Fenerbahce’s fourth period and Keenan Evans’ miss decided the game in Istanbul

The game had a clear favorite and a clear underdog, but on Wednesday evening (December 20th) it came to a head at the ULKER Sports Arena. Great fight between Fenerbahce and Zalgiris, where the Turkish team achieved a hard-fought victory (80-78) on matchday 15 of the EuroLeague. Keenan Evans missed a two-pointer in the final overtime.

Fenerbahce (7-0 home and 1-7 away) climbed to 8-7, with Sarunas Jasikevicius watching Scotty Wilbekin, Tyler Dorsey (goal foul for 80-76) scoring well and Jonathan Motley dominating the game. The Turks were in the hunt for most of the game, but when they had to step on the gas they had the talent to do the laundry, although their opponents needed a late shot to survive.

For its part, Zalgiris fell to 5-10 (2-4 at home and 3-6 away) but impressed with its fighting spirit and the character it showed on a field bent by those who have it. Visit this year. Rolands Schmitz and Laurinas Biroutis were excellent, as was Keenan Evans, who became the focal point of Fenerbahce’s defense early on.

A 21:8 run in the fourth quarter increased the score from 56:62 to 77:70, with the home team conceding the result and now looking for a better picture away from home. The game against Alba in Berlin is a good opportunity for them to make up for lost ground.

Giorgos Papagiannis was hardly used (4:22), meaning he had neither space nor time to contribute. The Greek center back had a missed two-point shot and a foul, with Mitlos and Sanli sharing minutes in the middle.

THE REFEREES: Garcia, Perandy, Biswell

THE DECADES: 22-26, 37-48, 56-62, 80-78

FENERBACHT (Jasikevicius): Fenerbahce 16 (6/10 2-points, 4/6 3-points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists), Wilbekin 17 (5/7 3-points, 2/2 shots, 3 assists, 2 steals), Sanli 3 (1), Papagiannis, Hayes 6 (2/7 shots, 2/3 shots, 4 rebounds), Biberovic, Pierre 7 (3/10 shots, 8 rebounds, 3 steals), Goodrich 7 (1), Dorsey 19 (4/5 two-pointers, 2/3 three-pointers, 5/5 shots), Kalathis 5 (1 three-pointer, 3 rebounds, 6 assists), Mandar, Sestina

ZALGIRIS KAUNAS (Maxwits): Evans 19 (1/5 2-pointers, 4/6 3-pointers, 5/5 shots, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals), Hayes 7 (4 rebounds), Giedraitis 2, Schmitz 16 (5 /7 2-point shots, 1/4 3-point shots, 3/3 shots, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals), Biroutis 14 (5/6 2-point shots, 4/6 shots), Hollins 7 (1), Sumner 6 (2), Dimsa 3 (1), Lavrinovicous 2, Ulanovas 2 (2 rebounds, 5 assists)

Fenerbahce team statistics: 18/36 2-pointers, 10/23 3-pointers, 14/17 shots, 30 rebounds (23 defensive – 7 offensive), 18 assists, 9 steals, 3 blocks, 14 turnovers, 22 fouls

Zalgiris Kaunas team statistics: 18/32 2-pointers, 9/21 3-pointers, 15/19 shots, 29 rebounds (25 defensive – 4 offensive), 20 assists, 6 steals, 14 turnovers, 21 fouls

The next games of the two teams: On matchday 16, Fenerbahce plays against Alba in Berlin (December 22nd, 9:15 p.m.), while Zalgiris hosts Barcelona in Kaunas (December 22nd, 8:00 p.m.).