Trevion Williams led Bahcesehir with a strong double-double performance
Bahcesehir bounces back with fourth-quarter surge over Cluj
Game Report
3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 10 of 18
Regular Season
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Bahcesehir College IstanbulBKS
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U-BT Cluj-NapocaUBT
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Overview
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Bahcesehir College Istanbul needed a night to find its rhythm again, and a strong 84-72 win over U-BT Cluj Napoca delivered exactly that, moving the home side to 7-3 in Group A.
Bahcesehir entered the night searching for a reset after two straight losses. As the game unfolded, the home team seized control, using a fourth-quarter push to secure an important victory.
‘‘This is a hell of a way to bounce back. We just wanna keep building on this,’’ said Trevion Williams after a solid double-double performance.
All night long, Williams anchored Bahcesehir inside, powering the offense and controlling the boards. His impact was steady, hitting a double-double early in the third quarter. He closed the night with 22 points and 15 rebounds.
After three balanced quarters, the turning point of the game came in the fourth, where Bahcesehir’s defense fully took over. The home side opened the final frame with a 17-0 run and held Cluj to just 10 points in the period. Most importantly, the Istanbul side kept the league’s highest-scoring team, averaging 96.9 points, to just 72 on the night.
‘‘We needed this one bad,’’ Bahcesehir coach Marko Barac stated afterward. ‘‘This is why probably in some parts of the game we were too nervous offensively. But in the fourth quarter we managed to find our advantages and to stay confident in the clutch moments to make two open shots for a very important win.’’
Malachi Flynn kept Bahcesehir in the game early with two key threes and 9 points in the first quarter. He made his impact felt again in the fourth, helping extend the lead and finishing with 18 points. Tyler Cavanaugh also made an impact in the final frame, contributing 13 points to seal the win.
Missing star guard Fatts Russell, Cluj leaned on Mitch Creek to stay in the game. His second-quarter buckets gave the offense a spark, and he finished with 12 points. Nighael Ceaser and Saulius Kulvietis added 11 each, while Dusan Miletic chipped in 9 points.
Cluj coach Mihai Silvasan said: ‘‘I think it was an interesting game and close fight until the fourth quarter, when we just didn’t find the right shots, we turned the ball over. We didn’t manage to handle well their aggressive defense, and the result was 28-10 in the fourth quarter… That’s basketball, you know; you need to play consistent and good until the end.’’
Beyond the arc, neither team found much rhythm, with Bahcesehir hitting 7 of 27 and Cluj 6 of 18 from deep.
In Round 11, Bahcesehir will try to carry its momentum on the road to face Umana Reyer Venice, while Cluj will host Neptunas Klaipeda at home.
