Ben Madgen lights up the EuroCup
Broekhoff and Madgen both continued to show off their hot shooting form in the EuroCup Top 16. Over in the Euroleague, Brock Motum and his club Zalgiris Kaunas came away with their third loss in a row after losing to Real Madrid in their last outing.
Žalgiris Kaunas vs Real Madrid
Zalgiris Kaunas took on one of the top clubs in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague, as they faced Real Madrid in what was a back and fourth affair through much of the first three quarters of play. The Lithuanian side was actually able to take the lead at one point, when they led 69-68 in the third period. However, from there Madrid started to go on a run of their own that allowed them to get the upper hand. The Spaniards thoroughly outplayed Zalgiris in the fourth and final frame (outscored them 21-6) and in the end that gave Real Madrid the slight edge to pull away ahead with the final score 74-59.
Brock Motum wasn’t able to get it going tonight, as he scored just 2 points on the night. Instead of hanging his head, Motum found other ways to contribute; whether that was playing with more energy defensively or just rebounding the ball with more tenacity (2 offensive boards) Brock did a great job of contributing despite the fact that his shot wasn’t falling.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrFfwHCRFeI
Lokomotiv Kuban vs Fuenlabrada
Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar beat Montakit Fuenlabrada 86-61 in their last outing, and Lokomotiv Kuban’s perimeter defense played a huge part in their one-sided victory. Montakit Fuenlabrada shot just 19.2% from behind the arc (5/26 FG), and because of that they weren’t able to get themselves back into the game after being down early. Kuban just did a great job of containing the opposition, despite being up by 20 points. They didn’t allow the lead to dictate how they were going to play, and that’s why they ultimately came away with the win.
Ryan Broekhoff was really the tone setter for Lokomotiv Kuban, as he played with the usual high motor and energy, along with the pesky defense we’ve grown accustomed to seeing from him. He also continued finding a rhythm with his jump shot, after hitting 3 triples on his way to scoring 13 points on the night.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7Tb5ZArL-8
Lietkabelis vs Bayern Munich
Lietkabelis Panevezys looked to get just their second win in the EuroCup top 16 after taking on German powerhouse FC Bayern Munich. Coming out of the gates, Bayern Munich was the better team right from the opening tip. They outscored Lietkabelis 27-14 in just the first quarter, but that’s when the Lithuanian side started to go on a run of their own. However, the lead they’d let up earlier on was just too much to overcome, as Bayern Munich came out on top with the final score 85-69.
Despite the loss, Ben Madgen was one of the lone bright spots for Lietkabelis Panevezys, scoring a team-high 17 points on an efficient 5 of 7 shooting from the field. He also made three of his four shots from deep. But as a team, Lietkabelis shot a putrid 38.8% from the floor, and because of that they weren’t able to come away on the winning end of things.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wU0cv2c52EM
