefeated, thanks in part to a 26-point performance by Diana Taurasi, who also was credited with five assists and four steals. Fener took down 2010 Final Four participant MKB Euroleasing (2-1) 89-72, despite the Hungarian squad receiving 19 points and four steals from Angel McCoughtry.

“We are a new team and day by day by we play better,” Taurasi was quoted on FIBAEurope.com. “We really worked a lot on Sopron before the game; we knew they are a very good team, they have really talented players. We started to the game so fast and played so well in the defense."

UMMC Ekaterinburg 76, Rivas Ecópolis 54
UMMC Ekaterinburg (3-0) also sits atop Group B after keeping its winning streak going with a 76-54 thumping of winless Rivas Ecópolis (0-3).  Cappie Pondexter helped Ekat to victory with 14 points, while Courtney Paris top-scored in the losing effort with 17 points.

Lotos Gdynia 90, Gospic Croatia 88
In the closest game of the week in Group B, and one that went down to the wire, Lotos Gdynia (1-2) prevailed for its first win, taking a 90-88 victory from Gospic Croatia (0-3), which is still in the hunt for its first win of the season. Monica Wright paced Lotos to its win with 26 points, seven rebounds and five assists; while Sandora Irvin posted 12 points and four boards.

Looking Ahead …
Next week will see UMMC Ekaterinburg go up against MKB Euroleasing in what should be one of the top games of the week, while at least one of the two winless teams will carve out its first victory as Gospic and Rivas go head-to-head on Nov. 17.

GROUP C
ZVVZ USK Prague 73, Spartak Moscow Region 72
Spartak Moscow Region (1-2) not only saw big changes to its roster this year due to the new rules regarding player eligibility, it is now in unfamiliar territory. The team that went undefeated last season has now dropped two of its first to games and sits tied for third place in Group C with four different teams. DeLisha Milton-Jones helped ZVVZ USK Prague (1-2) to its first win, a 73-72 thriller, by producing 22 points, nine rebounds and a pair of blocked shots; while Lindsay Whalen notched 16 points, seven rebounds and three assists in the win. Lauren Jackson topped out for Spartak with 16 points and seven rebounds.

Still without Sue Bird, who will join the team later this year, Spartak is also missing Sylvia Fowles and Diana Taurasi from last year’s championship squad.

"As the coach said, you have to have a little bit of luck to win a tied game, but I think our desire and efforts to win decided the result today,” Milton-Jones said to FIBAEurope.com. “After two lost games this victory is very important. We won against the winner of last season, this is great and we have to build on this and get from it just the best. Spartak is a great team with a great coach but today the ball bounced on our side."

Galatasaray M.P. 82, VICI Aistes Kaunas 58
Galatasaray M.P. (2-1) had an easy time against VICI Aistes Kaunas (1-2), rolling to an 82-58 victory at home as Sylvia Fowles posted a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Seimone Augustus contributed 16 points.

Halcon Avenida Salamanca 77, Tarbes G.B. 72
Halcon Avenida Salamanca (3-0), which reached the Final Four in 2009, remains alone at the top of Group C after clipping Tarbes G.B. (1-2) 77-72. In a game that was up and down, Halcon Avenida was up 25-18 after the first period, but Tarbes GB fought back and tied it up at halftime, 39-19. The scoring was even in the third and heading into the fourth stanza it was knotted at 57-all. After taking the lead early in the fourth and then losing it again, Anika DeMondt made a layup with 7:10 to play to put the Spanish club up for good, 62-61, and Halcon Avenida held on for the win. Australia’s Belinda Snell led Halcon with 17 points and Brazil’s Erika de Souza added 14.

GROUP D
Gorzow 74, Frisco Sika Brno 61
Gorzow (1-2) earned its first victory of the season with a 74-61 game over Frisco Sika Brno (1-2) with the help of Belarus’ Yelena Leuchanka’s double-double of 16 points and 15 rebounds. Also aiding in the win was 2010 USA Select Team member Kalana Greene, who posted 14 points. On the other side of the board, 2008 USA World Championship Team member Cheryl Ford scored seven points and hauled in 17 rebounds.

Bourges Basket 82, Nadezhda 72
Bourges Basket (2-1) upped its mark after surpassing Nadezhda (0-3) 82-72. Bourges started off on top, but by the end of the third period, the Russian squad tied up the game at 55-apiece. The score see-sawed in the fourth quarter until Tina Charles hit a jumper with under six minutes to play to give Nadezhda a 62-61 edge. However, Charles and her team were unable to pull away and with 2:11 to play, the score was again tied at 69-69. From there Nadezhda sent Bourges to the line on six different possessions and the French side went 11-of-12 from the line in the final minutes to seal the victory.

Charles finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds, while fellow USA National Team member Shameka Christon scored 10 points. Bourges was paced to the win by Endene Miyem with 20 points, while Emmeline Ndongue had 13 points and 10 boards.

Ros Casares Valencia 76, Beretta-Famila 67
Ros Casares Valencia (3-0), a 2010 Final Four participant, remained undefeated after pushing past Beretta-Famila (2-1) in the third quarter and claiming a 76-67 victory. Entering the second half trailing 43-40, Ros Casares quickly righted the ship, taking a lead it would never relinquish 2:01 into the third quarter (46-45). The Spanish side eventually outscored the Italian team 22-6 in the third and cruised home for the win. Rebekkah Brunson and Marta Fernandez scored 20 points apiece to lead Ros, while Brunson also hauled in 11 boards. Janel McCarville contributed 14 points and 10 rebounds for Beretta-Famila.