Broekhoff wins overtime thriller, Madgen breaks his hand
Ryan Broekhoff helped Lokomotiv earn a thrilling overtime road victory, while Ben Madgen's season is on hold for up to 8 weeks following a broken hand that required surgery.
Seeking to win their third EuroLeague game of the season, Maccabi Tel Aviv traveled to Serbia to take on Crvena Zvezda. While the home side started strongly, Jonah Bolden forced Maccabi into the lead. The 6'10 big man was on fire, draining 3-of-4 treys for 10 points in the opening period as the Israeli side took control. Maccabi would extend their lead to 10 points at the main break and seemingly in command of the contest.
https://twitter.com/MaccabitlvBC/status/923927288420491266
The second half saw the Serbian's claw their way back into the game, ensuring a thrilling finish. Crvena Zvezda went ahead on a Taylor Rochestie (22 points and 5 assists) treble with 15 seconds left. Maccabi had one last chance to take home the win, but DeShaun Thomas' (28 points) potential game-winning triple missed to give the home side a 87-84 win [video highlights]. After his hot start, Bolden finished with 11 points (3-of-6 3PT) with 5 rebounds and 2 assists in 20 minutes. His side is now 2-2 and will next tackle Milan.
Seeking to register their first win of the competition, Anadolu Efes Istanbul hosted Russian superpower CSKA Moscow. Following a high-scoring first term when virtually nothing separated either side, CSKA pulled away in the second to open up a solid 10 point margin. While the home team would fight back to try to restore the balance in the third quarter, CSKA proved to have far too much firepower to cruise to a 80-98 victory behind Nando de Colo's 18 points and 5 assists [video highlights].
After a big scoring effort Australian Boomer Brock Motum in their Turkish Basketball League contest last weekend, the 6'10 forward saw just 7 minutes for 2 points and 1 rebound in the EuroLeague loss. Anadolu is now just one of two teams without a win across the first four rounds of competition.
Looking to improve on their unbeaten start to the season, Lokomotiv Kuban hit the road to take on Lithuanian side Lietuvos Rytas, with both former EuroCup champions boasting Australians on their rosters. Despite missing Ben Madgen with a broken hand [more later], Rytas managed to gain the upper hand in the first half, keeping the Russian's at bay for the most part despite some hot shooting from beyond the arc, including that from Australian Boomer Ryan Broekhoff. Lokomotiv would never go away, ensuring the scores were locked at 45-all at half time.
The home side managed to build an 11 point lead in the third term, however Lokomotiv were not yet done. Joe Ragland (21 points and 9 assists) was one of six players to score in double figures for Lokomotiv, helping power the Russian side into what appeared to be a match-winning lead down the stretch. Rytas would have the home fans on their feet after sinking three triples in the final two minutes, including a step-back trey from Rokas Giedraitis (19 points) that would force overtime.
Despite the raucous home crowd, the visitors would pull through in extra time, earning a deserved 85-93 road win to maintain their unblemished EuroCup record and remain atop of Group C [video highlights]. Broekhoff finished with 10 points and 6 rebounds in 33 minutes in another great performance. Bilbao Basket will be their next opponent who have just the single win to their name so far.
https://twitter.com/lokobasket/status/923110231424536577
Madgen has undergone surgery to have a pin inserted into his broken hand, an injury expected to sideline him for up to 8 weeks. Surgery was successful 10 days ago, and while Madgen is back working out already, he is unable to take part in any contact activities for a further 6 weeks. The injury is a tough set-back for the dynamic guard in his first season at Lietuvos Rytas, one that is now likely to see the former Sydney King miss the remainder of the EuroCup regular season.
Bilbao fell short to Partizan Belgrade, a side with first year Australian professional Tom Wilson. While Wilson has yet to take to the court with Partizan this season, his side earned their first win of the competition thanks to 27 points and 8 rebounds from Nigel Williams-Goss and Novica Velickovic who added 19 points and 8 rebounds in their 92-96 result.