Fenerbahçe win derby match
Fenerbahçe have made a perfect start to their EuroLeague season, winning their first two matches of the 2020/2021 season.
The Turkish side, who finished eighth last season in the regular season, beat last year’s regular season leaders Anadolu Efes Istanbul 80-71.
Efes had a seven-point lead in the first half, but Fenerbache fought back to win the second quarter 26-12 and were ahead at half-time.
Stats from the game
Frenchman Nando De Colo stood out in the derby win, scoring 20 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. Lorenzo Brown also contributed in the scoring department, adding 17.
Bu akşam sergilediği harika oyunuyla 2️⃣8️⃣ verimlilik puanına ulaşan @NandoDeColo‘nun göz alıcı performansını hatırlayalım! ✨#YellowLegacy #EuroLeague pic.twitter.com/qMs8lrcYCk
— Fenerbahçe Beko (@FBBasketbol) October 8, 2020
Efes player Krunoslav Simon top-scored across both teams with 24 points but only one other player managed double figures for the Istanbul side.
Fenerbahçe set a club record, making 48 rebounds, a new high in the EuroLeague. All 10 players grabbed a rebound with Jan Vesely managing 10 himself.
Igor Kokoshov’s side were more prolific with their three-point attempts, scoring 9 out of 17 (52.9%), while Efes managed 9 out of 28 (32.1%). Efes were without key man Shane Larkin due to injury and have now lost their first two games of the season.
Fenerbahçe host CSKA Moscow in their next game. CSKA defeated Maccabi Tel Aviv 76-72 in week two with American Mike James scoring 25 points, 3 assists and 2 rebounds. James won the Alphonso Ford Trophy in 2019 for being the top points-scorer in the division.
Madrid and Barcelona beaten
Real Madrid were beaten at home 93-77 by Valencia, making it two defeats out of two for last season’s second-placed side. Bojan Dublijevic top-scored for Valencia with 24 points. No Real Madrid player managed more than 15.
🏀 Nuestro equipo pierde ante @valenciabasket en el regreso de la @EuroLeague al WiZink. #RMBaloncesto pic.twitter.com/8RqliJUYjT
— Real Madrid Basket (@RMBaloncesto) October 8, 2020
Zenit edged past Barcelona in a very tight match that was winnable for both teams in the final seconds. The Russian side won 74-70 but they only led by one point with 23 seconds left. Two vital free-throws from Kevin Pangos and one from Will Thomas saw them make it a 100% start to the season.